How Much Sleep Do You Need?
March 20, 2016
Category: Health
Sleep Deprivation Can Make You Sick
August 11, 2013
WHY YOU CAN’T GET TO SLEEP
According to American Sleep Medicine, 40 million American suffer with sleep disorders. The National Institutes of Health estimate the figure to be as high as 50 to 70 million.
Tossing and turning, while trying to get to sleep night after night, is called insomnia. Some of the most common causes of insomnia are:
Worrying 
Job stress
Eating food or beverages containing caffeine before bedtime: chocolate candy, coffee, tea, cookies containing chocolate, or coffee flavoring.
Smoking before bed. Nicotine is a stimulant.
Exercising within 5 hours before bedtime. Exercise is stimulating, and may keep you awake.
Eating a heavy meal close to bedtime.
HOW TO HANDLE INSOMNIA
- Get regular exercise.
- Maintain a sleep schedule. Go to sleep and awake at the same time everyday.
- Before bed treat yourself to a relaxing ritual. Take a bubble bath. Light candles and practise meditation. Read a book. Listen to calming music. Practice Hatha Yoga.
- Make your bedroom comfortable for sleeping. Adjust room temperature if it interferes with your ability to sleep. Clear out clutter. Use room darkening shades. Sleep on a comfortable mattress.
SLEEP DEPRIVATION CAN MAKE YOU SICK
Sleep disorders are very common, and treatable. If you don’t get enough rest, you might develop any one of these symptoms, or health conditions.
- Increased risk of high blood pressure, and weight gain.
- Impaired judgement, performance and mood.
- Falling asleep at the wheel, resulting in a driving accident.
- Anxiety symptoms
- Heart attack, and stroke.
- Depression
- Cardiovascular disease and hypertension.
- Obesity
RESOURCES
American Academy of Sleep Medicine
Copyright 2013 Irene Pastore and Blue Moon Personal Training
Angelina Jolie: Preventive Double Mastectomy
May 15, 2013
Angelina Jolie underwent a double mastectomy to prevent breast cancer. As a high profile figure, it’s a good bet that other women will follow her example.
Pulling all your teeth to prevent tooth decay, or removing your colon to prevent colon cancer seems as radical as Jolie’s decision to remove her breasts before she has cancer.
There are other, more natural ways for women to prevent the development of breast cancer, than having to remove both breasts.
Natural Breast Cancer Prevention Methods
- Do not smoke. Medline Plus, an online source for medical news, published a February 2013 article, “More evidence that smoking raises breast cancer risk.“
- Maintain a healthy weight. According to the National Cancer Institute, breast cancer risk is higher among overweight and obese women. An article in the August 2012 issue of Medical News Today, reports, “Breast cancer recurrance is higher among overweight women.”
- Exercise regularly. Couch potato syndrome is worldwide. Too much sitting, and not enough exercise is a risk factor for heart disease, type 2 diabetes, breast and colon cancer. A July 2012 article in Time Health & Family reports, “Lack of Exercise as Deadly as Smoking, Study Finds.” , and a May 2013 Medical News Today article, “Physical Activity Reduces Breast Cancer Risk.“
- Avoid hormone replacement therapy. Breast and ovarian cancer are associated with hormone replacement. WebMD, presents the evidence in an article, “Hormone Replacement Therapy and Breast Cancer Risk.” According to a a May 15, 2013 article in Reuters Health, “Ovarian Cancer Fall Sped Up, As HormoneUse Dropped.”
Alternative Opinions
In the May 15, 2013 issue of Natural News.com, Mike Adams writes, “Angelie Jolie inspires women to maim themselves by celebrating medically perverted double mastectomies.”
Gary Null, alternative medicine author, and radio talk show host, interviews Christiane Northrup, MD, “How wise was Angelina Jolie’s decision to have a radical mastectomy?”
Copyright 2013 Irene Pastore and Blue Moon Personal Training
Only 1 in 5 Americans Get Enough Exercise: CDC
May 7, 2013
Picture brighter for aerobic exercise than for muscle-strengthening, report finds.
THURSDAY, May 2 (HealthDay News) — Most Americans are falling short when it comes to exercise, a new government report shows. Overall, only 20 percent of U.S. adults get the recommended amounts of both of aerobic and muscle-strengthening exercise, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The news was less disappointing for aerobic exercise, with 51.6 percent of adults getting the recommended amount, than it was for muscle-strengthening activities, with only 29.3 percent getting the recommended amount.The overall exercise rates also varied widely by state, ranging from 13 percent in Tennessee and West Virginia to 27 percent in Colorado.
The researchers put a positive spin on the results.
“While only about 30 percent of adults meet the muscle-strengthening guidelines, we find it very encouraging that half of U.S. adults are meeting the aerobic guidelines,” said report author Carmen Harris, a CDC epidemiologist.
The report was published in the May 3 issue of the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, a CDC publication.
One expert also thinks the findings are good news.
“It is great that more people are participating in regular exercise,” said exercise physiologist Samantha Heller. Continue reading “Only 1 in 5 Americans Get Enough Exercise: CDC”
Citi Bike Coming To New York City
May 6, 2013
Bike Share Docking Stations Go Up in Manhattan
Effective May 2013, a bike sharing service is coming to the Big Apple. Citi Bike, the provider for the new program, says their bikes are rugged 3 speed cruisers, with sturdy aluminum frames, and durable tires.
Across Manhattan bike share docking stations are being installed.
330 docking stations will open in Brooklyn and Manhattan, to be filled with 6,000 share bicycles.
Bad News For Obese Riders
The bikes carry a limit of 260 pounds, and anyone who exceeds that amount, cannot use the program. ABC News reports on this story, ‘NYC Bike-Share Program Bans Obese Riders.’ and the New York Daily News, ‘Bike-Share Ban.’
Convenient and Inexpensive Transportation
Citi Bike is New York City’s next public transportation system, that will provide convenient and inexpensive mobility 24 hours per day, 365 days per year.
The DOT has built 200 bike lane miles in all five boroughs, and commuter cycling has more than doubled in New York City since 2005.
Copyright 2013 Irene Pastore and Blue Moon Personal Training
Soda Wars
March 20, 2013
Soda Wars: New York Vs. Mississippi
Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s controversial ban on large soda was overturned on March 11, by Justice Milton Tingling of State Supreme Court in Manhattan.
The judge said the ban was arbitrary and capricious, with too many loopholes and exemptions, because it applied to some but not all food establishments, and to some sweetened drinks, but not others. Read more in the March 13, 2013 issue of the New York Daily News. Continue reading “Soda Wars”
Irene Pastore Fitness.com 