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4A Daily News – Tuesday, August 20, 2013 Vitality health Coffee, tea may help your liver fight disease By Relaxnews Your morning cup of coffee or tea may do more than just perk you up. A new study finds that the caffeinated beverages may protect your liver from disease. In a study announced last week, an international team of researchers led by Duke University School of Medicine in North Carolina suggests that increased caffeine intake may reduce fatty liver in people with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Worldwide, 70 percent of people diagnosed with diabetes and obesity have NAFLD, the major cause of fatty liver not due to excessive alcohol consumption, the researchers said. Currently, there are no effective treatments for NAFLD except diet and exercise. Using cell culture and mouse models, head researcher Dr. Paul Yen and his team found that caffeine stimulated the metabolization of lipids stored in liver cells and decreased the fatty liver of mice that were fed a high-fat diet. According to the findings, researchers said that the equivalent caffeine intake of four cups of coffee or tea a day may be beneficial in preventing and protecting against the progression of NAFLD in humans. The findings appear online and will be published in the September issue of the journal Hepatology. "This is the first detailed study of the mechanism for caffeine action on lipids in liver and the results are very interesting," Yen said. "Coffee and tea are so commonly consumed and the notion that they may be therapeutic, especially since they have a reputation for being 'bad' for health, is especially enlightening." Prior research has already associated caffeine with decreased risk of liver disease and reduced fibrosis in patients with chronic liver disease. Last year, a separate study published in the same journal found that drinking coffee reduces the risk of advanced fibrosis in those NAFLD. & fitness Why exercise isn't a quick fix for better sleep By Brady Dennis The Washington Post Insomniacs of the world: If you think taking a long run today will make you sleep better tonight, think again. While exercise has long been a prescription for insomnia, new research suggests that exercise does not immediately translate into a better night's sleep — unless you stick with it for months. A study published Thursday in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine found that aerobic exercise can lead to more rest at night for people who suffer from existing sleep problems, but only if they maintain an exercise regimen for roughly four months. "Exercise isn't a quick fix. . . . It takes some time and effort," the study's lead author, Kelly Glazer Baron, a clinical psychologist and director of the behavioral sleep program at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine, said in an interview. "It's a long-term relationship." Studies have long suggested that aerobic exercise can contribute to better sleeping habits. But much of the research on the daily effects of exercise on sleep was conducted with healthy sleepers. Tuesday's study, by contrast, looked at the long-term effects of exercise in people already suffering from sleep disorders. Baron said she began looking deeper into the relationship between exercise and insomnia after numerous patients complained to her that despite intense workouts, they weren't immediately resting easier at night. "It was frustrating for them," she said. For the study, Baron and her fellow researchers analyzed previously published data from a 2010 clinical trial on the connections between exercise and sleep. They looked at the daily activities and sleep logs over a 16-week period for nearly a dozen women, ages 57 to 70, who were wrestling with insomnia. Older women tend to have higher rates of insomnia, which is defined as having difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep as well as having trouble functioning throughout the day because of the lack of sleep. The researchers discovered that only after months of persistent exercise — the women typically walked on a treadmill several times a week — did the patients 5 ways to pump up your fitness routine By Tucker Shaw The Denver Post Sick of all those lists telling you how to get fitter, faster, leaner, healthier in ten easy steps? Forget ten. Try five. 1. Change it up every 5 Weight training has many benefits — a stronger core, a higher metabolism rate, lower risk of osteoporosis and more. But your body can quickly adjust to a rote workout; if your routine stays the same, your body adapts to complete it as efficiently as possible, and your results wane. Solution: Change it up. Trainers call it "muscle confusion," and it means surprising your body with a new exercise every now and then. So, every five workouts, swap in something new. Sick of squats? Switch to lunges for a spell. Try doing curls on one leg. Do pull-ups instead of pull-downs. You get the idea. 2. Go big for 5 For many people, the first five minutes of a workout is the hardest part -- your muscles complain, your lungs protest, your heart gives you guff. But a 2009 University of Arkansas study shows that some high intensity training is crucial to fat reduction, particularly RANDAL S. ELLOWAY DDS IMPLANT DENTISTRY 2426 SO. 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Have you ever been embarrassed by a denture or a bridge? If you answered "yes" to one or more of these questions, call us today at (530) 527-6777 to schedule an evaluation appointment. We would be pleased to evaluate your oral health and discuss treatment options with you. among older adults. Other research shows that you can burn upwards of 20 percent more calories if you start at a brisk pace, then finish a bit easier. So hit the treadmill with extra vigor up front, and ease up as you go. 3. Find 5 new routes Does the idea of running or cycling around the same park at the same time of day — again — bore you? Mix it up and choose a new route. Denver has more than 200 public parks, 100 miles of running trails and over 850 miles of paved, offroad bike trails. Chances are there's one — or five — that you haven't used just a few minutes away. If you're not familiar with the terrain, walk it first. Running may burn more calories, but a recent study from the University of California at Berkeley suggests that walking and running provide similar risk reductions for hypertension, diabetes and more. 4. Add 5 minutes Add five minutes to your daily workout routine — an extra lap around the block, another song while on the elliptical machine, a short detour on your bike commute — and suddenly you've added thirty minutes of aerobic exercise to your weekly total. That's like tossing in an extra workout for the week. 5. Subtract 5 pounds Common wisdom says you add more weight periodically to your training regiment. But next time, try subtracting instead. Take five pounds off your overhead press weight, for instance, but get through your reps more quickly. Tehama Family Fitness Center Its not too late to reach your fitness goals this year! Hot August Membership Specials! Get the rest of the year for only $169 and couples only $269! begin to experience more restful nights. Over time, the women began sleeping about 45 minutes more a night on average. "The effects were huge when they stuck with it," Baron said. Why exactly does it take so long for exercise to result in more restful nights? "Patients with insomnia have a heightened level of brain activity, and it takes time to reestablish a more normal level that can facilitate sleep," said Phyllis Zee, a neurology professor and another author of the study. "Rather than medications, which can induce sleep quickly, exercise may be a healthier way to improve sleep because it could address the underlying problem." Researchers also found that the relationship between sleep and insomnia runs in both directions. While sustained exercise can help people sleep better, a bad night's rest can leave people less motivated to exercise. "Sleep deprivation doesn't change your physical capacity, but it changes your perception of how hard the exercise is," Baron said. "You feel more exhausted." Past research suggests that the timing of exercise also might affect a person's sleep. The National Sleep Foundation, for instance, recommends exercising at least three hours before bedtime, in part to allow the body to cool down. Baron said insomniacs should take two key messages from Thursday's findings: Don't give up on an exercise plan if you aren't seeing results right away. And find the inspiration to exercise even on days you might not feel like it. "Write a note on your mirror that says 'Just Do It!' " she said. "It will help in the long run." Grandparents, grandkids help boost each other's well-being By Relaxnews A study announced this week finds that both grandparents and adult grandchildren play key roles in the mental well-being of both. Researchers from Boston College in the US looked at 376 grandparents and 340 grandchildren, tracking their mental health from 1985 to 2004. Findings were presented August 12 at the 108th Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association in New York. Results showed that grandparents and adult grandchildren who felt emotionally close to each other experienced fewer symptoms of depression. The average grandparent in the study was born in 1917 and the average grandchild in 1963, making them 77 years old and 31 years old, respectively, at the midpoint of the study in 1994. "We found that an emotionally close grandparentadult grandchild relationship was associated with fewer symptoms of depression for both generations," said Sara Moorman, professor of sociology. "The greater emotional support grandparents and adult grandchildren received from one another, the better their psychological health." In the study, participants responded to survey questions every few years about how often they helped each other, such as with housework or giving or receiving car rides, as well as how well they got along. Among the subjects, grandparents who offered advice, paid for meals from time to time, and felt independent had fewer depressive symptoms, which suggests that a two-way supportive relationship is best. "Most of us have been raised to believe that the way to show respect to older family members is to be solicitous and to take care of their every need," Moorman said. "But all people benefit from feeling needed, worthwhile, and independent. In other words, let granddad write you a check on your birthday, even if he's on Social Security and you've held a real job for years now." Back to school student membership special 3 months for $89 Troy's Bar Seminar August 10th 10:00-12:00 25 $ per person Learn how to perform the Clean and Jerk and other Crossfit movements. 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