Vegetarians May Live Longer

Check out these statistics on being vegetarian!  The numbers may surprise you.

vegetarians-may-live-longer

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Hit the Snooze Button

Credit: www.telegraph.co.uk

Credit: www.telegraph.co.uk

Many of us don’t realize the pressure we put on ourselves and the ones we care about.  In middle school, some parents put their children on amphetamine salts, such as Adderall, so they can get them into honors courses in high school.  In high school, we juggled extracurricular activities and academia so we could get into college.  In college, many have to work and pull all-nighters in order to boost our G.P.A. so we could get a decent job.  At work, we “willingly” agree to overtime so we could get a promotion.  We are rushing through life, replacing healthy essentials with processed foods, prescription medications, caffeine, and anything else that will bring us from point A to point B faster than the next person.  Where does it end?  Unfortunately, it ends with a large percentage of the population dealing with serious health complications due to sleep deprivation.

Neurological Health

Credit: www.stemgenex.com

Credit: www.stemgenex.com

Chronic sleep loss can damage our overall well-being by negatively impacting the brain.  When we sleep, we are giving our brain the opportunity to repair itself, which is the key to proper learning and memory retention.  When the average person begins to lose an excessive amount of sleep, it can weaken problem solving skills, creativity, and the ability to remain focused.  Ultimately, those who are sleep deficient may have mood swings, problems with impulse and anger, as well as, depression and motivational issues.  Ironically, many students think it is more efficient to cram information into our heads in place of getting a good night of sleep.

Immune Function

It only makes sense that when your doctor tells you to get plenty of rest when you are ill, to at least get an average amount to stay well, right?  Your immune system also relies on sleep in order for it to function properly.  We are taking away our ability to combat disease by suppressing the actions of our killer T-cells when we lose too much sleep.  Recent studies have also found that maintaining a healthy sleep schedule may also fight cancer.

Weight Gain

Chronic sleep deprivation negatively modifies our metabolism.  According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, “Sleep helps maintain a healthy balance of the hormones that make you feel hungry (ghrelin) or full (leptin). When you don’t get enough sleep, your level of ghrelin goes up and your level of leptin goes down. This makes you feel hungrier than when you’re well-rested.”   Ultimately, it has been found that there is an increased risk with becoming obese with each hour of sleep lost per night, on average.

Heart Disease

Serious sleep disorders have been linked to hypertension, irregular heartbeat, imbalanced stress hormones, and other cardiovascular diseases.  According to a report in the Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers at the University of Chicago claim that, “too little sleep can promote calcium buildup in the heart arteries, leading to the plaques that can then break apart and cause heart attacks and strokes.”  In addition, our blood pressure decreases when we sleep; therefore, we are putting our bodies at risk of incessant high blood pressure when we force ourselves to stay awake.

Where to Begin? 

While it is difficult to completely change bad sleep habits over-night, we can at least start by making simple lifestyle changes.

Credit: www.sheknows.com

Credit: www.sheknows.com

Reduce Caffeine Intake.

Most of us have a cup of coffee before work every morning, some of us have two, maybe even three by the end of the day.  No big deal, right?  Well, what about the additional cup of tea, chocolate bar, soda, or occasional energy drink?  All of these products contain caffeine, which as all know, is a stimulant.  While mainstream media encourages you to buy the latest energy drink, in addition to promoting alleged health benefits from drinking coffee, we tend to lose site of the term “in moderation.” A study conducted in 2002 at Duke University found that, “The effects of coffee drinking are long-lasting and exaggerate the stress response both in terms of the body’s physiological response in blood pressure elevations and stress hormone levels.” Lack of sleep is already dabbling with your hormones and blood pressure; submitting yourself to excessive amounts of caffeine can add to those health issues while taking a toll on your physical appearance and increasing anxiety levels.

Keep your Diet in Check

When we are drained from constantly rushing and working, we sometimes forget to eat properly.  We end up reducing ourselves to processed meat, lack of vegetables, and items on the “healthy” menu at fast food chains.  Start by reserving Sunday nights for family and friends; take the time to make a balanced home cooked meal.

Chronic sleep loss can damage our overall health-wellness by negatively impacting our weight, cardiovascular health, neurological functioning, and immune system.  Most importantly, lack of restful sleep results in increased levels of inflammation, which is the underlying cause of many of our current chronic illnesses.  Sleep loss education, healthy role models, and proper medical information could change the way the next generation of students and professionals maintain a healthy balance between well-being and the pressure to succeed.  Relax every once in a while – Hit the snooze button.

References:

“Caffeine’s Effects Are Long-Lasting and Compound Stress.” DukeHealth.org. Duke Medicine News and Communications, n.d. Web. 15 Aug. 2013. <http://www.dukehealth.org/health_library/news/5687>.

“Importance of Sleep : Six Reasons Not to Scrimp on Sleep.” Harvard Medical School. Harvard Health Publications, Jan. 2006. Web. 15 Aug. 2013. <http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/importance_of_sleep_and_health>.

Park, Alice. “Lack of Sleep Linked to Heart Problems.” Health & Family. Time, 23 Dec. 2008. Web. 15 Aug. 2013. <http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1868406,00.html>.

“Why Is Sleep Important?” NHLBI, NIH. U.S. Dept of Health & Human Services, 22 Feb. 2012. Web. 15 Aug. 2013. <http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/sdd/why.html>.

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Live Longer, Healthier, and Leaner by going Vegetarian

blueberries_on_plantGiving up meat doesn’t sound too appetizing to some people, but the results are well worth it – if it’s done right.  Enjoy nature’s best, and start eating more of what your body craves.  Find out what researchers are saying when it comes to combating cardiovascular disease, losing weight, and elongating your lifespan with a vegetarian lifestyle.

 

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Understanding the Cause of a Health Issue Could Begin with a Simple Diet Change

healthy foods

Improving your physical and mental health, by the Integrative Medicine Approach, starts with what you eat.

Read more in this ARTICLE

 

The DASH Diet

10 24 12 JB PictureMillions of Americans take prescription medications for hypertension. Find out the right diet can be just as effective a tool for maintaining a healthy blood pressure:

http://www.miamiintegrativemedicine.com/blog/dash-to-lower-blood-pressure/

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Vegetarians May Live Longer

California research finds 12% lower risk of dying for those who don’t eat meat

By Denise Mann
HealthDay Reporter

Vegetarians may live longer than meat-lovers, new research suggests.

Scientists in California analyzed the diets of 73,300 Seventh Day Adventists, and found that vegetarians were less likely to die from any cause or from cause-specific reasons, except for cancer, compared to those who ate meat.

“Certain vegetarian diets are associated with reductions in all causes of [death] as well as some specific causes including heart disease, kidney-related deaths and endocrine disease-related death such as diabetes,” although we don’t know why said lead researcher Dr. Michael Orlich.

“Reductions in meat in the vegetarian diet may be part of it, but it may be due to higher quantities of plant foods,” he added, although it is also possible that vegetarians may lead more healthy lives.

The research was published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine.

For the study, the researchers used a food questionnaire to assess dietary patterns and looked at men and women who adhered to one of five diets: non-vegetarian; semi-vegetarian (eats meat or fish no more than once a week); pesco-vegetarian (consumes seafood); lacto-ovo-vegetarian (includes both dairy products and eggs), and vegans, who don’t eat any animal products.

During the course of the more than five-year study, 2,570 people died. But vegetarians were about 12 percent less likely to die from any cause than their meat-eating counterparts, the study showed. And the survival edge seemed to be stronger in men than women.

In addition, the researchers noted that vegetarians tended to be older and more educated, exercised more and were less likely to drink alcohol or smoke than their carnivorous counterparts.

The study also did not pinpoint which type of vegetarian diet provides the greatest survival benefit because the vegetarian diets were compared to non-vegetarian diets only, not to one another.

The research team now plans to look at the patterns of food consumption seen in each vegetarian diet. “We want to see what they eat more or less of, and then investigate the effect on mortality or associated with specific foods,” Orlich said. “Are there particular foods that account for most of this apparent association. Is the lack of meat the big issue, or is the amount of plant-based foods responsible?”

Nancy Copperman, a dietician at North Shore Long Island Jewish Health System in Great Neck, N.Y. , said that the fiber in vegetarian diets may be what’s driving the survival edge. “It’s not just fruit and vegetables, but all types of fiber [including whole grains] that seems to really reduce health risks,” she said. “The new study pushes the literature that we are building about the impact that whole grains and fruits and vegetables can have on your health.”

But Rebecca Solomon, a nutritionist at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City, noted that plant-based diets can be beneficial only if they are done right. “You need to make sure that you have a good nutrient balance despite omission of certain or all animal products,” she added.

For example, she said, some vegetarians may overdo the carbohydrates and fats, which can lead to weight gain and its associated health problems.

“My general advice is that you don’t need to be a vegetarian to improve your health and lifespan,” she said. “Eating lean protein such as poultry and fish and following some of the principles of the Mediterranean diet, which includes generous amounts of vegetables, fruits and whole grains and is not red-meat heavy, can be very beneficial.”

For a diehard vegan like Stephanie Prather, 45, the news may come as no surprise.

Prather hasn’t eaten any animal products in more than two years, and actually changed careers midstream to become a vegan pastry chef. Her impetus was a high-profile documentary about the benefits of a plant-based diet.

Not only does she feel better, but she has lost close to 20 pounds since giving up all animal products in her diet.

This latest research, follows a British study in January that showed vegetarians had about a third less risk of hospitalization or death from cardiovascular disease than meat-eaters did.

That study, reported in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, included nearly 45,000 people from England and Scotland, about a third of who were vegetarians. And the research showed that the vegetarians had a 32 percent lower chance of being hospitalized or dying from heart disease. They also typically had lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels than non-vegetarians.

Foods to Combat Hypertension

dash-diet-masthead-34If you are dealing with high blood pressure, a change in diet may be just what the doctor ordered. This article about discusses the DASH diet, specifically formulated to control hypertension:

http://www.miamiintegrativemedicine.com/blog/dash-to-lower-blood-pressure/

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Super Summer Eating

blueberries_on_plantGood health starts with a good diet. Check out this article to learn about foods that are not only good for you, they’re actually super:

http://www.miamiintegrativemedicine.com/blog/the-bs-have-it-three-superfoods-for-overall-health-2/

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