Medsarticles. Medical Weblog

Women who are thinking about getting pregnant are constantly advised to give up habits—drinking, smoking, drugs—or alter lifestyles which could put a baby’s health at risk. Recently, researchers have been trying to find out whether the same advice holds true for men as well. Since men contribute half of the genetic material to a baby, researchers have been trying to determine what, if any, effect a man’s health or lifestyle has on pregnancy. As yet, no definite conclusions have been reached. However, new studies are underway and experts may soon have some answers to this very important question.

Recent sperm studies have furnished medical experts with the following information:

1) Babies fathered by men who drink alcohol tend to weigh less and have higher chances of birth defects than do babies of non-drinking fathers.

2) Men who smoke tobacco tend to father babies with higher-than-normal rates of birth defects.

3) In some cases, men with lower than average levels of vitamin C produce genetically damaged sperm which could cause birth defects if they fertilize a woman’s egg.

4) Men who are exposed to radiation—usually in the workplace—tend to father children with higher-than-normal incidences of leukemia.

Researchers acknowledge that no conclusive evidence exists to date which would lead to recommending that potential or expectant fathers change their habits or lifestyles. However, the circumstantial evidence and additional studies on the long-term genetic consequences of lifestyles and other factors on sperm may very well lead to such a recommendation in the near future.

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Osteoporosis is known as the brittle bone disease. It can affect both men and women. Osteoporosis develops slowly over many years. Recent studies show that men over 30 years old begin to lose some bone mass each year. This loss could be as much as 2% a year. This could result in brittle bones.

Here are a few tips that you should take during your younger years. They could help produce stronger bones in your later years.

(1) Get adequate calcium in your daily diet. This can be done by including foods like dairy products, dark-green leafy vegetables, salmon, and tofu.

(2) Get enough vitamin D and the trace mineral manganese.

(3) Exercise regularly. This helps to promote bone growth. It also strengthens the muscle which supports the bones.

(4) Avoid smoking, alcohol, caffeine, and high-protein foods.

(5) Aluminum

Avoid antacids that contain aluminum. Aluminum can reduce the amount of phosphorous in your bones and this could weaken them. You may also want to avoid cooking certain high acid foods in aluminum pots. This can could cause some of the aluminum to dissolve into your food.

(6) Caffeine

A number of studies have shown that caffeine can cause calcium loss. Caffeine leaches calcium from the bones and causes it to be excreted in urine. It can also prevent the digestive system from absorbing enough calcium. Thus, you should limit your intake of caffeine containing beverages. This includes, coffee, tea, and many of the popular soft drinks. You do not need to cut these items out entirely but instead limit yourself to 1 or 2 servings per day.

(7) Salt

Too much salt in your diet can have the same effect that caffeine does. It can cause the body to lose calcium in the urine.

(8) Vitamins

Recent studies have showed that Vitamin D is especially important in helping your body to prevent calcium lose.

The New England Journal of Medicine recommends calcium fortified orange juice as a great way to add calcium to your diet. The calcium citrate appears to be helpful in preventing calcium loss from the spine.

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1) Location— ideally, you should try to have the garden near enough to the house so that it is almost like a “fresh food cupboard”. That way you can get fresh produce any time you need it and put off harvesting vegetables for a meal until the last minute, keeping all their nutrients and flavor intact.

Having your garden close to the house also promotes better care by you and your family. You’ll know what’s going on in the garden nearly all the time and be able to avert many problems before they become serious.

2) Soil— most gardeners aren’t fortunate enough to have perfect garden soil. Instead, they have to make do with whatever soil they have. This means you must usually keep on adding organic matter to your garden because the vast majority of soils require it and plants keep using it up. But you should not get discouraged by poor soil, because you can add natural matter to improve its quality.

3) Water— adequate water is another essential thing your garden will need. It isn’t wise to depend on rain as the sole source of water for your garden— mulching will provide some hel p, but your garden should get, as a general rule, about 1 inch of rain per week.

One way to insure adequate water for your garden is to use a sprinkler system. Depending on the size of your garden, one or two strategically placed sprinklers should give it adequate coverage and water.

You can also try trench irrigation. This is done by digging trenches, about 6 inches deep, on a slight slant in a gridiron pattern between rows. This system doesn’t work especially well in sandy soil and doesn’t provide the freedom to change the pattern °f the garden on s- friort notice if such changes are needed.

4) Tools— for basic organic gardening, you will need very few tools. If you haven’t gardened before, it is a good idea to try getting along with just the essentials to begin. Here are the basic tools you’ll need for starting your organic garden: a spade; a fork; a trowel; a knife; a 3-pronged, hand-held cultivator (can be a short-handle for small gardens or on the end of a long handle for larger gardens); a rake; a hoe; and a file to keep the edges of your tools sharp and effective.

Planting Tips

1) All perennial crops, such as strawberries, asparagus and rhubarb, should be located at one side of the garden.

2) To avoid shading, tall-growing crops, such as corn, must not be planted near small crops like carrots or beets.

3) Space for spring crops which are harvested early may be used again for later crops. For example, tomatoes after radishes, and cucumbers after spinach.

4) Crops, such as lettuce, radishes, onions, early cabbage, etc., which are planted early, fast-growing and quick to mature, should all be grouped together.

5) In hilly areas, rows should follow across the slope.

6) If possible, rows should run north and south to keep plants from shading one another.

7) Spacing between rows should be designed for the method of cultivation you plan to use— hand or mechanical.

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The latest research on fasting—400 to 800 calorie-per day diets that prohibit eating anything except scientifically devised liquid supplements— shows that it actually may not help you lose weight any faster. The research was conducted by weight-loss experts at Syracuse University and at the University of Pennsylvania over a period of six months. A total of 76 obese women were separated into 3 groups and placed on on 420, 660, and 800 calorie- per-day diets. All of the women lost weight—an average of 45 pounds— but there was very little difference in the amount of weight lost on any of the diets.

It is interesting to note that losing 45 pounds in six months actually averages out o about 2 pounds a week, which is the rate of loss that most doctors recommend. And at type of weight loss can be accomplished by carefully maintaining a low-fat diet, coupled with adequate exercise. No fasting is necessary.

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An ongoing study to determine why Hispanic and Black women have lower rates of breast cancer than whites, suggests that diet may play an important role. The study suggests that a diet rich in beans, fruits, and vegetables may be one factor and alcohol may be another. Although all three groups consumed similar amounts of fat and fiber, Hispanics appear to be more likely to eat beans and vegetables containing antitoxidants, substances with anti-cancer properties, and tend to eat the type of monosaturated fat found in olive oil. Whites also consume more alcohol, especially beer, than either Hispanics or blacks,

4 Proven Ways To Lower Nutrient Loss In Foods

1) When shopping for produce, always choose fresh fruits and vegetables with care. Regardless of the price, don’t buy produce that has bruises or cuts or that simply doesn’t look fresh.

2) Don’t soak fresh fruits and vegetables in still water for any length of time or the nutrients may pass into the water. Instead, wash your fruits and vegetables under cold, running water. You can also use a small amount of dishwashing liquid to help remove any residue of fat-soluble pesticides that may remain on the food. And be sure to rinse all of your produce thoroughly.

3) Whenever possible, make salads just before you eat them. Valuable vitamins are lost when fruits and vegetables are cut up in advance and left exposed to air.

4) You should cook food for the shortest time possible. Then, eat it as soon as you can and don’t allow the food to stay hot for prolonged periods. If you thaw frozen vegetables or fish before cooking, cook them immediately.

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