Welcome to “FitnessMantra Weekend”, your once-a-week health news update. As always you can also stay updated with the latest in fitness news by subscribing separately to the Fitness Mantra del.icio.us feed.

I have always been skeptical of the efficacy of so-called “power” drinks, especially for school kids for many of whom the most strenuous activity of the day might be trudging through Phys. Ed. class.

And now the sugar has really hit the fan with Congress stepping in to set things straight at schools:

In an attempt to limit the sale of high-calorie sodas, candy bars and other snacks in schools, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) has introduced a bill that would have the government set new nutritional standards for the foods and drinks that schools sell to students outside cafeterias. But just what those standards should be is the issue. [Washington Post]

Since there are already stringent laws in place about the sale of “full-sugar” or regular sodas, the focus is now on the “power drinks” that have suddenly risen in popularity during the last few years (heck there is even a “fitness-water” now!)

Nutrition experts contend that sports drinks are not as healthful as manufacturers claim. A 12-ounce bottle of Gatorade Rain contains 75 calories, 21 grams of sugar and 165 milligrams of sodium, compared with 150 calories, 40.5 grams of sugar and 52 milligrams of sodium in a can of Coke.

In April, the Institute of Medicine released a report urging that sports drinks be made available in schools only to student-athletes participating in more than one hour of vigorous activity. And a report from the University of California at Berkeley’s Robert C. and Veronica Atkins Center for Weight and Health warned that students who drink one 20-ounce sports drink every day for a year may gain about 13 pounds. [Washington Post]

Those statistics alone should be enough for some big changes to happen in our schools. Sure, the most active of our young athletes need all the nutrition and energy that science can offer. But Iam sure you would agree that for the majority of the kids - whose thumb muscles are the only ones getting any exercise as they SMS their way through the day - Gatorade sure is overkill.

More of the week’s top health and fitness stories follow:

1. 9 steps to a young and healthy heart: If you want to keep your heart ticking loud and clear for years to come, keep these things in mind.
2. Chocolate ‘aids fatigue syndrome’: A daily dose of dark chocolate may help reduce the symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome, say UK researchers.
3. For Some, Diabetes Care Worse Than Illness Itself: For some people with diabetes, the burden of adhering to their daily care regimen nearly equals that of their diabetes-related health complications, a U.S. study finds.
4. Quit counting calories if it doesn’t add up: If you obsess over calories, you’re more likely to consume fat-free foods that are low in fiber, high in sugar and, ultimately, unsatisfying. The result? You never feel full, so you end up eating more.
5. Scottish obesity ‘just behind US’: Obesity levels in Scotland are the second highest in the developed world behind the USA, new statistics have revealed.
6. Junk Food, TV Driving Kids to Obesity: Today’s kids live in a world where it’s often easier to get a fast food meal than fresh fruit, where walking to school is the exception rather than the norm, and where they’re bombarded by ads telling them to eat more junk food and sugary beverages.
7. Heart disease linked to colon cancer: Patients showing signs of heart disease are at nearly double the risk of also having colon cancer, perhaps because unhealthy habits and inflammation are at the root of both, researchers said on Tuesday.
8. Omega-3s Guard Against Type 1 Diabetes: Youngsters at high risk for developing type 1 diabetes might be able to prevent the disease by eating foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids, a new study suggests.
9. Should Drinks Like Gatorade Sport the ‘Junk Food’ Label?: Nutrition experts contend that sports drinks are not as healthful as manufacturers claim. A 12-ounce bottle of Gatorade Rain contains 75 calories, 21 grams of sugar and 165 milligrams of sodium
10. A Heavy Burden on Emergency Services: Extra wide beds, stronger toilets and special patient lifting devices are becoming more and more common in emergency rooms.
11. “Good” Cholesterol Earns Its Name: HDL cholesterol is often nicknamed “good” cholesterol, and a new study shows just how good HDL cholesterol can be for people with heart disease.
12. Strenuous Exercises During Early Pregnancy Linked To Miscarriages: Women who perform strenuous exercise and sports activity during the first phase of pregnancy are 3.7 times more likely to miscarry than their non-active counterparts, a Danish study has found.
13. Sally Squires - These Losers Never Quit: “The Biggest Loser,” the hit reality television show about weight loss, recently launched its fourth season on NBC by introducing 18 new — and very obese — contestants ready to shed pounds and perhaps win $250,000.
14. Dollars can motivate employees to diet: People will lose weight for money, even a little money, suggests a study that offers another option for employers looking for ways to cut health care costs.
15. Value of annual checkup questioned: The customary annual physical checkup at the doctor’s office may not be worth the time or money, researchers said on Monday.
16. Why are kids overweight? Take a look around: While too many calories and too little exercise explain how children become obese, the research looks at environmental factors that contribute to these behaviors, and suggests policy changes that could make healthy choices easier.
17. Calcium, extra weight protect women from bone loss: Women in early menopause who consume less calcium are at greater risk of osteoporosis than their peers who take in more of the mineral, Italian researchers report.

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Have a great weekend!

Technorati Tags: health, fitness, health news, fitness news, health links, fitness links, del.icio.us, gatorade, powerade, sports drinks

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Welcome to “FitnessMantra Weekend”, your once-a-week health news update. As always you can also stay updated with the latest in fitness news by subscribing separately to the Fitness Mantra del.icio.us feed.

In the Glycemia series of posts, I described the effect that different foods have on our blood sugar levels. While our goal should be to maintain a steady level of blood sugar (since our bodies perform optimally under this condition), not all foods like to comply with our wishes. High-glycemic-index (GI) foods like white rice, pasta, or bread create a surge of glucose that our bodies must respond to with insulin. The failure to adequately match insulin requirement with proportionate production is the deadly disease, diabetes. (Do read the series again to brush up your knowledge of the key terms involved in the discussion).

No, all that was not just to promote a previous post: BBC News reports that a Starchy diet ‘may damage liver’. Regular consumption of high-glycemic and refined foods not only causes the body to develop insulin resistance and develop a risk for diabetes, it is now also being shown to cause “fatty-liver”, a condition by which fat accumulates in the liver, leading to potential liver-failure in the future. The image on the right shows a close-up of fatty cells in an affected liver (courtesy Brown University).

In an interesting study conducted at the Boston Children’s Hospital, two groups of mice were given food with exactly the same calorie content but one group got food composed of high GI ingredients while the other was fed low GI foods.

After six months on the diet, the mice weighed the same, but those on the high GI diet had twice the normal amount of fat in their bodies, blood and livers.
…
Dr David Ludwig, who led the research, said that the results would also apply to humans, and even children, in whom fatty liver is becoming far more common.

- Via BBC News

Including more whole grains and reducing the amount of refined carbohydrates in our diets is a key step to maintaining a steady glucose level in our blood while also keeping full for longer periods of time as the energy in the food is released slowly to the cells in our bodies.

Here’s more health news from the week that was:

1. Diabetes may hike death risk from pneumonia: People with type 2 diabetes or elevated blood sugar are at increased risk of dying after being hospitalized for pneumonia, a new study hints.
2. Make your friends fit your diet - not blow it: As it turns out, not only does your diet influence which friends you pick, your friends influence your diet.
3. Seniors balk at ban on free doughnuts: It was just another morning at the senior center: Women were sewing, men were playing pool - and seven demonstrators, average age 76, were picketing outside, demanding doughnuts.
4. Rich or Poor, Fat People Have Higher Diabetes Risk: Fat people who are rich are just as likely to develop a precursor to diabetes as those who are poor, suggesting that money for a healthier diet and better treatment matters less than being active
5. Soccer beats jogging for fitness: A friendly game of soccer works off more fat and builds up more muscle than jogging, new research shows.
6. Obesity Won’t Affect Seniors’ Memory: While past studies have found obesity in middle age increases a person’s risk for dementia or Alzheimer’s disease, our finding shows obesity in old age has no effect on a person’s memory.
7. Starchy diet ‘may damage liver’: A diet rich in potatoes, white bread and white rice may be contributing to a “silent epidemic” of a dangerous liver condition.
8. Smart Fitness: Getting high on exercise: The euphoria that some people report from exercise is often referred to as a “runner’s high,”
9. FDA helps kids learn to read food labels: “Since I find parents are not doing a bang-up job (teaching nutrition), I think it’s important to empower the children with their own information”
10. Any kind of exercise helps diabetics: Weight training works just as well as running on a treadmill or biking to help the most important symptom of type-2 diabetes - long-term control of blood sugar
11. Report: Fewer soft drinks in school: School vending machines are stocked with fewer high-calorie soft drinks today because some states have banned the sale of sodas on campus and the beverage industry is phasing in healthier drinks

Get the best health and fitness stories of the week in your RSS inbox.

Have a great weekend!

Technorati Tags: health, fitness, health news, fitness news, health links, fitness links, del.icio.us, high-glycemic diets, fatty liver, diabetes

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