Here at That's Fit, we're constantly telling you what we think about things, but sometimes it's nice to know what you think. So from time to time, we'll ask you a question. Don't be afraid to speak up -- we love feedback.

It's Veterans Day in the US, Remebrance Day in Canada and a day synonomous with peace the world over. Having been raised in a military family, this day is one of the most important to me. It's a day when I reflect on the cost of freedom and how fortunate I am. It's also a day that reminds me that I can't take anything for granted.

And I don't know about you, but when I'm reminded of how lucky I am, it motivates me to exercise. When I'm running, I feel alive, powerful and free. So after observing a moment of silence at 11 AM, you know where you'll find me: On the treadmill.

What about you?

The University of Copenhagen out of Denmark has managed to trace the genetic lineage of blue-eyed individuals all the way back to a single ancestor. By studying various people from distinctly unique countries like Jordan and Turkey, they discovered that everyone had brown eyes in the beginning.

However, at some point in our history, a switch was triggered which caused brown eyes to transition to blue. The way this happened was that the amount of melanin in the iris became "diluted" as they put it. This switch appears in the same genetic spot for each person, linking back to a common ancestor. The scientists referred to this as a mutation of the "OCA2 gene" which toned down the amount of melanin produced.

It just goes to show you that mutations such as these can produce beautiful results!

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Right now you can find almost anybody in the world using the internet, whether it's through paying a high-tech online service or simply "Googling" names and seeing what pops up. But what if, in searching for long lost relatives in particular, there was an enormous online DNA database you could check? Now that would be cool. Creepy, sure. But cool.

Well we're one step closer (practically there, actually) to that possibility with Ancestry.com. You can order a DNA kit, swab yourself, and send it in to their system where they'll check you against all the other DNA in their system. If a match is found they'll notify both parties and if everyone agrees, contact information is exchanged.

Interesting idea, and it's all supposedly private and anonymous, but I'm skeptical to say the least.


Via Book of Joe

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Does diabetes run in your family? How about cancer? Heart disease? This is the stuff you should know about your relatives, not because you're destined to fall prey to the same ailments -- although it's a possibility -- but because family history can help you chart your course for a lifestyle of prevention. If your mom and aunt both had breast cancer, for example, and you know a healthy diet and regular exercise help ward off this disease, then you can hop on board and embrace these practices. Add annual mammograms, clinical exams, and your own monthly self-exams, and you might just keep one step ahead of cancer.

It all starts with knowledge. So grab a pen and paper and begin recording your family health history. It'll be like your map -- keep it handy for yourself and take it with you to medical appointments. Here's how to put it all together.

• Call or send e-mails to relatives informing them of your health project. Cover at least three generations -- yours (include siblings and cousins), your parents (include siblings), and your grandparents.
  

Dieting seems to be a phenomenon that's popped up in the last few decades and quickly gained momentum into the new millennium. Afterall, could you imaging people in medieval times, when food was scarce, turning down a potato because they were trying to cut back on their carbs?

But according to Diet Blog and our friend, Crabby McSlacker, dieting happened 300 years ago too. Low-carb diets and exercise were recommended for achieving the ideal figure back then, and not much has changed except for the ideal figure size -- then, curves were favoured over the stick-thin body shape that dominates fashion magazines of today. Actually, I wonder if we will revert back to that way of thinking -- what do you think?

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For most kids the phrase "Go ask your mother," or conversely, "Go ask your father" was an annoying tactic that parents used to delay denying or consenting to a request. There are some important health-related questions, though, that only your parents can answer and as such, it's important to go ask both your mom and dad about the family history of a range of health problems.

A number of physical conditions tend to run in families and knowing whether or not you are genetically predisposed to these conditions can help when diagnosing, treating or even preventing them. This article lists seven important questions to ask both parents in order to gain insight into your family's health history. These include whether there is a family history of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, breast cancer and melanoma. While there are a range of ways to protect yourself against such conditions, it is always helpful to know whether you may also be predisposed.

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Archaeologists study more than just bones, they look at all aspects of the lives of people and creatures from long ago. And this month the University of Nottingham is putting on an interesting postgraduate conference aiming to highlight what we know about the eating habits of our ancestors. Experts will be speaking on cultures such as the Vikings, the Romans, and the people in the Victorian age, all they way up to how we ended up with TV dinners and drive-thrus in today's world.

Food has always been a big part of social and behavioral culture, and I bet this Food and Drink in Archaeology 2007 conference is going to be fascinating! Obviously it's near impossible to attend something like this unless you live in the area, but the article is still an interesting read.

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In a study called "Healthy People, Healthy Country," researchers looked at the connections between indigenous populations of people and ancestral lands or the physical areas in which they lived -- and the health of both seems to go hand in hand. Although in some areas both the people and the land were very healthy, in others neither were thriving at all. The trick for these populations seems to be finding a balance between modern social benefits and health care, and traditional living with cultural history and roots.

The basic findings of the study was that increasing natural and cultural resource management activities in target areas (more remote or isolated groups) could significantly improve overall the health of both the people and the landscapes. And this, obviously, would benefit everybody.

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