Forget Gum. Walking and Using Phone Is Risky.

We addressed talking on the phone and driving in an earlier posting that demonstrated the hazards involved. Now comes a study that highlights the difficulties and dangers in just walking while talking much less driving. There is a lot of talk these days about laws being enacted to stop phone calling and texting while driving in a number of states. Maybe its’ time, for the sake of our own health and wellness, that we take responsibility for ourselves and stop these self destructive behaviors on our own. I don’t know about anyone else, but it is proven to me time and again that my driving is impaired when I try to talk or text while driving.

www.nytimes.com/2010/01/17/technology/17distracted.html?hp

Is organic better? Making sense of organic choices

The conversation about whether organically grown foods are more nutritious or safer is becoming more intense. Here is some good, basic information that highlights both sides and, also, some links to sites with even more information.

featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/features_julieshealthclub/2010/03/is-organic-better-making-sense-of-organic-choices.html

Four Preventable Risk Factors Reduce Life Expectancy in U.S. and Lead to Health Disparities

I guess we already knew this, but the study below, led by the Harvard School of Public Health, confirms that smoking, high blood pressure, high blood glucose and obesity and overweight conditions, reduce life expectancy in men by 4.9 years and by 4.1 years in women. In many cases these are preventable conditions.

With just a couple minor adjustments in our eating and exercise habits we can have a major impact on our quality of life and be around a little longer to enjoy it with our family and friends!! Click on” health and wellness site” in the right column to visit tkfamilyplan.com to get started. See the Smoking Cessation section also if needed.

www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/press-releases/2010-releases/four-preventable-risk-factors-reduce-life-expectancy-in-us.html

At-home medical tests have pitfalls

With health care costs continuing to rise, the aging of the population and a desire for more health care information on the part of many, the market for DIY, Do It Yourself, home testing will continue to grow rapidly.

From the Chicago Tribune’s health section, some good advice/information about how to use DIY’s safely.

www.chicagotribune.com/health/sc-health-0324-diy-tests-20100321,0,1591360,print.story

Doctors and Patients, Not Talking About Weight

There are times when when we may need to try other health care sources than our family doctor, internist, etc. Many of us have issues with diet and food in general and many times it is a simple lack of knowledge.  Click on the link to our Health and Wellness site in the right column and then click on Nutrition for some excellent, basic nutrition information from our registeredDietician, Shannon Hayes Buescher. You can also click contact Shannon at our Ask An Expert section, also accessible in the right hand column.

well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/16/doctors-and-patients-not-talking-about-weight/?pagemode=print

Deciding on Care for Elderly Parents in Declining Health

Some more valuable information on a very important, sometimes

difficult topic. It is so important to research all options as mistakes

can be very costly in many ways.

www.nytimes.com/2010/03/13/health/13patient.html?ref=health

Vitamin D shows promise but research still lagging

Not so fast?

After similar enthusiasm about vitamin E and others, many medical professionals want more definitive proof about the value of Vitamin D supplements, although its’ proponents have no such hesitations. Read this article and judge for yourself.

www.chicagotribune.com/health/ct-met-vitamin-d-20100309,0,7870128,print.story

To Double the Odds of Seeing 85: Get a Move On

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, here is more evidence of the need to become more active and exercise on a regular basis. Some basic guidelines are laid out here in this article from the Wall Street Journal.Here is a quote that says it all and sums up our philosophy here at TK Health and Wellness and that is that we simply cannot afford not to get healthy.

“It’s one more piece of data that says we all need to be moving in America,” says Emelia Benjamin, professor of medicine and epidemiology at Boston University School of Medicine, who wasn’t involved with the study. “It’s pretty clear that Americans want to take a pill, but we’re all going to be bankrupt unless people start taking on these lifestyle changes.”

Visit our site at www.tkfamilyplan.com to get started with a basic exercise plan you can perform in your home and some minor nutrition changes you can make that will have a big impact on your life.

online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424052748703954904575109673558885594.html#mod=todays_us_personal_journal

Boosting Metabolism with Muscle

From www.myyogaonline.com (click on family health and wellness in

the right hand column and then to the link to My Yoga Online in the right

hand column there), excellent information on the benefits of converting

body fat to muscle and how to do it with yoga.

www.myyogaonline.com/blog/2009/12/boosting-metabolism-with-muscle/

U.S. Children: Generation Snack

This article reflects a study that surveyed over 31,000 kids but the results

would probably be similar if it surveyed 31,000 adults. It is constantly repeated

and painfully obvious, but if we just replaced highly sugared and salted snacks

with fresh fruit or even frozen fruit our calorie, processed sugar and salt

intake would decrease dramatically. Watch your local grocery store for sale

prices on fresh fruit and you (and your kids should you have them) try it for a

week and see how all of you feel.

well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/02/u-s-children-generation-snack/?pagemode=print

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