A Fashion Accessory That Could Save Your Life

SpaFinder is an advocate of skin cancer awareness. They have an industry-wide campaign that focuses on understanding sun damage, self-examination, sunscreen use, and yearly full-body check-ups at the dermatologist. Over 65,000 people every year are diagnosed with melanoma, and 11,000 of those die. It is important to know when your skin is being damaged by the sun. SpaFinder is selling “I Will Reflect” bracelets to help raise awareness of skin cancer. The bracelet is white, but turns lavender when you have had enough harmful ultraviolet rays. It’s an easy and fashionable way to be reminded to go into the shade or reapply sunscreen. You can find the melanoma bracelet for $4.95 at
www.spafinder.com

Artichokes for Health and Beauty

Artichokes are high on the list of foods that are packed full of antioxidants. In a recent study done by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, artichokes ranked number one as the vegetable with the most antioxidants. Artichokes reduce inflammation throughout the entire body because they contain an antioxidant known as rutin. The reduced inflammation makes you more beautiful by decreasing puffiness and skin redness, and well as reducing wrinkles. Artichokes contain lots of fiber, which helps the body rid itself of toxins. This can help your skin by fighting acne. Artichokes also contain antioxidants known as Cynarin and Silymarin that are especially good for your liver and may prevent liver disease. According to folklore, artichokes have long been reputed to cure liver ailments and liver cancer, as well as curing hangovers. Just one artichoke contains about 25% of your daily requirement for fiber. Artichokes are very low in calories, just remember to watch out for high calorie dips!

Artichoke Nutrition Facts:
• Calories: 60
• Fat: 0 grams
• Cholesterol: 0 mg
• Sodium: 115 mg
• Total Carbs: 13 grams
• Fiber: 6 grams
• Sugars: 1 gram
• Protein: 4 grams
• Potassium: 170 mg
• Vitamin A: 4% DV
• Calcium: 6% DV
• Vitamin C: 20% DV
• Iron: 8% DV
(DV = Daily Value)
photo credit: fontplaydotcom

Walnuts May Keep Cancer at Bay

A study done by Marshall University School of Medicine found that eating walnuts every day may help curb breast cancer. The study done on mice found that those that ate walnuts had fewer and smaller tumors than those who didn’t. Walnuts contain antioxidants and significantly higher amounts of omega-3 fatty acids than other nuts. They also contain phytosterols, which bind to estrogen receptors and inhibit the growth of breast cancer tumors. The study suggests eating two handfuls of walnuts a day to receive benefits. More research needs to be done with human subjects, but the results are promising. Scientists estimate that eating walnuts every day may push off the development of tumors by up to nine years. Walnuts may also help reduce the risk of heart disease by lowering LDL (bad) cholesterol and improving blood vessel elasticity. They also reduce C-Reactive Protein, which is an independent marker and predictor of heart disease.

photocredit:FotoosVanRobin

Bumming a Cigarette Bums out Your Heart

If you think you’re beating the bad effects of cigarettes because you don’t smoke regularly, but still bum one now and then on a night out—you’re kidding yourself! Every puff you take increases your potential for arterial damage. A University of Georgia study found that sporadic smokers who smoked two cigarettes after two days of not smoking were 36 percent less responsive to blood flow changes than nonsmokers. After four cigarettes the arterial response was even worse. Impaired arterial response is the first step to heart disease. Cigarette smokers also have more build up of fatty deposits in their arteries. In fact, the Surgeon General has declared smoking “the leading preventable cause of disease and deaths in the United States.” Secondhand smoke will cause these same effects, so try to avoid it if possible. Smoking also decreases you HDL (good) cholesterol. And don’t forget—it’s bad for your lungs, too!

photo credit: vramak

Your Laser Printer May Pollute Your Air

One-third of printers studied emitted toner particles, a report in Environmental Science and Technology found. These particles could be potentially harmful to your health. Some printers give off as much pollution as a burning cigarette. These particles are a problem because they are so small they are inhaled deep into the lungs. Depending on how well ventilated the area is, these particles can stay in the air from a few minutes to a few hours. The best way to deal with this issue is to make sure the printer is in a well ventilated area. Try to keep the printer in a separate location than your workspace. The closer you are to the printer, the higher the concentration of the particles. If you don’t need to print something—don’t. Not only will you save some trees, you may save your lungs!

photo credit: Sir Adavis

Ginger Can Help With Chemo

The Chinese have been using ginger for centuries, here's another reason why it's good for you.



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Choosing Collard Greens

Collard Greens are a rich source of vitamin K, A, C, folate, manganese, calcium, dietary fiber and potassium just to name a few. They have been toted to help in the reduction of free radicals in the body which decreases risk of many diseases including cancer. Collards have an anti-inflammatory effect which can speed up the healing process and help bring down inflammation in joints when an injury has occurred.

How to Cut a Mango

This is the way how I was taught to cut a mango, it is by far the best way to enjoy one. Mangoes are loaded with beta-carotene - which helps the maintenance of healthy skin, good vision, and a robust immune system. It is also a powerful antioxidant, and has been shown to help guard against cancer and heart disease.

Pancreatic Cancer and Animal Fat

This week I came across an research article that has come out from the U.S. National Cancer Institute on the strong association between increased animal fat and dairy products with pancreatic cancer.  I have seen the devastation this disease can bring first hand when I lost my grandfather almost 2 years ago(its the fourth-leading cause of cancer death in the US).  Health Day stated, "Men who consumed the most fat from animal sources had a 53 percent increased risk of developing pancreatic cancer and women had a 23 percent increased risk, compared with men and women who ate the least fat."  Above and beyond that they noted that an increased level of saturated fat increased risk of pancreatic cancer by 36%.

The Journal of the American Medical Association has toted that being over weight in your 30s was associated with a 60 percent increased risk for pancreatic cancer, and being obese was associated with a twofold to threefold higher risk.

In short, you may want to evaluate the amount of meat and dairy you consume(remembering that 2% milk is actually 35% fat) Make sure you are getting lots of fresh vegetables and fruit which are so important to maintaining a healthy weight and disease prevention. photo credit: VirtualErn

Sunscreen - the Number game

Is there really a difference between SPF 30 and SPF 15? I asked Kathy Li (my sister in law), who worked as a formulator for Banana Boat. She said SPF 15 blocks out 95% of UVB radiation, SPF 30 blocks out 97%. Depending on your activity and if you plan to be outside more than 2-3 hours,  the added benefit of SPF 30 may not be worth the cost. Always remember that there is no baby sun screen or waterproof sunscreen, re-apply hourly for maximum protection.

photo credit: Robert S. Donovan

High SPF Not Necessarily Better

Fatty Liver and Cancer risk

People who suffer from the most serious form of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease have a significant risk of developing liver cancer. Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic have found Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is the most common liver disease in the United States. Obesity, along with hypertension and diabetes, is a major risk factor. photo credit: ohhhbetty

Free baseball tickets + Prostate blood test?

I personally have not done one, but I'm going to do it. My wife's grandfather was at the ICU for 1 week because his prostate swelled up so big that he was not able to pee for 4 days! His urine was backed up and his lungs started collecting fluid and having difficulty breathing. So yes, I'm going to do something about it and prevent myself from ever getting there.

Illinois' public health chief Dr. Damon Arnold is a prostate cancer survivor and he is urging men to get free prostate cancer screenings. The first 250 men who show up will get two free tickets to a White Sox home game. SCORE :)

Have you done a prostate exam or blood test? What's your experience? Lets share them in the comments area.  photo credit: Kevin.Ward

The Folic acid debate goes on..

The big debate is if increasing folic acid in fortified foods will help pregnant women enough to be worth while.  The concern is will increasing the amount contribute to elderly increases of cancer. The sad thing is they know some rich food sources: green leafy vegetables, citrus fruit, and dried beans, but are spending their time debating whether to fortify foods.  Why don’t they just urge people to increase their green leafy veggies (which btw are cruciferous and helpful in fighting cancer) and save themselves the time debating? =)  More..

photo credit: sciondriver