internal-related stories
What your kid needs by age 10
Diet & Weight Loss, Motivation, Nutrition & Supplements
Does your kid have an internal locus of control? If so, it's a good thing because kids who have one by age 10 are less likely to be overweight at age 30. They also grow up to be healthier adults and are less likely to describe their health as poor or show high levels of psychological stress. Despite childhood IQ, education, and family income, these tendencies remain.A locus of control is the extent to which people think they can influence events through their own actions. Each of us has one. It's a natural component of a person's personality and is shaped by childhood experiences and interaction with parents. Those who are shaped to believe they are in charge of their lives have an "internal" locus of control. Those who are not have an "external" locus.
"I think it is quite probable that a major explanation why children with a more internal locus of control behave more healthily as adults is that they have greater confidence in their ability to influence outcomes through their own actions," says Dr. Catharine R. Gale, of the University of Southampton in the UK. They may also have higher self-esteem, which can encourage healthy habits.
Exercise may be fountain of youth
Want to cut your biological age by 10 years? Then exercise.
A recent study in the Archives of Internal Medicine says exercise not only gives us a youthful glow -- it actually makes us youthful. How do they know? Because they gauged biological age by measuring telomeres, parts of chromosomes whose length has been linked to life span. Telomeres shorten as we age due to inflammation and cell damage. But those who exercise for more than three hours per week have telomeres as long as those who are sedentary and 10 years younger.
Exercise may even have the power to reduce the telomere-shortening damage of behaviors like smoking and stress. Some powerful stuff, that exercise. But you know that, right?
A recent study in the Archives of Internal Medicine says exercise not only gives us a youthful glow -- it actually makes us youthful. How do they know? Because they gauged biological age by measuring telomeres, parts of chromosomes whose length has been linked to life span. Telomeres shorten as we age due to inflammation and cell damage. But those who exercise for more than three hours per week have telomeres as long as those who are sedentary and 10 years younger.
Exercise may even have the power to reduce the telomere-shortening damage of behaviors like smoking and stress. Some powerful stuff, that exercise. But you know that, right?
Don't be a turkey -- cook that bird right
Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements
Halloween is over. Thanksgiving is next. That means less talk about candy and more about the featured meat of the month: Turkey.
As you prepare for your Thanksgiving feast, don't neglect to cook your bird to the proper temperature. You'll need to invest in a food thermometer -- it's the only way to tell if your turkey has reached a temperature high enough to destroy illness-causing bacteria. And you'll need to cook that bird until it has an internal temperature of 165°F for safety, and 180°F for the best quality thigh meat. You'll want to check your temps at two spots -- the thickest part of the breast and the innermost part of the thigh. Check your stuffing too, and aim to cook it separately until it reaches 165°F internally.
For more on food safety, visit www.foodsafety.gov.
As you prepare for your Thanksgiving feast, don't neglect to cook your bird to the proper temperature. You'll need to invest in a food thermometer -- it's the only way to tell if your turkey has reached a temperature high enough to destroy illness-causing bacteria. And you'll need to cook that bird until it has an internal temperature of 165°F for safety, and 180°F for the best quality thigh meat. You'll want to check your temps at two spots -- the thickest part of the breast and the innermost part of the thigh. Check your stuffing too, and aim to cook it separately until it reaches 165°F internally.
For more on food safety, visit www.foodsafety.gov.
Chemical levels in kids' bodies shocks officials
Have you ever measure the level of industrial chemicals circulating or at rest in your system? If you live nearby a chemical plant or are in a smog-ridden city, you probably have high levels of some chemicals inside your body.Scientists have been increasing the testing for industrial chemicals in newer techniques that were developed less than 10 years ago, and some have found the results very shocking. Could you imagine an 18 month-old having toxic substances in his body that would lead to a heavy potential for sickness if found in an adult? This new "biomonitoring" is telling the tale for some parents.
Even household chemicals and shampoos are generally nasty, unless they use biodegradable and organic ingredients. Problem is, many don't. Research methylparaben (in shampoos and lotions) and the items used to make dyes (like FD&C Red 40), and prepare to be shocked.
Diet without exercise bad for the bones
It's possible to lose weight by diet alone. But it's much more effective with exercise. Exercise speeds up the calorie-burning process, increases energy, triggers heart health, boosts mental health and according to a study published in the December 2006 Archives of Internal Medicine, exercise strengthens bones too.
Dieting without exercise can cause bone loss, say researchers at Washington University. Female dieters who lost weight by only cutting calories lost 2.2 percent of bone density in the spine and hips, two areas prone to fractures. Tack on some exercise to that diet plan, and get enough calcium too, and you can lose weight without losing bone.
Seems a simple formula to me. How about you?
Dieting without exercise can cause bone loss, say researchers at Washington University. Female dieters who lost weight by only cutting calories lost 2.2 percent of bone density in the spine and hips, two areas prone to fractures. Tack on some exercise to that diet plan, and get enough calcium too, and you can lose weight without losing bone.
Seems a simple formula to me. How about you?
