Why Is The Most Effective And Freely Available H1N1 Vaccine Ignored By Most?

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), there are now 6,200 deaths worldwide due to the H1N1 swine flu. The virus has spread to 206 countries and territories, with most deaths (4512 ) occurring in the USA. Canada also has reported sharp increases in rates of swine flu.

People are understandably nervous, but keep in mind that the regular flu kills 36,000 people a year in the United States alone, while worldwide, the annual death toll is between 250,000 and 500,000.

Though the numbers are on the opposite end of the spectrum, it is important to note that with the regular flu, 90 percent of deaths and hospitalizations are among people over 65, while with H1N1, 90 percent of those infected and seriously ill are younger adults and children. (JAMA 2003; 289(2):179-186)

Experts are nervous that, as a new strain, the swine flu will be hard to stop because there aren’t any vaccines to fight it. Yet with all the hype and hysteria, I’m absolutely astounded that I’ve heard almost nothing about prevention against H1N1. Never mind eating better, losing weight or exercising more—just get the shot, most would counsel. Even more insane (my opinion) is that several public health officials have stated that better nutrition and exercise will have no measurable effects against this virus. I disagree with such a nonsensical opinion. In all my years in the health field, almost everyone that practices preventative health principles either negates or shortens the duration of most illnesses. This one will be no exception!

We know that the human immune system is amazingly lethal against intruders when it is supported properly. In that light, how many of us get enough fresh air to cleanse the body? We inhale oxygen needed for chemical process inside the body (metabolism), and we exhale carbon dioxide, the waste product of metabolism. All body processes need oxygen for their function and a shortage severely weakens the immune system and has been linked to every major illness category. Without it, nothing works well or at all.

Exercise is another factor in overall health. The need for fresh air is one big reason why exercise, especially outdoors, is so vital to healthful living. It significantly increases the amount of fresh air your lungs take in. Just walking will increase oxygen intake threefold; vigorous exercise, even more!

Next to fresh air, no other element of creation is more important to sustain life than pure water. In fact, this valuable substance accounts for about 65% of the chemical composition in the human body. So when you take in a good supply of water, blood circulation accelerates. As this happens, more water reaches waste matter, which effectively speeds up internal housecleaning! Yet many substitute soft drinks, or other sugar laden drinks full of preservatives, corn syrup, artificial sweeteners, caffeine or any number of injurious elements, when what they really need is pure water to stay healthy.

Last, we have to look at nutritious food. You won’t hear it said in too many circles, but at least 90 percent of all sickness and disease is either directly or indirectly related to what we eat. I know it doesn’t necessarily sound scholarly to keep teaching people, “You are what you eat,” but it’s the truth. Take four weeks and give up your sugary cereal, caffeine and nicotine to jump-start your day and sit down and eat a healthy breakfast. Prove to yourself how this unscientific theory makes a difference in your energy and vitality.

So now let me ask you, “what is your most reliable vaccine?” Is it predominately medicinal or does a healthy lifestyle fit into the equation? Elbert Hubbard once said, “Disease comes only to those who have been preparing for it.” In other words, he cited cause and effect: we prepare for being sick by providing an environment suited for disease and viruses to thrive.

Why take illness for granted? It’s not natural and necessary for you to “catch” the flu or any other sickness. And even if you do, a healthy immune system will allow you to get over it in a few days, rather than being ill for weeks or even dying. So resolve to build habits that will help you avoid sickness—and enjoy a healthier, more active lifestyle!

Anti-Aging Medicine – Hope, Hype Or Hucksters?

Anti-aging can be a difficult topic to address because it has a number of different common meanings and connotations. Each is championed by a particular group or coalition of interests which define their terms in ways that can make the subject confusing.

For the scientific community, anti-aging research refers exclusively to slowing, preventing, or reversing the aging process. In the medical community, anti-aging medicine means early detection, prevention, and reversal of age-related diseases. The wider business (health) community (taking away hucksters and adventurous branding to increase sales) usually concentrates upon looking or feeling younger (longevitymeme)

The confusion lies not only in the definition, but also the application. There is, as of this time, no medical technology that allows us to slow, prevent or reverse the aging process. Nor is there any currently available method (short of waiting for people to die) to accurately measure the effects of an alleged anti-aging therapy.

Early detection and prevention is always a noble cause, but sadly we are focusing on the effect, rather than the cause. And of course intervention does not lengthen life spans, but only allows natural biological process to go on unabated for a specific time. By arresting diseases we merely prevent the interruption of the normal life span. This cannot be called true anti-aging medicine as it has no effect on the aging process itself.

Still, many remain eternally optimistic of modulating the human aging process and mapping  a possible route to individual immortality. Dr. Ronald Klatz, founder and President of the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine sincerely believes we’re looking at life spans of 120 to 150 years of age, with perhaps no natural limits.” (V. Kannisto, Development of Oldest-Old Mortality, 1950-1990). Yet at this present time, the only verified case of a human living beyond 120 years is Jeanne Calment, a Frenchwoman who died in 1997 at 122 years.

We may ask the question, “Which community – whether scientific, medical or marketplace – has turned back the clock on time one iota?” Name a study, cite a legitimate claim, or even give a personal reference. It’s true that people desire real anti-aging medicines, but these therapies simply don’t exist. In that sense, I believe science is selling a pipe dream of hope when it advertises regenerative medicine, repairing mitochondria, gene therapies or nanomedicine as possible mechanisms to extend life. Normal human cells have a built-in program that prevents them from replicating more than a predetermined number of times. In fact, scientists have already identified genes that appear to accelerate human aging, but they have yet to find genes with the opposite effect.

It is true that medicine can help us to prolong the time spent in age-related disability. But this also begs the question, “Do the extra years allow us to enjoy life, or just cling to it?”Aging is not an illness pathologized by false hope, neither should it be paying homage to a dubious youth obsessed culture. If we can get past all the hype, hucksters and theories, we see that the only provable concept available to humans today is optimizing the normal lifespan.

Using appropriate lifestyle and diet choices will help you live a years longer and in better health than your sick neighbour. And instead of calling it “anti-aging,” we could apply the more appropriate label of “graceful aging.”  In rather simple terms, it involves prevention, good maintenance, and moderation to allow the biochemical processes of the body  to operate most efficiently. Eat healthy foods, get sufficient sleep, exercise and fresh air, practice good hygiene, proper elimination and right thinking. Then live life to the fullest in the time you have, because you can!

Sure You’re getting Older, But Are You Aging Well?

www.marksdailyapple.com

Someone once said that all human beings, from the earliest age, are on a slow road to death. By that it was meant that we have a limited lifespan which eventually ends, though many young people don’t seem to realize it. Fact is, everything around us has limitations – beginnings and endings. We are aware of infants being born and of grandparents dying. We also observe animals, plants and insects go through this cycle of life. We speak of the birth and the death of cultures and civilizations, even ideas, trends and fads. We are accustomed to seeing things get old. Clothing and furniture wear out. Automobiles fall apart. Buildings deteriorate and yes, our bodies become wrinkled and old.

To humans, everything is measurable by hours, days and years. At the beginning of our life, time seems eternal, lazy and endless as we enjoy the blessing of youthful vitality and dynamism. As we grow into adulthood, the excitement of careers, marriage, and family life dictate that our minds are pre-occupied with being busy. But then something happens as we reach middle age. We realize that half our life is over and that we have achieved a measure of financial success. But we are also bothered by pains, illness or handicapped by some physical ailment which prevents us from enjoying life as we should. What happened? How did we get to feeling lethargic, achy and physically uninspired?

Part of our problem is lack of exercise. Anaerobic and aerobic are the two basics types which are a big part of the solution. Generally, anaerobic activities build muscles, and aerobic activities strengthen the cardiovascular system. A typical anaerobic exercise is weight lifting. It involves little continuous deep breathing, though it certainly can be done at a rapid pace to encourage faster oxygen intake. One of the benefits of weight-bearing exercise is the fact that it strengthens bones, which is good news to women who tend to lose a lot of calcium and develop osteoporosis.

The kind of exercise vital to building and maintaining our cardiovascular system—the heart, lungs and liver—is aerobic exercises such as jogging and brisk walking. The heart contracts and dilates at an average rate of 72 times a minute, 100,000 times a day, and close to 40 million times a year, and aerobic activity strengthens your heart to do this job efficiently. For some reason though, we believe that the needs of the human body have changed in our modern society. But of course it has not, and in fact, the adage of “use it or lose it” applies even more today as we slave away at sedentary jobs. When muscles are not used they deteriorate, our heart becomes smaller and less efficient, pumping less blood, delivering less oxygen to tissues, and eliminates less waste. In short, we’re in big trouble.

But exercise can turn fat into fitness, fatigue into vitality, and worry about health into energy filled living! So what do we do for exercise? I know for a fact that many people can only walk due to health concerns. Keep in mind that even walking revives tired blood and helps lessen the danger of arterial blockage. Plus, our cells will convert food and oxygen into energy more rapidly, firm up muscles, improve posture, and contribute to a better physical appearance.

Remember, exercise may not add years to your life, but it will add life to your years.

Don’t Take A Vacation From Health

www.utas.edu.au

I just came back from a ten day seminar with a very enlightened view of travelling and health. Let me tell you, when you get 300 people in a conference room and two or three of them have a cold, an interesting phenomenon happens: quite a few in the room will get sick within the next couple of days. Is this a normal thing to happen? Is it merely because the flu bug spreads and we inevitably “catch” it? That’s what we have been educated to believe, but it’s not true.

Let me give you a few pointers. First, when you travel, prepare yourself. Don’t go out to restaurants daily, because you put your health at the mercy of people who aim to please your taste buds, not your health. That will drop your immune system in a hurry, making you susceptible to being sick.

www.coxhealth.com

A little trick I use is to get a hotel room with a bar fridge where I can stock it with plain yogurt, healthy cereals, and veggies. If you can’t book a fridge, bring a cooler, and restock it each day.

I also keep lots of fruits and fresh water on the counter for snacks and hydration. An electric frying pan also works wonders in getting some hot food into you, without having to go out excessively. The local supermarket should supply you with what you can cook daily. It may be a little more work, but the extra effort  sure is a lot easier on the body than getting sick.

The hotel usually has some sort of gym as well. Although I like to hit the weights on the road, on this trip I was not able to do so, and I noticed that the lack of daily physical movement was  starting to make me feel tired at meetings after about the third day.

If you’re like me and you can’t (or don’t want to) exercise while on vacation, then make sure you do so after returning. Good health is a way of life; for the duration of your life. Your body demands positive stress through exercise, as well as good food to fuel it for the demands you place upon it. If you follow these two simple tips, you’re more likely to stay healthy throughout your trip. But even if you do get sick, it won’t last as long or hit as hard because of a stronger immune system. Trust me, it works.