Women who remain physically active after the menopause can reduce their risk of developing breast cancer by as much as one third, new research has shown.

Professor Dr. Jenny Chang-Claude and colleagues studied data obtained from 3,464 breast cancer patients and 6,657 healthy women between the ages of 50 and 74 years. Participants were questioned about their physical activity levels at two periods in their life – during 30 to 49 years of age and 50 and over.

Results showed that women in the control group were generally more active than participants with breast cancer. After adjusting results for other breast cancer risk factors, it was found that women who were the most physically active were approximately one third less likely to develop breast cancer compared to women who were the least physically active. Physical activity in the postmenopausal period was found to be particularly beneficial for reducing breast cancer risk The results also showed that regular gym sessions are not needed to reduce breast cancer risk. Women who were the most physically active walked for a couple of hours each day and cycled for one hour, whilst those who were the least physically active walked for just 30 minutes or so each day.

“It doesn’t always have to be sports,” said study author Dr. Karen Steindorf. “In our calculations we have also taken account of activities such as gardening, cycling, or walking to the shops. Our advice to all women is therefore to stay or become physically active also in the second half of your life. You will not only reduce your risk of breast cancer, but it has been proven that your bones, heart and brain also benefit from it.”

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Some people that the key to success in the gym is to spend all day there, or at least a few hours.  The fact of the matter is that 30 to 45 minutes is all that is necessary to get the gains that you’ve dreamed of.  There are three rules that need to be followed though if you want to be successful.

The first one is that you need to do 3 or 4 of these sessions a week.  So you’re actually in the gym 3 or 4 days.  Sorry, but there’s no miracle 15 minute workout twice a week as seen on tv.

The second one is that you need to workout with intensity.  A good training partner of mine once told a talkative friend of his at the gym that if he wanted to talk, he should go to the coffee shop down the street.  What does intensity mean?  It means taking shorter breaks between sets.  It means working out with purpose.  It means concentrating on your workout.

The leads me to the third topic.  You must have a good workout routine.  If you are new to the gym, it is best to ask a personal trainer for assistance.  They can help you get on your way.  It should be a custom program.  Trainers that just give you a photocopy are taking a shortcut.  Same holds true for workouts from magazines.  If your body is different from mine, why should our workouts be the same?

F. Martinez

New research suggests that nanotechnology may offer scientists with a novel way of treating neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.

Jining Xie and colleagues at the University of Arkansas found that they were able to trigger rat cells called PC12 cells to differentiate into neurons by using nerve growth factor-incorporated magnetic nanotubes. The researchers say that their findings suggest that magnetic nanotubes could be used to deliver nerve growth factor in order restore or repair damaged nerve cells, and thus may offer scientists with a new way of treating neurodegenerative diseases.

“Due to their structure and properties, magnetic nanotubes are among the most promising candidates of multifunctional nanomaterials for clinical diagnostic and therapeutic applications,” said Dr Xie. “We’re excited about these results specifically and the overall promise of functionalized nanotubes to treat patients with these debilitating conditions.”

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Do you hate running on the treadmill for what seems like an eternity?  Do you dread sitting on the rowing machine for a long-time, only to emerge sore and discouraged?

Well today you’re going to learn the best way to do cardio.  It’s not an exercise in particular, but rather a fitness concept.  It’s called HIIT or high-intensity interval training.  This will increase your metabolic rate post workout, help you lose more calories per minute versus traditional methods, and takes only 15 minutes.

The way it works is like this, you start off your jog at a ratio of 2:1.  You jog for a minute then you run for 30 seconds.  You jog for another minute and run for 30 seconds again.  You continue to do this for a total of 15 to 20 minutes and you’re done.

As your fitness levels increase you can change to a 1:1 ratio, which means that you jog for a minute and run for a minute shifting back and forth in between.  You can continue to dilute the jogging times as to make the running portions are greater part of your workout.

Don’t forget that you have a great deal of flexibility as to your ratios.  Adjust them as you see fit, without slacking off.  HIIT concepts can be applied to all types of activities, such as rowing, cycling, elliptical work, and skipping.  There are endless opportunities.

Have fun!

*Be sure to check with your doctor before undertaking strenuous activities.

F. Martinez

Product ‘dusting’ is a deceiving practice used by some product manufacturers to convince the consumer that a sizable amount of an ingredient is in their product, when in reality only a negligable amount is added.

Usually dusted ingredients are either expensive, rare, or considered ‘active’ or special.  In reality the amount of the dusted ingredient that is in the product is so minimal that it will not make a difference on the skin.  The end result is a product that won’t deliver as promised, money down the drain, and disappointment.

So, how do you check to see if your being ripped off?  Well, it’s quite simple really.  All you have to do is take a look at the back of your containers.  In print that reads like a service agreement is the list of ingredients.  They are almost always listed in quantities from largest to smallest.  Water or Aqua as it is usually listed is as the first ingredient, followed by a whole host of ingredients.  What you need to look for is the ingredient being touted as the miracle component.  If it’s found towards the end of the list, you can bet that its the small component of the product.

There are caveats here that you need to consider.  One of them is the fact that many products will work, even with their ‘miracle’ components at the end of the list.  The second is that some components are too strong to be put into a product in great concentration.  For example, if you have a glycolic acid wash, don’t expect to see glycolic acid as the first ingredient on the list.

Ultimately it is up to you, the consumer, to take a glance when comparing products and see just how the ingredient lists stack up against each other.

F. Martinez