I threw away my bottle of echinacea last Thursday.
The herbal supplement has not been proven to work and can be dangerous to your health, according to the knowledgeable graduate students of Writing for Health and Fitness.
Since I was one of the many people under the false impression that echinacea was the super herb that would make sure I never got sick and if by some slim chance I couldn't dodge the flu bullet, echinacea would cure me instantly like when Superman gets shot (well, maybe not that instantly), I decided to look deeper and find out how I had been duped.
According to ConsumerLab.com, echinacea is believed to help reduce the symptoms of colds and flu-like illnesses through short-term stimulation of the immune system. However, the drug has NOT been proven in preventing disease and is not recommended for long term use.
CL tested five echinacea products themselves and found the following results:
- One product had excessive lead contamination, containing more than 2.5 grams of lead per daily serving exceeding the California state limit above which a warning label is required. While this amount does not trigger a health problem for adults by itself, it unnecessarily contributes to lead exposure. In addition, this product contained higher than expected amounts of cichoric acid and lower than expected levels of echinacoside. This suggest that the product was made with either the wrong plant species or the wrong part of the echinacea plant.
- Four products CL test were low in phenols, the plant chemicals used to judge the quality of echinacea. The belief is high phenols equals higher potency.
- One product contained less than 5 percent phenols, and 50 percent and the third 75 percent of the claimed phenols. Ever though that last two contain the minimum amount required by the CL test, they still mislead consumers into believing that the product is more potent.
- The fourth product claimed to contain .8 percent to 1.2 percent echinacide and 3 percent to 4 percent total polyphenols. Yet consumer lab found .5 percent echinacide and .7 percent polyphenols, which are concentrations lower than the minimums expected for good quality echinacea.
In addition, echinacea can contain microbes that can cause disease - not prevent it.
So the knowledgeable graduate students were right, supplements are not always the super drugs they're cracked up to be. They can be expensive, ineffective and sometimes harmful. Even though half the population takes at least one supplement, according to Brittany and Adam, the FDA does not regulate these products before they reach stores.
In the words of Dane Cook, " ... when you see somebody walking down the street wearing a Superman t-shirt, you just want to shoot them in the chest ... when they start to bleed go, "I guess not" ... "
Just like a Superman t-shirt doesn't make you immune to bullet wounds, echinacea won't make you immune to colds or the flu.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Women over 30 struggling with eating disorders too
A friend broke down in tears while we were on our way to dinner one night freshman year and confessed she had an eating disorder. She had been struggling with anorexia and bulimia since high school, and she asked me to help her. Twice a week for a few months I accompanied my friend to the mental health center and sat in the waiting room while she spoke with a nutritionist/counselor. She began to feel better about herself and her body and slowly began to eat like a healthy young woman again. Today, she says she still struggles with this problem occasionally although it's not as bad. Anytime I think about her, I wonder if eating disorders stay with people forever or if it's possible to completely recover.
New research suggests eating disorders, which have often been thought of as a disease for teens and earlier 20s, may remain an issue in a person's life through their 30s, 40s and even 50s. Additionally, more women are developing eating disorders later in life, according to an Associated Press article, "More women over 30 battling eating disorders."
"The epidemiology is pretty clear that anorexia and bulimia both peek in the late teens, early 20s," said Dr. Donald McAlpine, director of an eating disorders program at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., in the AP article, yet "a lot of (patients) continue to be symptomatic right on through to middle life."
Although national statistics are difficult to find, data from some treatment centers suggest a steady increase, according to the article. For the first six months of this year, 35 percent of the patients were over 38 years old at the Park Nicollet Health Services' Eating Disorders Institute in the Minneapolis suburb of St. Louis Park.
That's 500 women over 38 seeking treatment in one institute!
Holly Grishkat, who directs outpatient programs at the Renfrew Center, a network of treatment centers in the eastern U.S., said in the AP article that women over 30 who seek treatment fall into three categories: women that have had an eating disorder for years, women who had an eating disorder in remission that resurface because of new stress in life, such as divorce or loss of a parent, or women who develop an eating disorder late in life (the smallest group).
People who study eating disorders say that growing public awareness, social pressure to be thin and an aging group of baby boomers may be reasons for the over 30 crowd to be seeking treatment for something that is typically a young woman's problem, according to the article.
Whatever the reasons, I hope that my friend does not have to seek help into her middle age years.
For more information on eating disorders and what you can do it you or a friend is in need of help visit the National Eating Disorders Web site.
New research suggests eating disorders, which have often been thought of as a disease for teens and earlier 20s, may remain an issue in a person's life through their 30s, 40s and even 50s. Additionally, more women are developing eating disorders later in life, according to an Associated Press article, "More women over 30 battling eating disorders."
"The epidemiology is pretty clear that anorexia and bulimia both peek in the late teens, early 20s," said Dr. Donald McAlpine, director of an eating disorders program at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., in the AP article, yet "a lot of (patients) continue to be symptomatic right on through to middle life."
Although national statistics are difficult to find, data from some treatment centers suggest a steady increase, according to the article. For the first six months of this year, 35 percent of the patients were over 38 years old at the Park Nicollet Health Services' Eating Disorders Institute in the Minneapolis suburb of St. Louis Park.
That's 500 women over 38 seeking treatment in one institute!
Holly Grishkat, who directs outpatient programs at the Renfrew Center, a network of treatment centers in the eastern U.S., said in the AP article that women over 30 who seek treatment fall into three categories: women that have had an eating disorder for years, women who had an eating disorder in remission that resurface because of new stress in life, such as divorce or loss of a parent, or women who develop an eating disorder late in life (the smallest group).
People who study eating disorders say that growing public awareness, social pressure to be thin and an aging group of baby boomers may be reasons for the over 30 crowd to be seeking treatment for something that is typically a young woman's problem, according to the article.
Whatever the reasons, I hope that my friend does not have to seek help into her middle age years.
For more information on eating disorders and what you can do it you or a friend is in need of help visit the National Eating Disorders Web site.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Alcohol and Breast Cancer?
Booze and Boobs sounds like the headline for a Girls Gone Wild video, not a breast cancer fundraiser.
Last week, students flocked to Bar One, not for $1 drinks, but to raise money for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure, reported the Alligator. In theory, this seems like the best fundraiser yet, especially in a college town. But did you know that women who are heavy drinkers are 30 percent more likely to get breast cancer? 30 PERCENT.
Tavis Glassman, of GatorWell Health Promotions at U.F., informed me today about these risks and how much he thought these students' event contradicted their cause.
According to a Sept. 27 AP article about a study on alcohol and breast cancer, women who drink one to two drinks a day have a 10 percent higher chance of breast cancer, and women who drink more than 3 drinks a day have that startling 30 percent higher chance of breast cancer. Although, factors such age, genetics and overall health play bigger roles in breast cancer chances, there is definitely a link between alcohol and breast cancer. Additionally, the type of alcohol doesn't seem to matter. Red wine, contrary to many health debates, is not better for you than beer or hard liquor for breast cancer. The Sprecher Institute for Comparative Cancer Research at Cornell University, says that the evidence suggests the actual alcohol in the drinks are the root of the problem, not the other stuff.
More research needs to be done on the subject to see how alcohol stands up against other cancer culprit,but for now, Girls Gone Wild and breast cancer probably shouldn't mix.
Last week, students flocked to Bar One, not for $1 drinks, but to raise money for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure, reported the Alligator. In theory, this seems like the best fundraiser yet, especially in a college town. But did you know that women who are heavy drinkers are 30 percent more likely to get breast cancer? 30 PERCENT.
Tavis Glassman, of GatorWell Health Promotions at U.F., informed me today about these risks and how much he thought these students' event contradicted their cause.
According to a Sept. 27 AP article about a study on alcohol and breast cancer, women who drink one to two drinks a day have a 10 percent higher chance of breast cancer, and women who drink more than 3 drinks a day have that startling 30 percent higher chance of breast cancer. Although, factors such age, genetics and overall health play bigger roles in breast cancer chances, there is definitely a link between alcohol and breast cancer. Additionally, the type of alcohol doesn't seem to matter. Red wine, contrary to many health debates, is not better for you than beer or hard liquor for breast cancer. The Sprecher Institute for Comparative Cancer Research at Cornell University, says that the evidence suggests the actual alcohol in the drinks are the root of the problem, not the other stuff.
More research needs to be done on the subject to see how alcohol stands up against other cancer culprit,but for now, Girls Gone Wild and breast cancer probably shouldn't mix.
Avoid Halloween Diet Mishaps
Knee-high, white pleather boots, a psychedelic mini-dress, huge, white hoop earrings and a head of teased blonde hair will transform me into a 60s Go-Go Girl for Halloween this year. I look forward to dressing up, going to the parties and the CANDY and TREATS every year.
But this year, I don't want to fall into the Halloween traps that kill my diet. So I went on the hunt for healthy alternatives to festive snacks. Although they're probably not as tasty as the candy corn, Snickers, Twix and Butterfingers (and all of the other types of yummy, chocolate candy), I know eating healthy this Halloween will help me in the long run. One fun size Butterfinger packs 100 calories, 4 grams of fat, 2 grams of saturated fat, 50 milligrams of sodium and 15 grams of carbs - and who can really eat just one?
Here are my festive treats!
Spooky sandwiches
- Peanut butter and jelly can be a healthy stand by.
- Use whole grain wheat bread, reduced-fat peanut butter and sugar-free jelly (I love Smucker's Strawberry Preserves with Splenda)
- Once you've made your standard sandwich with a healthy kick, use Halloween shaped cookie-cutters to make the sandwich into festive shapes.
- You can also use the same method with grilled cheese. Just make sure to use reduced-fat cheese, whole wheat bread and cooking spray instead of butter in the pan.
Orange Jack-O-Lanterns
- Draw Jack-O-Lantern faces on oranges with a sharpie
- Cut out the pulp.
- Mix some of the pulp with vanilla yogurt, and add some swirls of green Jell-O and raisins.
- Pour the mixture into the oranges.
- Place the oranges in a muffin tin and put them in the freezer.
But this year, I don't want to fall into the Halloween traps that kill my diet. So I went on the hunt for healthy alternatives to festive snacks. Although they're probably not as tasty as the candy corn, Snickers, Twix and Butterfingers (and all of the other types of yummy, chocolate candy), I know eating healthy this Halloween will help me in the long run. One fun size Butterfinger packs 100 calories, 4 grams of fat, 2 grams of saturated fat, 50 milligrams of sodium and 15 grams of carbs - and who can really eat just one?
Here are my festive treats!
Spooky sandwiches
- Peanut butter and jelly can be a healthy stand by.
- Use whole grain wheat bread, reduced-fat peanut butter and sugar-free jelly (I love Smucker's Strawberry Preserves with Splenda)
- Once you've made your standard sandwich with a healthy kick, use Halloween shaped cookie-cutters to make the sandwich into festive shapes.
- You can also use the same method with grilled cheese. Just make sure to use reduced-fat cheese, whole wheat bread and cooking spray instead of butter in the pan.
Orange Jack-O-Lanterns
- Draw Jack-O-Lantern faces on oranges with a sharpie
- Cut out the pulp.
- Mix some of the pulp with vanilla yogurt, and add some swirls of green Jell-O and raisins.
- Pour the mixture into the oranges.
- Place the oranges in a muffin tin and put them in the freezer.
Monday, October 22, 2007
I'm back!
Today I lifted weights the size of dog bones -- not the type of dog bones you would give a St. Bernard or a Great Dane, the kind you would give a shitsu. And WOW, it was hard.
It was my first time lifting anything since my shoulder surgery about a month ago. I was a competitive softball player for over a decade, and my body still pays for it. This was my second shoulder surgery (and hopefully my last). But the crazy thing is, if you saw me today, you wouldn't know anything was wrong thanks to my minimally invasive procedure. My doctor made three incisions, each about 2 centimeters long, in my shoulder and used tiny instruments and cameras to fix the tissues and tendons inside my shoulder.
Today more and more procedures are being done using minimally invasive procedures. Not only can doctors perform surgery on most joints in this fashion, but according to the Mayo Clinic Web site, doctors are able to use this method for many surgeries that previously were invasive such as hearts, colon and rectal, gastroenterologic and general,gynecologic, neurosurgery, orthopedic, otorhinolaryngology (ear, nose and throat), thoracic, urology and vascular.
The benefits of this type of surgery are numerous -- less trauma to the body, less blood loss, smaller surgical scars and less need for medication.
The bad part about minimally invasive surgery -- when you and the people around you can't see your itty bitty scars, you forget how much work a dog-bone sized weight can be to lift.
(Left) You can see the two, tiny scars on the front of my shoulder. (Right) You can see me sporting my trendy sling just last week.
It was my first time lifting anything since my shoulder surgery about a month ago. I was a competitive softball player for over a decade, and my body still pays for it. This was my second shoulder surgery (and hopefully my last). But the crazy thing is, if you saw me today, you wouldn't know anything was wrong thanks to my minimally invasive procedure. My doctor made three incisions, each about 2 centimeters long, in my shoulder and used tiny instruments and cameras to fix the tissues and tendons inside my shoulder.
Today more and more procedures are being done using minimally invasive procedures. Not only can doctors perform surgery on most joints in this fashion, but according to the Mayo Clinic Web site, doctors are able to use this method for many surgeries that previously were invasive such as hearts, colon and rectal, gastroenterologic and general,gynecologic, neurosurgery, orthopedic, otorhinolaryngology (ear, nose and throat), thoracic, urology and vascular.
The benefits of this type of surgery are numerous -- less trauma to the body, less blood loss, smaller surgical scars and less need for medication.
The bad part about minimally invasive surgery -- when you and the people around you can't see your itty bitty scars, you forget how much work a dog-bone sized weight can be to lift.
(Left) You can see the two, tiny scars on the front of my shoulder. (Right) You can see me sporting my trendy sling just last week.
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