That's Fit

With an almost limitless amount of information at our fingertips, it's sometimes quite difficult to disengage ourselves from the ultra-connectivity that dominates our modern lives. Even before nodding off at night, we do one last status check on the world. Who won the game? Was that email replied to? Who is that voicemail message from? The trouble is, it may be more than just this last-minute flood of information that's disrupting our sleep. It may actually be the modes of connection themselves.

According to an article in Fitness Rx magazine, Swedish and American researchers found that electromagnetic radiation from using cell phones before bedtime can cause insomnia, headaches, and confusion. The study cited by Fitness Rx, which was published in a recent edition of the journal Bioelectromagnetics, suggests that cell phone radiation may interfere with stress-regulating centers in the brain, and may also disrupt the production of the sleep hormone melatonin.

Many experts suggest shutting down electronic distractions at least a half an hour before heading off to bed to help ensure a good night's sleep.

A recent Japanese study, published in the Kobe Journal Medical Sciences and most recently highlighted in Fitness Rx magazine, confirms what we've known for quite some time: eating foods high in simple, fast-digesting carbs can cause you to pack on more fat. The difference this time around, however, is that this study provides an additional explanation for why this happens.

When you drink copious amounts of regular soda and chomp on white bread, you spike your blood glucose levels (also known as blood sugar). You may be familiar with this concept from your own knowledge base or from hearing of this process from someone who has diabetes. In response, your body produces a large amount of insulin in efforts to bring your blood glucose back down from orbit by moving the glucose out of the blood and into the cells (whereas a person with diabetes may have to use synthetic insulin -- administered either by shot or pump -- to make up for what their pancreas is not able to sufficiently do on its own in this regard). After this occurs, all excess glucose is stored for later use as fat in white adipose tissue.