How to Make Your Old Muscles Perform Like Young Muscles

Keeping muscles toned as you age can be a challenge. Stiffness can set in, and flexibility is lost. Bending over is harder than it used to be and carrying heavy things has to be done carefully. Exercising becomes more of a challenge, too. But here’s the catch — the more you keep your muscles in shape, the longer you’ll reap the benefits. It might feel like everything is stiff and sore, but stop using your muscles and everything suddenly gets a whole lot worse.

So you’ll want to keep your muscles toned as much as possible. This is not always easy do when you have health issues to deal with or find it difficult to schedule physical activity into your daily routine. Some forms of exercise may be better suited to you. If you have knee problems, swimming might be the way to go, for example.

Now, what about diet? Does it have a role to play in all of this? Absolutely, according to researchers at the Department of Medicine, University of Utah. It seems that antioxidants could actually help boost arterial function and make older muscles feel like young muscles during exercise.

This latest health news comes courtesy of a study performed on 28 participants. Twelve participants were given an “antioxidant cocktail,” while another eight young and eight older subjects performed exercise with placebo or while taking the antioxidants. The researchers found that, in the older subjects, the antioxidant cocktail restored blood vessel dilation to match that of the young.

Muscle strength is one of the obvious signs of aging in the body. Muscle strength usually starts declining when you reach your 40s, but can drop dramatically after age 60. This loss of muscle can become a major risk factor for becoming frail and disabled.

So boost your nutritional health with lots of vitamin-C and vitamin-E foods — both powerful antioxidants. Here’s a quick list to get you started:

–Parsley

–Broccoli

–Strawberries

–Oranges

–Wheat germ

–Sunflower oil

–Safflower oil

Why Caffeine May Affect Fertility

In most doctors’ advice to women looking to get pregnant, avoiding caffeine is generally recognized as a staple. Cut down on the coffee, boost your chances of becoming pregnant. A brand new study has found out why this may be true, so women can understand why they should grab a bottle of water instead of that energy drink.

Caffeine reduces muscle activity in the fallopian tubes, which carry eggs from a woman’s ovaries to her womb. The new experiments were conducted in mice, but this finding goes a long way towards explaining why drinking caffeinated drinks can reduce a woman’s chance of becoming pregnant. It is published now in the “British Journal of Pharmacology.”

Human eggs are microscopically small, but need to travel to a woman’s womb if she is going to have a successful pregnancy. Although the process is essential for a successful pregnancy, scientists know little about how eggs move through the muscular fallopian tubes. It was generally assumed that “cilia” (tiny hair-like projections) in the lining of the tubes escort eggs along assisted by muscle contractions in the tube walls.

In the new study, the researchers discovered that caffeine stops the actions of specialized cells in the wall of the tubes. These cells coordinate tube contractions, so that when they are prevented from working, eggs can’t move down the tubes. In fact, these muscle contractions play a bigger role than the beating cilia in moving the egg towards the womb.

Therein lies the intriguing explanation as to why women with high caffeine consumption often have a more difficult time conceiving. This discovery carries benefits for a huge portion of the population — and doctors as well.

This finding helps women who are trying to get pregnant. But it also provides doctors a better understanding of how the fallopian tubes work so they can better treat pelvic inflammation and sexually-transmitted disease. It also may help explain “ectopic” pregnancy, where embryos get stuck in the tube and begin developing, causing an extremely painful and dangerous situation.

Pass this nugget of health news along to those you know who are actively trying to get pregnant. And, if you all into this category yourself, when you go out for a coffee, make it a decaf.

Important News on the Recent E. Coli Outbreak

An outbreak of a serious strain of E. coli is spreading throughout Germany. The deadly bacteria are responsible for killing 16 people and causing many hundreds to become sick. This latest health news is alarming indeed. Many in North America may remember the E. coli outbreak in Walkerton, Ontario, Canada, which caused six deaths and serious illness in many more in May of 2000.

Although most strains of E. coli are relatively harmless, a strain called enterohaemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) is particularly serious, because it can be fatal. EHEC is typically transmitted through contaminated foods such as undercooked or raw meat. EHEC symptoms include stomach cramping and diarrhea and eventually hemorrhagic colitis, or bloody diarrhea. If untreated, EHEC can lead to anemia and kidney failure.

This latest deadly outbreak, which originated in northern Germany, is believed to be caused by contaminated vegetables, though the exact source of the outbreak is still undetermined. For now, medical officials are advising everyone to stay away from raw cucumbers, leaf lettuce, or tomatoes.

In order to safeguard your nutritional health, there are a few precautions you can take. While it is impossible to predict or know if a certain food group is likely to contain E. coli (the tragedy of Walkerton was that E. coli was found in the drinking water supply), you can reduce your risks by taking an interest in the food you purchase and consume.

– Know where food comes from: Research local farmers. Head to a farmer’s market for local, fresh produce, meats and cheese and you can actually have a conversation with farmers. Ask them about their operation. For imported items, do some research and find out where they are from.

– Keep the kitchen clean: Wash plates, utensils, pots and pans in soapy hot water so bacteria won’t survive. Do the same for counter tops, cutting boards, and the fridge. Toss sponges, rags, and dishcloths in the washing machine each week. Consider sanitizing the kitchen every so often. Mix a teaspoon of bleach with a quart of water and scrub your cutting boards, counters, stove, and kitchen sink.

– Think perishable: At the supermarket, leave perishable foods until last, so they don’t go bad. Get your cans, bottles, and boxes of food first. Make grocery shopping the last item on your to-do list before you go home.

– Pack properly: In the supermarket, make sure produce is kept separate from meat, seafood, and poultry. Don’t forget you can use a cooler (with ice) for frozen or perishable items for the trip home.

– Inspect food: Eggs should come un-cracked. Veggies and fruit should be un-bruised. Lids shouldn’t be loose. Jars should lack dents and cracks. Meat, fish, and salads at your supermarket should be sold in a clean area.

– Practice meat safety: Thaw meat in the fridge. Cook poultry and meat thoroughly. Consider a meat thermometer to gauge temperature.

– Wash produce well: Wash fruits and veggies properly to remove dirt and potential lingering pesticides.

– One last bit of health advice: Wash your hands frequently.