Welcome to the Health and Fitness NewsWelcome to the Stars Hollow Health and Fitness News weekly diary. It will publish on Saturday afternoon and be open for discussion about health related issues including diet, exercise, health and health care issues, as well as, tips on what you can do when there is a medical emergency. Also an opportunity to share and exchange your favorite healthy recipes.
Questions are encouraged and I will answer to the best of my ability. If I can’t, I will try to steer you in the right direction. Naturally, I cannot give individual medical advice for personal health issues. I can give you information about medical conditions and the current treatments available.
You can now find past Health and Fitness News diaries here and on the right hand side of the Front Page.
Follow us on Twitter @StarsHollowGzt
Planning ahead, I was all set to devote this week’s recipes to potatoes, which I have always defended against the anti-carb brigade because potatoes are a wholesome food, high in B vitamins and vitamin C, potassium and fiber, with some protein and lots of complex carbohydrates. A plain, seven-ounce baked potato eaten with the skin contains half the daily amounts of Vitamin C and Vitamin B6 recommended for adults. I had Thanksgiving in mind, the most popular time of the year for this tuber; or is Hanukkah the most popular time?
As it turns out both holidays fell at the same time this year. All the more reason for five new latke and potato pancake recipes that combine potatoes and other vegetables. If you made mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving you can use the leftovers for the mashed potato and broccoli raab pancakes and for the mashed potato and cabbage pancakes, or just steam up some potatoes.
Indian flavors add a new dimension to potato latkes.
Butternut Squash and Purple Potato Latkes
Purple potatoes add a bit of color and some extra nutrients but regular white potatoes work, too.
Mashed Potato and Broccoli Raab Pancakes
A delicious way to use mashed potatoes, whether they be leftovers or freshly mashed.
Mashed Potato and Cabbage Pancakes
Vegetable pancakes with a sweet and comforting flavor.
Delicious cumin-scented latkes laced with crispy kale.
Deaths Lead to Recall of Baby Monitors
Nov 22, 2013 — About 600,000 baby monitors are being recalled after two babies strangled to death on the device’s cord, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says.
The recall covers Angelcare Movement and Sound Monitors with Sensor Pads that were made between 1999 and 2013. The cord, which is attached to the monitor’s sensor pad is placed under the crib mattress, poses a strangulation risk if the child pulls the cord into the crib and it becomes wrapped around the neck.
Cross These Dangerous Toys Off Xmas List: Experts
By Dennis Thompson, HealthDay
Annual ‘Trouble in Toyland’ report cites playthings that could choke or poison a child
Nov. 26, 2013 (HealthDay News) — Toxic or dangerous toys can still be found on store shelves despite tough new federal regulations, according to a report released Tuesday.
Researchers found toys for sale that contained toxic levels of lead, cadmium, antimony and phthalates, said this year’s “Trouble in Toyland” report from the U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG).
One vinyl toy, the Marvel Super Hero Squad Soft Shield, contained 29 times the legal limit of lead.
Nasal Allergies, Hay Fever Tied to More Migraines
By Robert Preidt, HealthDay
But it’s unknown if allergic conditions bring on headache or vice versa, researcher says
Nov. 26, 2013 (HealthDay News) — Allergies and hay fever may increase the number and severity of migraine headaches, according to a new study.
Researchers analyzed data from nearly 6,000 migraine sufferers who filled out a questionnaire in 2008 as part of the American Migraine Prevalence and Prevention Study. Two-thirds of the respondents said they had nasal or seasonal allergies, or hay fever.
Based on the findings, the study authors concluded that those with allergies and hay fever were 33 percent more likely to have more frequent migraines than those without these conditions. The report was published online Nov. 25 in the journal Cephalalgia.
European Morning-After Pill Ineffective in Heavier Women
The label on a “morning-after” emergency contraceptive sold in Europe will be changed to alert consumers that it is not effective in women who weigh more than 176 pounds.
The new warning on the label of Norlevo will also caution that the pill starts to lose its effectiveness in women heavier than 165 pounds, and is not recommended for anyone over this weight, CBS News reported.
Multivitamins May Help Fight HIV Progression: Study
By Randy Dotinga, HealthDay
But supplements tested only on those who hadn’t started medications
Nov. 26, 2013 (HealthDay News) — New research from Africa suggests that basic multivitamin and selenium supplements might greatly lower the risk that untreated people with the AIDS virus will get sicker over a two-year period.
It’s not clear how patients who take the vitamins and mineral might fare over longer periods. And the impact of the study in the United States will be limited because many Americans diagnosed with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, immediately begin treatment with powerful medications known as anti-retroviral drugs. Those in the African study hadn’t yet begun taking drugs to keep the virus at bay.
Estrogen Won’t Make Women Sharper After Menopause, Study Finds
By Steven Reinberg, HealthDay
Researchers see no brain benefits even in early postmenopause
Nov. 25 (HealthDay News) — Low levels of the hormone estrogen are not to blame for mood swings and poor memory after menopause, a new study suggests.
Based on this finding, the researchers believe there’s no reason to use hormone replacement therapy to boost mental well-being after periods stop.
“These study findings provide further evidence that a woman’s decision about hormone therapy use during early postmenopause should be made independently of considerations about thinking abilities,” said lead researcher Dr. Victor Henderson, a professor of neurology and neurological science at Stanford University in California.
Women’s Chest Pain Unreliable Sign of Heart Attack?
By Dennis Thompson, HealthDay
Scientific tools, not patient complaints, needed for accurate diagnosis, expert says
Chest pain is not a symptom that doctors can use to accurately diagnose a woman suffering a major heart attack, according to new research.
A survey of about 800 women and 1,700 men found that women tend to suffer the same types of chest pain as men during a heart attack, Swiss researchers from the University Hospital Basel said.
However, most of the chest pain symptoms reported by women could not be used to tell a heart attack from some other cause of severe chest pain.
Doctors said the study, which was published Nov. 25 in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, provides further evidence that emergency-room doctors should use concrete heart tests to diagnose a heart attack.
Why Many U.S. Preteens Aren’t Getting the HPV Shot
By Denise Mann, HealthDay
Review found cost, fear of kids becoming sexually active deters some parents
Nov. 25, 2013 (HealthDay News) — When it comes to being vaccinated and protected against the human papillomavirus (HPV), too many U.S. adolescents are missing out, a new review finds.
Cost and parental concerns about the link to sexual activity may be why relatively low numbers of girls and boys are getting the HPV vaccine as recommended.
Educating doctors and parents about the benefits of the vaccine and debunking some of the myths that surround it may help improve these rates and protect more adolescents, experts said.
Kids Hospitalized for Flu Need Antiviral Meds Right Away: Study
By Dennis Thompson, HealthDay
Survival odds increase with early administration of drugs such as oseltamivir, researchers say
Nov. 25, 2013 (HealthDay News) — Kids near death because of severe flu infection have a better chance of survival if they are given antiviral medications early in their treatment, researchers say.
Children treated with antiviral drugs called neuraminidase inhibitors (NAIs) within the first 48 hours of serious flu symptoms developing are significantly more likely to survive, according to a study published online Nov. 25 in the journal Pediatrics.
“The benefit was more apparent for the most severely ill children, who required a ventilator to help with breathing,” said co-author Dr. Janice Louie, chief of the influenza and respiratory diseases section at the California Department of Public Health’s Center for Infectious Diseases.
Parents With Firm Rules May Help Kids Stay Slim
By Kathleen Doheny, HealthDay
Australian study found it was more important than what Mom or Dad weighed
Nov. 27 (HealthDay News) — Parents who set firm rules about behaviors like TV viewing, dinner time and physical activity tend to have children of healthier weights, a new Australian study finds.
“Children of parents who set consistent rules have a slightly lower body-mass index [BMI]; they’re thinner,” said study author Pauline Jansen.
Both mothers and fathers who enforced clear guidelines had a similar effect on their children’s weight — regardless of their own weight — found Jansen, an honorary off-campus fellow at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Melbourne.
Smaller Bowls May Keep Kids From Overeating
By Robert Preidt, HealthDay
Researchers say tactic could help curb childhood obesity
Nov. 25, 2013 (HealthDay News) — Having youngsters use smaller bowls may be one way to help reduce childhood obesity, a new study suggests.
In their first experiment, researchers gave 8- or 16-ounce bowls to 69 preschoolers. Adults then served the children cereal and milk in increments until the children said they’d had enough. Children with the larger bowls asked for 87 percent more cereal and milk.
How much kids weighed or whether they were boys or girls did not affect how much food they requested.
Want to Stay Young? Start Moving
By Steven Reinberg, HealthDay
Study finds it’s never too late to reap the anti-aging benefits of exercise
Nov. 26, 2013 (HealthDay News) — A new study finds that exercise among older adults helps ward off depression, dementia and other health problems, such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes.
Exercise increased the odds of healthy aging as much as sevenfold, the researchers found. And apparently it’s never too late to start: Even adults who don’t begin exercising until they’re older could increase their odds of healthy aging threefold, the researchers said.
Exercise May Not Stave Off Holiday Weight Gain
By Brenda Goodman, HealthDay
Study suggests nothing can replace moderation in the face of high-calorie food and drinks
Nov. 27, 2013 (HealthDay News) — Hoping to counter all those Thanksgiving calories with extra exercise?
A recent study suggests the strategy may not keep off holiday pounds.
Researchers followed 48 men and 100 women for the six weeks between the Thanksgiving and New Year’s celebrations. They ranged between 18 and 65 years of age.
Half reported being serious, regular exercisers. On average, they said, they worked up a sweat almost five hours each week, nearly double the amount of moderate physical activity recommended by the American Heart Association. The other half copped to being couch potatoes.
Recent Comments