Woof Woof Makes for Less Wah Wah

Today I was thinking about how great it makes me feel to see my brother's and fiancee's dog, Charlie, and how that reinforced the fact that I think everyone should have a pet. This is from the heading above the video on WebMD that I watched -

"From easing depression to lowering triglycerides, spending time with a pet can boost physical and emotional health."

http://www.webmd.com/video/pets-health-see-spot-feel-happy

So, you don't even need to own one if you can get to spend regular time with someone else's pet. That's like being an uncle. It's a pretty sweet gig, let me tell you.

By the way, triglycerides are basically fat, in chemical form, in your plasma. Excessive amounts affect your heart in similar ways as cholesterol (the bad kind). Please correct me, if I'm wrong, all you people who read this wonderful blog.

Red Bull Gives You Pvoblems

The Health & Science section of the International Herald Tribune has another example of a correlation that doesn't necessarily suggest a cause and effect relationship. However, if you are a parent, you should know that if your kid drinks Red Bull, he's probably doing a lot of stuff he's not supposed to.

"Energy Drinks Linked to Risky Behavior Among Teenagers"

"In March, The Journal of American College Health published a report on the link between energy drinks, athletics and risky behavior. The study's author, Kathleen Miller, an addiction researcher at the University of Buffalo, says it suggests that high consumption of energy drinks is associated with 'toxic jock' behavior, a constellation of risky and aggressive behaviors including unprotected sex, substance abuse and violence."

The Most Important Meal of the Day (Revisited, Again)

ThirdAge has some ideas for a healthy breakfast -

• A bowl of steel-cut oatmeal topped with fruit and walnuts.
• A bowl of high-fiber, whole-grain cereal such as Fiber One, Shredded Wheat, or Cheerios with milk and sliced banana, strawberries, blueberries or other fruit.
• Six or 8 ounces of 1 percent yogurt with blueberries and sunflower seeds.
• A whole-grain English muffin with peanut butter.
• A one egg plus one egg white or egg substitute omelet with whole-grain toast and orange slices.

I guess it's important to cut your oatmeal with steel, so if you do it yourself, check your tools. I'm weird and just buy Quaker Oats at the supermarket. Thanks to the internet, I just looked up what "steel-cut oats" are -

What are Steel Cut Oats and how are they different from other types of Quaker® Oats?

Steel Cut Oats are whole oats that have not been rolled into flakes. Instead, they are cut approximately into thirds. Cooking time is 30 minutes and the texture is heartier than rolled oats. Steel Cut Oats are also known as Scotch Oats, Pinhead Oats (in Great Britain because they resemble the size and shape of the head of large pin) and Irish Oats.

Quaker® Old Fashioned Oats are whole oats that have been rolled to flatten them. Quick Quaker® Oats and Quaker® Instant Oats are made from Steel Cut Oats that have been rolled a little thinner than Old Fashioned Oats so they cook faster.

All forms of Quaker® Oats, including Steel Cut, Old Fashioned, Quick, and Instant Oats are whole grains. That means they are equally nutritious because they supply all parts of the oat grain including the bran, endosperm and germ. The different size and shape of the oats only affects the cooking time and texture.

Ma Ma Se, Ma Ma Sa, Ma Ma Coo Sa, You're a Vegetable

There's a great article in today's New York Times about how to best prepare different vegetables to optimize their healthfulness. They discuss the fact that it's important to make sure that the vegetables taste good, since the taste is a major deterrent to eating them for many people. A little salt and pepper, some oil and vinegar, etc. can even make broccoli haters happy. I've witnessed the phenomenon with my own eyes.

This is an important point -

"'There is a misperception that raw foods are always going to be better,' says Steven K. Clinton, a nutrition researcher and professor of internal medicine in the medical oncology division at Ohio State University. 'For fruits and vegetables, a lot of times a little bit of cooking and a little bit of processing actually can be helpful.'"

If They're Banning It in Turkey...

Smoking, that is. From the Sarasota Herald-Tribune -

"Citing the burden they place on taxpayers who pay for government workers' health insurance, Sarasota County officials announced Monday that they no longer will hire smokers."

They are coming down hard, even banning smoking on public beaches.

It is legal in Florida to refuse to hire someone who smokes.

POTUS HSA

Thanks to our friend Dr. Eiber for the heads-up.

President Bush has a Health Savings Account -

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2008/05/show-me-the-mon.html

The Science of Sleep

Very interesting stuff on Time.com. People who sleep too little (fewer than 6 hours/night) or too much (more than 9 hours) are less healthy than people who sleep juuuuuust the right amount (7 to 8). Normal sleepers drink and smoke less, are of healthier weight and have lower rates of depression. As usual, there is no proof of a cause-and-effect relationship, but it's good to know this stuff if you're trying to take control of your life and move in a better direction.

Columbia University sleep researcher, James Gangwisch -

"We're getting to the point that they may start recommending getting enough sleep as a standard approach to weight loss and the prevention of obesity."

As my brother Mark says, "if you're not exercising or getting enough sleep, then you have your priorities screwed up". Which reminds me that I read in Forbes last night that the average American household watches 8 hours of TV a day! That horrifies me.

One last thing. "The Science of Sleep" is a great movie. Especially if you like weird European movies that employ several languages at the same time (English, Spanish, French, in this case).

Cinco de Mayo

It's approaching fast, mis amigos. In honor of the Mexican holiday that is only really celebrated in the US, I am posting Five Things Happy People Do from Oprah.com and WebMD. We all know how much I love WebMD. And everybody likes Oprah.

I especially liked the following one, which reminded me of how often I heard "must be nice" when working construction. I also hear that a lot from anchors on CNBC who probably make a pretty good living, but are always talking about billionaires, and feel relatively poor in comparison.

"They avoid 'if only' fantasies."

"If only I get a better job -- find a man -- lose the weight -- life will be perfect. Happy people don't buy into this kind of thinking."

"The latest research shows that we're surprisingly bad at predicting what will make us happy. People also tend to misjudge their contentment when zeroing in on a single aspect of their lives -- it's called the focusing illusion. In one study, single subjects were asked, 'How happy are you with your life in general?' and 'How many dates did you have last month?' When the dating question was asked first, their romantic lives weighed more heavily into how they rated their overall happiness than when the questions were reversed."

"The other argument against 'if only' fantasies has to do with 'hedonic adaptation' -- the brain's natural dimming effect, which guarantees that a new house won't generate the same pleasure a year after its purchase and the thrill of having a boyfriend will ebb as you get used to being part of a couple. Happy people are wise to this, which is why they keep their lives full of novelty, even if it's just trying a new activity (diving, yoga) or putting a new spin on an old favorite (kundalini instead of vinyasa)."