Daily Health Tips: Trusted Medical Information, Health Tips and Advices

Unhealthy Foods So Accessible That Distance From Schools Makes Little Difference A child's risk for becoming overweight or obese does not seem to increase when fast food establishments and stores are located near school grounds, a new study finds. "Unhealthful food choices are ubiquitous and consequently stores selling these food items near schools have no significant effect on student obesity," researchers led by David E. Harris, PhD, of the University of Southern Maine in Portland say in the July/August 2011 Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior . Researchers compared the weight and height of 552 students from 11 high schools in Maine to the proximity of food stores to their schools. They computed the driving distance to all food stores within 1.24 miles of the schools or to the closest store. Ten schools had one or more stores that sold soda, and eight schools had one or more fast food restaurant less than a mile from their grounds, the study sh

Article on easy-to-do exercises which you can do at your home. Many people can’t take out the time to hit the gym due to their busy schedule. These exercise can help you stay fit. We understand that you have an extremely busy schedule. We also understand that there is not a good gym where you live or maybe you don’t really like going to one. So we tell about the top 5 exercises which can be easily done at home. No excuses now! Here are 5 great exercises that you can do at home, without the need for any equipment:   Push-ups This is one of the most useful exercises that can be easily done at home. If done correctly it can rev up your stamina and build your pecs and triceps. How to do it: Lie face down with your palms on the floor about shoulder width apart from each other. Push your whole body up with your back and legs in a straight line and then lower yourself back down towards the floor. To strengthen your chest more place your arms wider apart. To strengthen your tri

Today's carrots come in a rainbow of colors, but here's the hue with the most antioxidants: purple. Research shows that, bite for bite, purple carrots have more antioxidants than orange, yellow, red, and white varieties. Falling Short Did you know that compared with fruits and vegetables produced 50 years ago, today's produce has less nutrition? Which makes it all the more important not only to boost your overall fruit and vegetable intake but also to choose the most nutritious stuff you can find. Aim for at least 2 cups of fruit and 2½ cups of vegetables every day, the amounts recommended by both RealAge and the U.S. government. And when you can, choose fruits and vegetables with the darkest hue -- like purple carrots. Studies show that purple carrots have 10 times more phenols than other carrot varieties. (Related: Here are three of the most antioxidant-rich veggies.) Powerful Protection Phenols are super-powerful antioxidants that help fight disease

Anyone who's been to the Saturday farmers market knows there are lots of veggies out there to choose from. But do you know what ones are richest in antioxidants? A recent study of close to 30 different types of veggies put these three at the top of the list: broccoli, beets, and bell peppers (the red kind). Yep, the top-notch veggies all start with B. Makes it easier to remember, doesn't it? Let's Hear It for the B's The recent tests measuring total antioxidant content of the veggies revealed that they were particularly high in phenols -- that category of disease-fighting plant compounds that does everything from bolstering artery function to inhibiting the kind of cell damage that might lead to cancer or Alzheimer's. Broccoli and bell peppers are also a top source of antioxidant vitamin C. And beets are full of blood-pressure-friendly potassium. Why They Deserve to Win Though broccoli, bell peppers, and beets were tops in the recent study, it t

Orange juice isn't the only beverage you can grab when you want to help your immune system fight off illness and infection. New research suggests that grape juice may be an immune system booster, too. In a study, people who sipped Concord grape juice daily for 9 weeks had higher blood levels of a special type of infection-fighting cell. Bolster Your Defenses The study involved middle-aged folks who were basically healthy. But something interesting happened when they added about 1½ cups of grape juice to their daily diet . After 9 weeks, they had significantly more T cells compared with the control group. T cells are a type of white blood cell that fights off infections. And in the study, drinking grape juice increased participants' levels of specialized T cells called "surveillance" cells, found mostly in the lungs, intestines, and gastrointestinal tract. Researchers think that these cells act as the first line of defense against invading pathogens.

Next time you feel your blood start to boil, chant this mantra: "blue skies." Why? A calm mantra just might turn you into a fast healer. Here's what we mean by that. Studies show that being quick tempered can make a person's body slower to recover from wounds. Immunity takes a hit if you're a hot head, it seems. One way that psychologists offer to channel anger? Repeat a calming phrase. Stressed and Angry In the study, participants who had received very small blister wounds to their skin were also evaluated in terms of their anger management skills. And those who had trouble managing their tempers were more likely to have slower healing blisters -- over four times more likely. The hot-tempered folks also had higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol in their saliva, leading the researchers to believe that stress is the underlying factor in the impact anger has on healing. The immune system -- command central for healing and recovery -- suffers wh

Your immune system is responsible for helping fight off everything from the common cold to cancer. A tall order! Send in some reinforcements so it doesn't get battle fatigue. Here are four foods your immune system loves. Sweet, Creamy, Steamy, Crunchy . . . Oranges, yogurt, tea, and pumpkin seeds are the order of the day when it comes to giving your immune system a treat, Oranges are chock-full of vitamin C, an antioxidant vitamin that helps your immune system fend off disease-causing invaders. Other good C options: bell peppers, strawberries, cantaloupe, and broccoli. Or take 400 milligrams of vitamin C three times daily. Yogurt (unpasteurized) contains Lactobacillus acidophilus -- a healthy bacterium that helps thwart fungus-related infections. Or take a 20-milligram acidophilus supplement twice daily.   Tea is full of flavonoids, powerful vitamin-like substances that reduce immune-system aging. You'll also find them in oats, onions, broccoli, tomatoes,

Pureed into soup, boiled, or grilled, this is one spring veggie you can't afford to forget about: artichokes. Turns out that artichokes are high in luteolin. And a recent study suggests that this power-packed antioxidant may help quiet neuron-damaging inflammation in the memory center of our brains. Cool Your Head Over time, chronic inflammation can damage and even kill off brain cells in the hippocampus -- the memory-making part of our brains. And this gradual kill off of brain cells can lead to declines in memory and our ability to learn new things. But in a 4-week mouse study, hippocampal inflammation declined in a group of older, memory-impaired test subjects when they were fed a luteolin-enhanced diet. In fact, memory performance in the luteolin group matched that of much younger mice. (Related: A healthful diet is not the only way to keep your memory intact. Find out how your attitude about aging affects your memory .)   Luteolin inhibits microglia

Age-related memory loss. Think it's inevitable? Here's why you might want to think again. Buying into the stereotype that memory function automatically dwindles with age could become a self-fulfilling prophecy, research shows. Defy the Stereotypes At least that's what happened in one study. When older adults (ages 60 to 70 years) were given cues that people their age tend to suffer from memory loss, they actually performed more poorly on memory tests than a control group not exposed to such cues. Likewise, older adults who felt looked down upon -- or stigmatized -- due to age also fared poorly on memory tests. Bottom line: Anxious thoughts about negative stereotypes may disrupt your working memory. So think positive! Multifaceted Memory Protection Okay, positive thinking is no guarantee against memory problems -- but a positive attitude is always a healthier choice.

Few things plant the waist-widening TV remote more firmly in our hands than the need to destress. But here's a healthier way to let go of it all: Just breathe deeply. It takes only about 30 seconds to do it right, and a quick and easy stress reduction strategy like this is critical to your waistline -- especially given a recent study on job stress and weight gain. In the study, workers who were super stressed tended to have bigger bellies than their peers who were more at ease.