health tips

Why is yoga important for healthy living?

Power yoga and Bikram yoga are popularly followed for weight loss. But there is more to yoga says wellness expert, Santosh Kumar. He goes on to explain the benefits and types of yoga.

Santosh Kumar shares his point of view on the principles of yoga, “There is only one Yoga from my point of view, but there are eight branches of yoga.”

1. YAMA: Discipline and self-control

2. Niyama: Rules and restriction

3. Asana: Positions

4. Pranayama: Breathing

5. Pratyahara: Includes all the above aspects with internal yoga

6. Dhyana: Meditation

7. Dharna: Concentration

8. Samadhi: Absorption

He says, these are the paths or rules to nirvana, “When you follow these you will achieve the ultimate goal. But in present times very few people follow this path.”

Besides these principals, there are different parts of yoga that also improves your well being.

Hatha Yoga: The benefits of hatha yoga are that it keeps you physically fit and makes you aware of your breathing.

Raj Yoga: It incorporates exercise and breathing practices with meditation and study making it ideal for healthy living.

Jana Yoga is associated with wisdom and it is one of the best forms of yoga.

Bhakti yoga is a practice which makes you an ultimate devotee of God.

Karma yoga is based on your day-to-day life, which makes you active in today’s scenario.

Tantra yoga is a way of showing unseen consciousness through specific words, diagrams, and movements. And the last part of yoga is Kashmiri Shaivism, that is rising above your limits.

Santosh Kumar concludes that in order to be happy, free and in good health, just take a deep breathe. “Try and do 30 minutes of deep breathing everyday as this will help you cope with stress.”

Source: Zee news

Roasted Sweet Potato Pie or Flan

I like this as much without a crust as with one. It’s not a flan in the traditional sense, with a caramel component. It’s an irresistibly creamy one. If you use 2 eggs instead of 3 (see variation) the texture will be smoother but it won’t slice as neatly.

2 large sweet potatoes or enough for 1 1/2 cups puréed roasted sweet potatoes

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1/2 cup applesauce

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1/4 cup mild honey, such as clover

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup milk

2 tablespoons drained yogurt or crème fraiche

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 eggs

1 egg yolk

1 gluten-free dessert pastry (or other crust of your choice), fully baked and cooled (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil. Pierce the sweet potatoes in several places with the tip of a paring knife. Place on the baking sheet and bake 40 to 50 minutes, until soft and oozing. Remove from the oven and when cool enough to handle, peel and place in a food processor fitted with the steel blade (you can also blend the mixture with a hand blender). Turn the oven down to 350 degrees. If not using a crust, butter a round 9-inch baking dish.

2. Measure out 1 1/2 cups of sweet potato purée (store any extra purée in the refrigerator and enjoy with a meal). Place the purée in the food processor, or in a bowl if using a hand blender, add the remaining ingredients (except the crust) and blend until smooth and creamy. Scrape into the baking dish or the crust. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until set. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.

Yield: 1 pie or flan, serving 8 to 12

Advance preparation: These tastes even better the day after it’s made. The roasted sweet potatoes will keep for 3 or 4 days in the refrigerator. When you blend them, include any of the syrup that has oozed out.

Variation: Use 2 eggs for a creamier flan.

Nutritional information per serving (8 servings): 345 calories; 18 grams fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 140 milligrams cholesterol; 40 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 304 milligrams sodium; 8 grams protein

Nutritional information per serving (12 servings): 230 calories; 12 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 93 milligrams cholesterol; 27 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 202 milligrams sodium; 5 grams protein

Source: New York Times

 

More Deaths, Illness Linked to Energy Drinks

The FDA has posted adverse-event reports for two more energy drinks: 40 illnesses and five deaths linked to Monster Energy, and 13 illnesses and two lasting disabilities linked to Rock star Energy.

 The new reports follow this week’s revelation of FDA reports linking 92 illnesses and 13 deaths to 5-Hour Energy shots. The FDA previously said it was investigating the deaths linked to Monster Energy.

These adverse-event reports (AERs) are filed by patients, families, or doctors. They simply warn that the products might have harmed someone — but they do not prove that the product caused harm. The FDA can remove a product from the market only when investigation shows that the product causes harm when used according to the product label.

“If we find a relationship between consumption of the product and harm, FDA will take appropriate action to reduce or eliminate the risk,”  FDA public information officer Shelly Burgess says.

Moreover, the reports do not offer details on any underlying medical conditions that may have led to product-related illnesses.

The reports, some dating back to 2004, are not a complete inventory of all events that product users may have suffered. Most people, and many doctors, do not know how to file these reports or do not get around to filing them. And even when a product actually causes an illness, a user or doctor may not associate the product with the illness.

The new reports detail the events suffered by users of 5-Hour, Monster, and Rockstar energy drinks. These include:

Deaths due to heart attack or suicide linked to 5-Hour Energy

  • A miscarriage linked to 5-Hour Energy
  • Convulsions, life-threatening fear, deafness, and hemorrhage linked to 5-Hour Energy
  • Deaths due to heart attack or loss of consciousness linked to Monster Energy drink
  • Hospitalization due to irregular heartbeat, severe diarrhea, migraine, psychotic disorder, heart attack, and/or vomiting linked to Monster Energy drink
  • Disability from irregular heartbeat or stroke linked to Rockstar Energy drink
  • Hospitalization due to psychotic disorder, increased heart rate, or loss of consciousness linked to Rockstar Energy drink
  • All of these reports are collected by the product manufacturers. Because they market their products as nutritional supplements, they are required to submit them to the FDA.

A recent government report documented a sharp spike in the number of people who need emergency medical care after consuming energy drinks.

Living Essentials, the maker of 5-Hour Energy, said in a statement that the company “takes reports of any potential adverse event tied to our products very seriously.”

But the company maintains that its products are safe when used as directed. Rockstar and Monster Energy did not respond to interview requests by publication time.

Source: Web MD

 

Rosemary and spearmint extract stave off Alzheimer’s disease

A new study has revealed that enhanced extracts made from special antioxidants in spearmint and rosemary reduces deficits caused by mild cognitive impairment, which can be a precursor to Alzheimer’s disease.

Susan Farr, Ph.D., research professor geriatrics at Saint Louis University School of Medicine, said that although the study suggested that eating spearmint and rosemary is good for you, their experiments were in an animal model and she doesn’t know how much- or if any amount- of these herbs people would have to consume for learning and memory to improve.

Farr tested a novel antioxidant-based ingredient made from spearmint extract and two different doses of a similar antioxidant made from rosemary extract on mice that have age-related cognitive decline.

She found that the higher dose rosemary extract compound was the most powerful in improving memory and learning in three tested behaviors. The lower dose rosemary extracts improved memory in two of the behavioral tests, as did the compound made from spearmint extract.

Further, there were signs of reduced oxidative stress, which is considered a hallmark of age-related decline, in the part of the brain that controls learning and memory.

“Our research suggests these extracts made from herbs might have beneficial effects on altering the course of age-associated cognitive decline,” Farr said. “It’s worth additional study.”

The study was presented at Neuroscience 2013.

Source: Zee News

 

 

Chemical Found in French Fries Linked to Cancer

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued yet another popular food ingredient to its list of foods to be wary of and this time, it’s a chemical called acrylamide which is found in crispy French fries.

In a consumer update posted to its website, the FDA gives a detailed report, urging consumers to cut back on acrylamide, a chemical that forms naturally in plant-based foods when they are cooked at high temperatures for a long time. The most popular food item this ingredient is found in is French fries, especially crispy ones.

Besides crispy fries, the chemical acrylamide is commonly found in cereals, coffee, crackers, breads and dried fruits. Acrylamide is not only limited to food items, the chemical has also found its way into the industrial chain in products including paper, dyes and plastics and treating drinking water, wastewater and sewage.

Several studies on animals have found that when high levels of arylamide are induced, there is a higher risk of cancer. However, more research is needed, particularly long-term studies on humans, in order to determine the link between arylamide and cancer development.

Since up to 40 percent of the calories we consume contain acrylamide, according to the Grocery Manufacturers Association, it’s worth exploring some of the other ways to reduce it where we can.

The cancer concern arylamide poses is not one that only the FDA has. Both the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization call the levels of acrylamide in foods a “major concern,” and call for more research.

Below are some tips on how to reduce acrylamide consumption from the FDA and Cancer.gov:

  • Avoid frying foods. “If frying frozen fries follow manufacturers’ recommendations on time and temperature and avoid overcooking, heavy crisping or burning,” the FDA says.
  • Frying, baking, roasting and broiling are the methods that create the most acrylamide, while boiling, steaming, and microwaving appear to generate less.
  • According to Cancer.gov, 248°F (120°C) seems to be the magic temperature, above which more acrylamide forms. On the contrary, foods heated to below 248°F or less do not seem to contain the chemical.
  • Avoid eating burnt toast. “Toast bread to a light brown color rather than a dark brown color. Avoid very brown areas,” advises the FDA.

 

Source: Parent Herald

 

Autism man still seeking higher education after appeal to Obama

Billy Pagoni is refusing to give up on his hopes for a higher education.

Diagnosed with severe autism at 18 months old, 21-year-old Billy has trouble speaking and communicating with others, making it difficult for him to integrate into a typical college environment.

Nevertheless, Billy had always dreamed of attending college, with hopes of one day becoming a professional chef.  However, according to his mother, Edith, there are currently no university programs suited to meet his special needs.

In an attempt to fix this educational gap, Billy made a public plea to President Obama in April 2012, asking for his help to enroll in a secondary school.  While his video prompted a response from the White House, the Pagonis feel the problem still hasn’t been fully addressed, forcing them to seek more creative routes to further Billy’s educational career.

Now, having just completed his senior year of high school, Billy has enrolled in a special vocational program developed by a Connecticut-based company called G.R.O.W.E.R.S. Inc., where he works in a greenhouse, learning how to tend to plants and herbs.

“What they’re doing is breaking down the skills,” Edith Pagoni, the director of KNEADS, a non-profit social and vocational program for adolescents and young adults with autism, told FoxNews.com.  “He works in the gardens now; he does pruning, floral arrangements, and natural herbs…He’s really learning as he’s going, and we’re hopefully developing for him the ability to take an online course for him to be a sous chef.”

A bumpy road to education

In order to provide Billy with a good education growing up, Edith enrolled him in an applied behavioral analysis (ABA) program at Rutgers University, where he learned to read, write and speak.  She then had to convince local school systems in Connecticut, where the Pagoni family lived, to incorporate the program into their curriculum.

Later, when the family moved to Naples, Fla., they fought to have the ABA program incorporated in schools there as well.

While growing up in Florida, Billy was inspired to take up baking classes after he went to visit a German bread baker. Ever since then, Billy has wanted to become a professional baker or chef, but when it came time to register him in more specialized, university-level programs, Edith found the options to be incredibly scarce.

“They tell me there’s no place for him,” Pagoni told FoxNews.com in 2012 about the search process. “He [went] to school every day, he [got] A’s in a specialized curriculum, but he’s being denied a post-secondary experience.”

Feeling as though Billy had little to no opportunities to attend an institution for higher learning, the Pagonis appealed to an unlikely source: the President of the United States.  In a video posted to Facebook, Billy read from a letter addressed to the Commander in Chief, imploring him to create opportunities for himself and other autistic individuals.

“Dear President Obama, my name is Billy Pagoni,” Billy recited. “I want to be a baker. I am a great student. I never miss a day of school. I get A’s on my report card. Please, can you help me go to college? I am an American. I am autistic.”

The video garnered attention from people all over the world, as well as feedback from a White House spokesperson, who provided Edith with a list of colleges that offered educational programs for autistic students.  However, after meeting with these colleges, Edith found their programs to be more geared towards those with high functioning autism, such as Asperger’s syndrome – and since Billy had a more severe form of the disorder, he couldn’t quite fit in.

As a result, Edith was forced to find alternative solutions to meet Billy’s educational needs.

Growing with G.R.O.W.E.R.S.

Fortunately, Billy was able to get a glimpse of the college experience when his family moved back to Connecticut and enrolled him in a special program at Quinnipiac University in Hamden.  There, he was able to finish his senior year of high school while living on campus and learning how to function on his own.

But after graduating in May of 2013, Billy still wanted to continue his educational career.  That’s when Edith stumbled upon G.R.O.W.E.R.S. Inc., a company aimed at helping people with developmental disabilities perform useful skills and tasks in a normal work environment.

Edith said this program has been extremely beneficial for Billy, as they try to assess his options for future education and employment.

“We’re kind of in a transitional stage,” Edith said. “He really wants to continue with that post-secondary academic experience, but we have to carve it out for them, because there really are no programs out there.”

At G.R.O.W.E.R.S – stands for Growing Real Opportunities with Educational Relationships and other adults work together to grow flowers and plants in a greenhouse, attending additional responsibilities surrounding the horticulture business.  The program is meant to cultivate the specific needs of each participant, depending on what they want to achieve in the future.

“Each individual has different goals,” Scott Hickman, president and owner of G.R.O.W.E.R.S., told FoxNews.com.  “There’s basically a support team around each individual…Some may have dreams (of) working for a landscaper.  Some people have been there since 1975 and would feel uncomfortable if they had to go anywhere else.  Some want to increase their work skills.  It’s great for self-esteem and from person to person it differs.”

Hickman originally ran a similar vocational program for a larger agency in the mid-1990s, but it was canceled by the company due to budget costs.  However, Hickman had seen firsthand how beneficial the program had been for people with disabilities, so he decided to create G.R.O.W.E.R.S. to continue giving individuals opportunities that might otherwise be unavailable to them.

Like Edith, Hickman agrees that there is a significant lack of valuable educational opportunities for adults with autism.

“With a lot more people coming of age with autism, there’s going to have to be more programs available,” Hickman said.  “I think research needs to continue and funding for programs is absolute key.  One of the things I hate to see is seeing an agency that turns into a babysitting service…What we offer, and what needs to be offered more in programs, are activities that are connected with something worthwhile.”

Though Billy loves working at G.R.O.W.E.R.S., Edith says there is still much more work to be done in order to give Billy and other young adults with autism the opportunity to attend school and someday participate in a normal work environment.

Now, Edith says she has a novel business model that can do just that.

A roadmap for the future

While Billy continues to work with G.R.O.W.E.R.S., Edith’s non-profit KNEADS has teamed up with Autism Speaks, in order to carve out a more tailored roadmap for his future.  Together, they are working on developing a new educational model for restaurants and other businesses, which could be mutually beneficial for both the companies and autistic individuals who want to go to work.

According to Edith, franchise restaurants – such as Subway or Chili’s – could easily carve out jobs suitable for people with autism.  Meanwhile, these businesses could partner with local colleges to develop certificate programs specially designed to educate autistic individuals on how to operate in these positions.  Then, once an individual finished the program, he or she could immediately start working at one of the restaurants, using the distinct set of skills he or she learned at school.

“If they could carve certain jobs out and then bring it to a vocational trade school and call it a program, then they would have a path towards employment,” Edith said. “But we need to get these companies to pull together to understand that that would be a great path with someone with autism.”

Edith said that while there are more programs geared towards individuals with high-functioning autism, there are very few options for adults like her son, who have trouble communicating. She said as long as this educational gap exists, she will continue to fight for opportunities for Billy, so that he can become the person he wants to be.

“As a parent, you can have all the money in the world, but if your son or daughter is not connected, then it feels like you’ve failed,” Edith said. “These major franchises that are in business: Let us help you.  There are so many that we can plug into.”

Source: fox news

 

Identical twins share breast cancer, rare surgery

Identical twins Kelly McCarthy and Kristen Maurer have shared a lot in their lives so when one was diagnosed with breast cancer, she urged the other to get tested, too.

“You just do everything together, don’t you,” the doctor told Maurer before delivering the bad news that she, too, had the disease.

Now the 34-year-old twins from Crown Point, Ind., are sharing a medical rarity: Maurer donated skin and fat tissue for McCarthy’s breast reconstruction.

“It wasn’t a question, she didn’t have to ask me,” said Maurer, a college enrollment counselor. “Having a twin is very like having a child. You would do anything for them … in a heartbeat.”

The first successful organ transplant was between identical twins in Boston in 1954 and involved a kidney.

Since then, identical twins have been involved in many other transplant operations, involving kidneys and other organs, bone marrow, and stem cells. But breast reconstruction between identical twins has only been done a handful of times; Maurer and McCarthy, a nurse, are among the youngest patients.

Identical twins are ideal donors because their skin, tissue and organs are perfect genetic matches, explained Dr. David Song, chief of plastic and reconstructive surgery at the University of Chicago Medical Center. And that eliminates the need for anti-rejection medicine, he said.

Song performed the twins’ surgeries on Tuesday and both fared well.

Typically, breast reconstruction surgery involves implants and/or a woman’s own tissue, sometimes taken from the abdomen, thighs or buttocks. But McCarthy is among women who don’t have enough extra tissue; plus, radiation treatment damaged tissue near her breasts. So Maurer offered to be a donor.

McCarthy said her sister’s sacrifice, “just so I can feel better about myself … is really humbling.”

With their blonde bobs, sparkling brown eyes and easy, engaging smiles, the twins are clearly mirror images of each other. Discovering breast cancer in identical twins isn’t unusual because of their exact genetic makeup, Song said. With twins, there’s also often a “mirroring effect,” with breast cancer developing in the opposite breast, he said. That’s what happened with McCarthy and Maurer.

While their mother died from colon cancer last year, there was no family history of breast cancer.

McCarthy was diagnosed first, in December 2011, with triple-negative breast cancer, a hard-to-treat form of cancer whose growth is not fueled by hormones. She was nine months pregnant and her son was born a week later. Soon after she started treatment, chemotherapy, surgery to remove her right breast, and radiation.

Maurer was diagnosed with a very early-stage cancer in her left breast a few months after her sister.

“Kelly was more upset than I was during my diagnosis, and likewise, when she was diagnosed I was a mess,” Maurer said.

Maurer had a double mastectomy, recommended because her sister’s cancer was so aggressive, but she didn’t need chemotherapy or radiation. She had reconstruction with implants after the birth of her second child last March.

McCarthy’s operation this week involved a second mastectomy, and reconstruction of both breasts. Some of her own tissue was used to fashion one breast. At the same time, surgeons essentially performed a “tummy tuck” on Maurer, removing lower abdominal skin and fat tissue and transplanted it to her sister to create a second new breast.

The twins have always been extremely close, sometimes speaking in unison or completing each other’s sentences. But now, McCarthy said, “I feel closer. Her tissue is over my heart.”

Source: Yahoo news

 

Genetically engineered tomatoes could help improve cholesterol levels

Researchers have reported that small amounts of a specific type oflipid in the small intestine could play a greater role than earlier thought in generating the high cholesterol levels and inflammation that lead to cloggedarteries.

The tomatoes, created at UCLA, produce a small peptide called 6F that mimics the action of apoA-1, the chief protein inHDL.

Researchers added 2.2 percent (by weight) of freeze-dried tomato powder from the peptide-enhanced tomatoes to low-fat, low-cholesterol mouse chow that was supplemented with LPAs.

They also added the same dose of the peptide-enhanced tomatoes to the high-fat high- cholesterol diet.

They found that this addition to both diets prevented an increase in the level of LPAs in the small intestine and also stopped increases in “bad” cholesterol, decreases in “good” cholesterol and systemic inflammation. Tomatoes that did not contain the peptide had no effect.

According to senior author Dr. Alan Fogelman, executive chair of the department of medicine and director of the atherosclerosis research unit at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, the peptide-enhanced tomatoes may work in large part by reducing the amount of the LPAs in the small intestine.

The study has been published in the Journal of Lipid Research.

Source: News track India

Drinking three cups of tea a day can cut stroke risk by 20

Drinking three cups of tea a day can cut the risk of a stroke by a fifth, research claims.

An overview of previous studies found Britain’s favourite drink protects against the brain clots that kill 200 people every day.

A new study has revealed that just three cups of tea a day can slash the risk of a stroke by around 20 percent.

Source: Express

 

Bird flu strain infects human for 1st time

A strain of bird flu that scientists thought could not infect people has shown up in a Taiwanese woman, a nasty surprise that shows scientists must do more to spot worrisome flu strains before they ignite a global outbreak, doctors say.

On a more hopeful front, two pharmaceuticals separately reported encouraging results from human tests of a possible vaccine against a different type of bird flu that has been spreading in China since first being identified last spring, which is feared to have pandemic potential.

The woman, 20, was hospitalized in May with a lung infection. After being treated with Tamiflu and antibiotics, she was released. One of her throat swabs was sent to the Taiwan Centres for Disease Control. Experts there identified it as the H6N1 bird flu, widely circulating in chickens on the island.

The patient, who was not identified, worked in a deli and had no known connection to live birds. Investigators couldn’t figure out how she was infected. But they noted several of her close family and friends also developed flu-like symptoms after spending time with her, though none tested positive for H6N1. The research was published online Thursday in the journal Lancet Respiratory Medicine.

Since the H5N1 bird flu strain first broke out in southern China in 1996, public health officials have been nervously monitoring its progress — it has so far killed more than 600 people, mostly in Asia. Several other bird flu strains, including H7N9, which was first identified in China in April, have also caused concern but none has so far mutated into a form able to spread easily among people.

“The question again is what would it take for these viruses to evolve into a pandemic strain?” wrote Marion Koopmans, a virologist at the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment in the Netherlands, in a commentary accompanying the new report.

She said it was worrying that scientists had no early warning signals that such new bird flus could be a problem until humans fell ill. Scientists often monitor birds to see which viruses are killing them, in an attempt to guess which flu strains might be troublesome for humans — but neither H6N1 nor H7N9 make birds very sick.

Koopmans called for increased surveillance of animal flu viruses and more research into predicting which viruses might cause a global crisis.

“We can surely do better than to have human beings as sentinels,” she wrote.

The vaccine news is on the H7N9 bird flu that has infected at least 137 people and killed at least 45 since last spring. Scientists from Novavax Inc., a Gaithersburg, Maryland, company, say tests on 284 people suggest that after two shots of the vaccine, most made antibodies at a level that usually confers protection.

“They gave a third of the usual dose and yet had antibodies in over 80 percent,” said an expert not connected with the work, Dr. Greg Poland of the Mayo Clinic. “This is encouraging news. We’ve struggled to make vaccines quickly enough against novel viruses,” he said.

Results were published online Wednesday by the New England Journal of Medicine.

In a separate announcement on Thursday, Switzerland-based Novartis announced early tests on its H7N9 vaccine in 400 people showed 85 percent of them got a protective immune response after two doses. The data has not yet been published

Source: Yahoo news