Bigger is better: Aquatic exercise benefits people with Parkinson's disease

According to the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation, aging is an important risk factor for Parkinson’s disease. The good news is that people with Parkinson’s disease who exercise regularly are able to move and maintain balance better than those who do not. And water is a wonderful environment for exercise. Water boasts unique properties that enable it to be used for both therapy and fitness. When someone with Parkinson’s is able to float and move in a pool, it is similar to a water lily opening at dawn. Participants can stand up tall and move more freely. (Intl. Council on Active Aging, 2/27/13)

CONSISTENT EXERCISE LOWERS RISK OF DYING FROM COLON CANCER

According to a new study led by researchers at the Siteman Cancer Center at Washington University School of Medicine and Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis physical activity can make the disease less deadly.

“People who were consistently active over the course of their adulthood had a lower risk of death from colon cancer than those who were sedentary,” says first author Kathleen Y. Wolin, ScD. “People often wonder around the start of a new year whether exercise really will help them stay healthy or whether it’s already too late. It’s never too late to start exercising, but it’s also never too early to start being active. That’s the message we hope people will take away from this study.”

Wolin

Wolin, assistant professor of surgery in the Division of Public Health Sciences, says the benefits of starting an exercise program include not just preventing colon cancer and death from the disease, but also reduced risk of heart disease, diabetes and other cancers.

She says the greatest benefits seem to accrue in those who have exercised for the largest percentage of their lives. But it isn’t necessary to run marathons or to work out for many hours every day.

10 Longevity Tips

According to Dr. Smith of the Jewish Home for the Aging in a recent article, living to 90 and beyond is pretty straightforward. He says, "the overall lesson is a simple one: Get out of bed in the morning and get active."

Apparently the Jewish Home has the highest number of residents living beyond 90. Based on their collective wisdom, here are Dr. Smith's top ten tips to increase your chances of reaching the century mark:

"1. Decide what is most important to you and focus on it. A lot of life's little annoyances don't seem so great if you keep your priorities straight.

2. Participate in some kind of physical exercise, depending on what your body will allow you to do.

3. Keep your mind sharp through mental exercise. The mind is a muscle. It must be used.

4. Have a balanced diet and pay attention to what you eat. In short, eat right.

5. Avoid isolation. Find someone to love and something to keep you engaged.

6. Relax. Don't let stress eat you up. The older people get, the more they seem to understand that it doesn't pay to sweat the small stuff.

7. Don't smoke at all and don't drink too much.

8. Remain spiritual. Believe in something.

9. Laugh every day. Happiness breeds contentment and laughter remains one of the best medicines.

10. Keep 'spice' in your life. Either in your food, your reading or your love life."

Makes a lot of sense! 

The 'Anti-Cancer' Effect

According to the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) and World Cancer Research Fund International, making changes int he way we eat, lose weight, and are physically active can prevent six separate types of cancers and their recurrence.

Recommendations from the AICR:

1. Lose weight by limiting sugary drinks and foods that promote weight gain. Excess body fat is linked to 6 cancers: colon, kidney, pancreas, esophageal, and endometrial, and post-menopausal breast cancer.

2. Eat more fruits and vegetables. Diets low in fruits and veges cause the following cancers: mouth, pharynx, esophagus, lung, stomach, colon, and rectum. There is a probably link to cancers of the larynx, pancreas, breast, and bladder.

3. Limit alcohol. Alcohol is linked to cancers of the mouth, pharynx, larynx, and esophagus as well as colorectal cancer in men and pre and post menopausal cancer in women. Probable link to liver and colorectaal cancer in women.

4. Limit red meat. Avoid processed meat. Eating above 18 oz. of red meat per week raises colorectal cancer risk by 15%.

5. Limit salt intake. Probably cause for developing stomach cancer.

6. Be physically active every day.

(Rachel Beller, Beller Nutritional Institute, AICR report at www.dietandcancerereport.org)