Fasting and the 2016 Nobel Prize in Medicine

A student of fasting for over 40 years, I began Blogging about it some eight plus years ago, in a post on Juice Fasting. In fact things have gotten to the point where we have to put “fasting” in quotes, to clarify what we mean because it is becoming as meaningless a word as “natural”.

Here there are a number of Posts on the subject.

This Blue Zones Blog Post reviewing the work of Japanese cell biologist Yoshinori Ohsumi, who did win the 2016 Nobel Prize for Medicine as a result of his work on autophagy (a process that happens when you abstain from food – or by the way – to some extent when you exercise), is the most important Post on this entire Blog!

My wife thinks that this Wedge of Awareness Post is my best, but here, in this Blue Zones Post is a gold mine of amazing information that can and would change your life for the better – no matter how bad off or how well off you are right now.

It is not something that you do; it’s something you do non’t do!

It is free. It takes less time than whatever it is you are doing now. It is simple. And, with just the simplest and easiest of rules to follow, you can not screw it up. You can do it in progressions: start where you are, and gradually lengthen the time between “supper” and “breakfast”. Simple. Drink water (you know the water that I recommend, but get the best water you can find and afford).

(This needs a disclaimer: do this only under the supervision of a doctor – you may be too sick for the cure – it may not be for you. Perhaps that is some valid reason why you can not stretch out the time between supper and breakfast (you might be in the 1% – a guess – for whom this is not appropriate). If it turns out to be a rough ride from where you are to get back to health, you may want a partner to help guide you. Include your doctor in the process, it will education them as much as it does you!)

I could get more emphatic, but…

… it would not do any good.

Now it is up to you.

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Women and self defense

I got an email yesterday about a female student being assaulted in a parking lot at the college, early in the morning, one day last week.

Many people feel safe until they discover that they are not safe. Many fail to be aware of their surroundings – focused instead on their next task or whoever they are “connected” with at the moment.

Make prevention a priority. Learn to be aware and to defend yourself. At the college, tai chi classes are Tuesday and Thursday at 7:30 a.m., and Thursday night at 7:20 p.m. There are also classes at 7 p.m. on Monday nights at Peak Fitness on the corner of Hewitt Ave and Rucker Ave. Call (425) 348-5207 to learn more. Or go here: https://doctordilday.wordpress.com/everett-tai-chi-chuan/

For Tai Chi Students: Repulse Monkey

Paul Silfverstråle

 

Practicing Mindfulness Benefits Parents and Children

Another Post about research on Tai Chi…

 

 

 

New Insight Into Aging

And we can all use that!

https://neurosciencenews.com/aging-plasticity-9889/

For Tai Chi Students: A (different) Version of the Long Round Hand Form

New Research: You’re Only as Old as You Think and Do

Summary: Researchers report feeling more in control of your life and increasing physical activity is key to better health, cognition and longevity as we age.

Source: American Psychological Association.

CorrecToes

https://naturalfootgear.com/blogs/education/top-10-benefits-of-correct-toes-toe-spacers?utm_source=Correct+Toes+Newsletter&utm_campaign=a5a083e2db-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_08_06_04_50&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_88b0f78996-a5a083e2db-351814873&mc_cid=a5a083e2db&mc_eid=5cdc987d53

Saunas Linked to Numerous Health Benefits

It must be true if the Mayo Clinic researchers are saying so…

And… I have covered the subject of saunas and the health benefits several times over the years here in this Blog. Sauna good!

Each report seems to provide a few more details regarding the best practices for sauna use: more seems to be better. About 160 -170° for about 20 minutes several times per week seems to be the sweet spot for maximum health benefits, but any seems to better than none.

“A stint in a sauna is not only pleasant and relaxing but may also improve health, according to the authors of a new, comprehensive literature review. Among the benefits they identified were a reduced risk for cardiovascular, neurocognitive, and pulmonary illnesses such as asthma and influenza; amelioration of pain conditions such as rheumatic diseases and headache; decreased risk for mortality; and an improved quality of life.

Overall, “[t]he physiological responses produced by an ordinary sauna bath correspond to those produced by moderate- or high-intensity physical activity such as walking,” Jari A. Laukkanen, MD, PhD, from the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä; the Department of Internal Medicine, Central Finland Health Care District, Jyväskylä; and the Institute of Public Health and Clinical Nutrition, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, all in Finland, and colleagues write in an article published online July 31 in Mayo Clinic Proceedings. In fact, the advantages of sauna bathing plus physical activity may be additive, they write.

The findings build on earlier research by the same authors linking sauna use to a decreased risk for stroke. In that study, there was an inverse relationship between frequency of weekly sauna visits and stroke rates per 1000 person-years of follow-up. The authors listed a variety of positive effects associated with sauna baths that might account for that finding, including lower blood pressure and improvements in lipid profiles, arterial stiffness, carotid intima-media thickness, and peripheral vascular resistance, as well as a reduced risk for hypertension, dementia, and cardiovascular and all-cause mortality.

Key Findings Emerge

In the current review, the researchers examined observational studies as well as randomized and nonrandomized controlled trials on the health effects of sauna bathing available on MEDLINE and EMBASE from the inception of those search engines until February 24, 2018. They confined the analysis to traditional Finnish sauna baths, as those have been the most widely studied to date.

In a Finnish sauna, temperatures range from 80°C to 100°C (176°F – 212°F), with 10% to 20% relative humidity. A bather will usually spend 5 to 20 minutes in the sauna and follow it with a swim, a shower, or just a cooling-off period at room temperature, the authors explain. Finnish people typically have “a sauna bath at least once per week, with the average habitual frequency being 2 to 3 times/wk.”

Several key studies included in the review showed a decreasing risk for certain acute and chronic conditions associated with greater sauna use. For example, in one study the risk ratio of hemorrhagic stroke among people who had four to seven sessions per week was 0.33 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.07-1.51) compared with people who used the sauna only once per week. In another study, four to seven sauna sessions per week was associated with a relative risk for dementia and Alzheimer disease of 0.34 (95% CI, 0.16 – 0.71) and 0.35 (95% CI, 0.14 – 0.90), respectively, compared with one session per week. Similarly, sessions of 19 minutes or more were associated with a relative risk for sudden cardiac death and all-cause mortality of 0.48 (95% CI, 0.31 – 0.75) and 0.83 (95% CI, 0.87 – 1.20), respectively, compared with sessions lasting 11 minutes.”

Brett Jones of StrongFirst writes on Tai Chi & Learning

He doesn’t realize that he is righting about tai chi, but everything that he says about learning and about kettle bells does apply to tai chi directly. And a complete system with a varied syllabus, taught well and practiced regularly, is a way to realize all the benefits of learning using the latest scientific technics. Tai chi has been doing it for 800 years!

Footwear Habits Influence Child and Adolescent Motor Skill Development

New research finds that children and adolescents who spend most of their time barefoot develop motor skills differently from those who habitually wear shoes. Published in Frontiers in Pediatrics, this is the first study to assess the relevance of growing up shod vs. barefoot on jumping, balancing and sprinting motor performance during different stages of childhood and adolescence. The study shows that habitually barefoot children are noticeably better at jumping and balancing compared to habitually shod children, particularly from 6-10 years of age. While these beneficial barefoot effects diminished in older adolescents, the research nevertheless highlights the importance of barefoot exercise for motor development as children grow and mature.

15 Minutes of Exercise Creates Optimal Brain State for Mastering New Motor Skills

Yeah, just 15 minutes of exercise…