The latest scientific data reveal that hormone therapy is safe and effective for the majority of women and most women do not know this. In summary estrogen supplements will decrease the risk of osteoporosis, breast cancer, dementia, and heart disease in women with low estrogen levels. This means that most women entering or in menopause should be taking estrogen. Why this information is not available and the data explaining these facts will constitute the rest of this essay. On July 9, 2002, the Journal of the American Medical Association [JAMA] published the initial results of a research study, the Women’s […]

AGING AND INDEPENDENCE   Loss of independence is the worst fear of the aging adult. For many elderly adults this loss is a slow gradual process due to chronic metabolic diseases. Few people today understand how their bodies actually work and they assume that it is “natural” or part of the “aging process” to develop high blood pressure, elevated blood sugar, memory loss, cardiovascular disease, impotence and muscle weakness. The medical culture in the USA focuses on treating the symptoms of the sick and does very little to prevent the common chronic diseases that are the leading causes of death […]

  THERE MAY BE A METHOD TO INCREASE LONGEVITY EXCITING NEW DATA   Many theories have been proposed to explain why people age. Most theories blame aging on damage to your DNA [deoxyribonucleic acid]. Before you can understand the theories regarding aging and how to increase longevity we must define our terms. The cells in your body contain your genetic information in the form of 23 pairs of chromosomes-each cell contains the same genetic information-the same 23 chromosomes-this is your DNA. Each chromosome is made up of sequences of 4 nucleic acids-adenine, guanine, thymine, and cytosine. You are a multicellular […]

      Most men lose some physical strength and sexual ability as they age. Many men attempt to prevent these changes with diet, exercise and by taking testosterone. Approximately 2.3 million men ages 40 to 60 years filled testosterone prescriptions in 2013. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved testosterone for men with low blood levels of testosterone [hypo-testicular function]. Testosterone supplements increase muscle mass, decrease body-fat, strengthen bones, and correct erectile dysfunction. There is evidence that exercise increases the beneficial effects of testosterone [JL Vingren et al; Sports Med 40 (12);2010; 1037-1063].There is also evidence that testosterone […]

IT IS POSSIBLE TO BUILD MUSCLE WHILE LOSING BODY FAT     WHY IS THIS POSSIBLE? In order to build muscle cells your body needs a diet that supplies all the essential nutrients for muscle cell growth and a setting in which fat cells are used as a source of energy for the muscle cells.   HOW TO USE YOUR BODY FAT AS AN ENERGY SOURCE Normally the preferred source of energy for the cells of your body is from the sugar present in carbohydrates. On a low carbohydrate diet your body will use the energy present in fat cells. […]

What is BFR Training? It is now possible to cause muscle hypertrophy and strength gain with low-intensity resistance exercises-“light weights”. Your muscle tissue grows when the genes inside the muscle cells produce a protein called mTOR. This mTOR signaling pathway must be activated for muscle protein synthesis to occur. The mTOR pathway is stimulated after an acute bout of high-intensity resistance exercise. The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends lifting a weight of at least 70% 1RM to achieve muscular hypertrophy as it is believed that anything below this intensity rarely produces substantial muscle growth. Low intensity exercises – […]

BODY FAT AND CANCER   HOW DO WE MEASURE OBESITY: In the United States the majority of adults over 20 years of age have a percent body fat that increases their risk for metabolic diseases [NHANES Results CDC and NCHS No.237.March 2016]. The definition of obesity is based on a measure called BMI – body mass index-your weight in kilograms divided by your height in meters squared. This measure is not precise since it does not distinguish lean body mass from fat body mass. For most people however, BMI can be used as a measure of relative health as follows: […]

HOW TO MAINTAIN YOUR WEIGHT LOSS There are conflicting views on the value of weight-loss diets. Some believe that if individuals have willpower and if they diet they can lose an unlimited amount of weight. Others believe that weight loss attempts are rarely successful and weight regain invariably occurs. On October 19,2015, Oprah Winfrey made news by buying a 10 percent stake in Weight Watchers. A study of four diets-Atkins, Zone, South Beach, and Weight Watchers –demonstrated nearly equal weight loss of approximately 6.6 to 13 pounds pounds at approximately 12 months [Atallah et al; Circ. Cardiovasc. Outcomes; 2014; (6); […]

DOES DIETING WORK? There are conflicting views on the value of weight-loss diets. Some believe that if individuals have willpower and if they diet they can lose an unlimited amount of weight. Others believe that weight loss attempts are rarely successful and weight regain invariably occurs. There are many questions to ask when evaluating “does dieting work?” Do dieters continue to lose weight? Does some of the lost weight return? Do some dieters gain back more weight than they lost?   Women participating in a weight-loss program reported their goal weight as an average 32% reduction in body weight [G.D. Foster […]

We are not critical in our food choices. Here are three additional reasons we make bad food choices:     1.The obesity epidemic in this country has been aided by the low cost of high glucose containing carbohydrates. These foods are inexpensive because their production and storage [soy beans and corn] is subsidized by the US government in the Farm Bill. For the past 50 years, U.S. farm policy has been directed toward driving down the price of farm storable carbohydrates [corn and soybeans]. At the same time the cost of growing fruits and vegetables has increased as has their […]

We are bombarded with advertisements for pills to lose weight, build muscle and increase our performance. This marketing must be separated from scientific data. The Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act defines “drug” as anything intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease and anything other than food intended to affect the structure or function of the body. These specific words permit the FDA to stop the marketing of products with unsubstantiated claims on their labels. The marketing of dietary supplements is under the control of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration [FDA] according to a […]

BODY FAT AND DIET   The reason you have difficulty losing body fat is that you need to understand how your body works. The more sugar there is in the blood, the higher the insulin levels and the greater production of fat. When insulin levels are low, triglycerides residing inside fat cells get broken down into fatty acids for energy, and the fat cells shrink in size; this is a decrease in body fat. Wheat products are able to raise serum glucose levels quickly, and subsequently raise insulin levels. The half-life of insulin is hours, and may continue to rise […]