Better Life

Dealing with Marriage Problems

2010-10-03T05:58:00.000-07:00

Succeed in Life Center provides counseling for married partners facing problems in their marriage.

Dealing with Marriage Problems

Your Diet - Sugar is Enemy No 1

2010-10-02T20:01:00.000-07:00

An interesting presentation on Diets for Weight Control and Losing Weight:
http://www.thedietsolutionprogram.com/burnfatg.aspx?hop=diets101&m=ad&r=aff

The Last Lecture by Prof. Randy Pausch

2010-07-12T20:14:00.000-07:00

Prof. Randy Pausch of Carnegie Mellon University, who was suffering from pancreatic cancer became famous for his 'Last Lecture'. (www.cmu.edu/uls/journeys/randy-pausch/index.html )

Some time in our own lives, we are all forced to look back at our lives, for various reasons. Terminal illness is one such reason.

Last year, nearly 1 million persons--- males, females, children, people of all ages, races, color, and nationalities, passed through the portals of the institution (MD Anderson Cancer Center) where I work now. It is the premier cancer research center in the world. Cancer is not one disease but is a group of nearly 200 different types of malignancy or tumor affecting various organs of the body, resulting from uncontrolled cell multiplication in the human body. We see people without hope, looking for hope and seeking medical help when diagnosed with cancer, mostly in advanced stage of malignancy.

Though one third of cancer is caused by genetic factors, cancer can mostly be prevented through healthy lifestyles, diet, exercise and environmental health. New forms of drugs are being researched on to reverse the cell mutation that results in cancerous growth of cells. Cancer is the no.1 killer disease in US, and it is followed by cardio-vascular diseases. 40% of Americans will be told in their lifetime: 'You have cancer'. If this is the case in a developed country such as US, what would be the state of affairs in other parts of the world, including India?

Though medical science may help, ultimately it is the individual and the quality of individual life (in terms of mental and physical health) that will help to ward off many diseases. Therein lies the role of values and spirituality. It helps to remember that our stay on this planet is short. The less regrets we have in life, the better is the journey.

Cancer Risk Check Online Tool

2010-07-12T07:44:00.000-07:00

Use this online tool to check whether you have cancer risk
https://www3.mdanderson.org/publicedu/prevention/index.cfm

Calculate Your Cancer Risk with Online Tool
(From MD Anderson Cancer Center:
Monday, July 12, 2010
Your gender, race, health history and lifestyle, among other factors, contribute to your risks for developing cancer.

Piece these factors together to see the big picture of your cancer risk with Cancer Risk Check, an online tool that calculates your chances of developing common cancers and identifies personalized lifestyle changes and cancer screening exams that may reduce your risks.

Making It Simple

The Public Education Office developed Cancer Risk Check using the institution’s latest recommendations for cancer screening exams, as well as current cancer trends and statistics found among U.S. populations.

“Personal cancer risk and screening exam guidelines are not absolute and can be confusing,” said Therese Bevers, M.D., professor, Clinical Cancer Prevention, and medical director of MD Anderson’s Cancer Prevention Center and Prevention Outreach Programs.

Bevers and a team of our disease experts participated in the creation of this product to ensure users receive the most accurate and detailed feedback.

“We created Cancer Risk Check to be simple to use and to empower individuals to take actions for a healthier lifestyle, whether that’s increasing physical activity or making a cancer screening appointment,” she says.

From Risk to Recommendation

Cancer Risk Check is divided into four sections:

Personal and family health history
Tobacco use and exposure
Sun exposure
Diet and exercise
Before beginning the questionnaire, gather as much information as possible about your personal and family health history. While cancers related to diet and lifestyle are more common than those related to family history, talking to relatives about your family history of cancer can potentially help the whole family live a healthier life.

Cancer Risk Check produces a personalized report on risks for common cancers, customized suggestions on lifestyle changes that can reduce cancer risk and recommended cancer screening tests.

Calculate your risk and take your personal profile to your next doctor’s visit for further evaluation. And don’t forget to share the tool with friends and family.

When we fall

2010-07-09T06:05:00.000-07:00

When we fall, what do we do: lie down there and cry in self-pity? Or get angry and blame others? No, it is smarter to get up, brush off the dust or tend to the wounds and move forward.

Falling again will be foolishness. Learning from mistakes and not repeating them would mean being smart. When we fall, we cannot rely on others to be with us. One can rely only on one's own self and one's God (the divine spark within each one) in adversities. So called friends flee when we are down. It is in times of trial that we lean on God (the infinite wisdom and spirit of the universe). It requires determination and will-power to change those habits (formed by one's repeated thoughts and actions) that lead to one's fall.

Alcoholics Anonymous

2010-03-14T19:20:00.000-07:00

Alcoholics Anonymous

http://www.aa.org/bigbookonline/en_tableofcnt.cfm

NA - Narcotics Anonymous

2010-03-14T19:19:00.001-07:00

Narcotics Anonymous
http://www.na.org/admin/include/spaw2/uploads/pdf/BT6E_Webposting.pdf

Addiction Recovery

2010-03-14T19:16:00.000-07:00

http://www.addictionrecoveryguide.org/

GENERAL

Addict In The Family: Stories of Loss, Hope, and Recovery
Beverly Conyers

This book is for the hidden victims of addiction--families. For families of addicts, feeling of fear, shame, confusion over a loved one's addiction can cause deep anxiety, sleepless nights, and even physical illness. And the emotional distress family members suffer is often compounded by the belief that they somehow caused or contributed to their loved one's addiction--or that they could have done something to prevent it. As the heart-wrenching personal stories in this book reveal, family members do not cause their loved one's addiction. Nor can they control of cure addiction.

Enough Already!: A Guide to Recovery from Alcohol And Drug Addiction
Bob Tyler

Enough Already! is an easy read that educates alcoholics and addicts on precisely what to do to get and stay sober. After learning about the disease of alcoholism/addiction and time-tested tools of recovery, the reader is introduced to relapse prevention strategies, the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous and other 12 Step programs, and coping skills to deal with uncomfortable emotions that often lead to drug and alcohol use. This is followed by specific instructions on how to get started in recovery and a final inspiring chapter entitled "The Miracle."

Reclaim Your Family From Addiction
How Couples and Families Recover Love and Meaning
Craig Nakken

What happens to the "we" of a family when one member opts for the blind and single-minded "me" of addiction? In an instructive, reassuring way, Craig Nakken explains just how families and couples who have spent years building a life together can lose their cohesive identity and meaning in the wake of addiction. The perfect starting point in the healing process, this book also reminds us that recovery is possible--for individuals, couples, and whole families--if only we know what to do.

Sober Siblings: How to Help Your Alcoholic Brother or Sister and Not Lose Yourself
Patricia Olsen and Petros Levounis, MD, MA

An insightful and empowering guide to supporting siblings that are in all stages of alcoholism or recovery

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NUTRITION, SUPPLEMENTS, HERBS

Eating for Recovery: The Essential Nutrition Plan to Reverse the Physical Damage
of Alcoholism
Molly Siple, MS, RD
Provides guidelines, practical tips, recipes, and varied meal plans to help you restore health and vitality after alcohol abuse.

End Your Addiction Now: : The Proven Nutritional Supplement Program That Can Set You Free (amazon.com/End-Your-Addiction-Now-Nutritional/dp/0446527238)
Charles Gant, M.D. and Greg Lewis, Ph.D.

Dr. Gant presents his three-stage recovery program to reduce or eliminate addictions through nutritional supplements that restore the proper balance of neurotransmitters in the brain. The program can help to reduce or eliminate drug and alcohol cravings, detoxify with an over-the-counter remedy that helps cleanse the body, and correct secondary nutritional imbalances to ensure long-term results. Questionnaires help readers identify which appropriate supplements will help them regain control of their lives.

Natural Highs: Supplements, Nutrition, and Mind-BodyTechniques to Help You Feel Good All the Time. (www.cassmd.com/Nat.Highs/Nat.High.1.html)
Hyla Cass, MD and Patrick Holford

The authors, a psychiatrist and nutritional expert, advocate using a balanced diet and natural supplements/herbs such as kava, ginseng, choline, and DMAE to improve ones vitality, focus and state of mind. These natural alternatives act as stress busters, energizers, and mood enhancers without the consequences of addiction to substances such as caffeine, sugar, nicotine, alcohol, or drugs. The positive effects, rare cautions, and recommended dosages associated with each item are detailed. Other helpful mind/body lifestyle practices like meditation, massage, dance and aromatherapy are also described.

Seven Weeks To Sobriety: The Proven Program to Fight Alcoholism Through Nutrition
Joan Mathew Larson Ph.D.

Focusing on alcoholism as a disease, Joan Mathews Larson and her colleagues at the Health Recovery Center in Minneapolis,Minnesota discovered a series of nutritional deficiencies in alcoholics. The book presents their seven-week program to break alcohol addiction and end cravings.

PERSONAL STORIES, BIOGRAPHY

Broken: My Story of Addiction and Redemption
William Cope Moyers, Katherine Ketcham

William Cope Moyers has come a long, long way. In 1994, he lay on the floor of an Atlanta crack house. His father had put together a search party. His worried family waited at home where Moyers had left them when he embarked on yet another binge. From that lowly, drug-hazed night, Moyers went on to become an executive at the Hazelden Foundation and travels far and wide to talk about addiction and treatment.

Broken tells the story of what happened between then and now from growing up the privileged son of Bill Moyers to his descent into alcoholism and drug addiction, his numerous stabs at getting clean, his many relapses, and how he managed to survive.

The Dopeless Hope Fiend: Veteran Police Officer Becomes Homeless Drug Addict Before Finding Redemption After Near Death Experience
Michael CharlesGivens

Michael Givens chronicles his journey from addiction to sobriety. The story covers his descent into drug abuse and the devastation it brings to his life. It is also about redemption and life after drugs. Givens uses his experiences to offer hope to those caught in the cycle of addiction by reducing the process of addiction and recovery down to its elements. This book inspires and challenges addicts to consider the possibility of living a clean and sober life.

I Am Your Disease (The Many Faces of Addiction) (www.iamyourdisease.com)
Sheryl Letzgus Mcginnis and Heiko Ganzer

This book chronicles the life of many people addicted to various substances who died despite their best efforts and that of their families. The authors understand that addiction is an illness that can happen to anyone and sometimes its so malignant that all current treatment fails.This book is a solace to parents who have lost a child to addiction but also potentially very helpful to parents whose children are living addicts and tempted to quit their efforts to help the child. It may also be helpful in boosting the resolve of addicts and diminishing their guilt about not being able to stop... so far.

My Name Is Bill (www.susancheever.com)
Susan Cheever

In this thoroughly researched and groundbreaking biography of Bill Wilson, cofounder of Alcoholics Anonymous, Cheever creates a remarkably human portrait of a man whose life and work both influenced and saved the lives of millions of people. Drawn from personal letters and diaries, records in a variety of archives, and hundreds of interviews, this definitive biography is the first fully documented account of Bill Wilson's life story.

Walking Like A Duck
Patricia Thulin Holloran

On June 28, 1996, Pat Holloran’s life changed suddenly and forever when Drug Control confronted her for the theft of narcotics from the hospital where she worked.

Pat was working full time on the night shift and taking care of her three children, her husband, and her severely disabled father. Stadol, a narcotic ten times stronger than Morphine, was her drug of choice. She started taking it to help her sleep. She kept taking it because she could not stop.

Walking Like a Duck reveals the agony of enduring a punitive disciplinary process to preserve her nursing license; how it impacted her sanity and her career, and how her secrets and lies traumatized her marriage of over twenty years.

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PSYCHOLOGY, PERSONALITY

Addictive Personality: Understanding the Addictive Process and Compulsive Behavior(hazelden.org/OA_HTML/ibeCCtpItmDspRte.jsp?a=b&item=3429)
Craig Nakken

Craig nakken presents the most recent information on how an individual becomes an addict-including cultural influences and genetic factors-as he examines addiction's causes, stages of development, and consequences.

Addictive Thinking: Understanding Self-Deception(hazelden.org/OA_HTML/ibeCCtpItmDspRte.jsp?a=b&item=1829)
Abraham J. Twerski

Using vivid examples and case studies, the author exposes the irrational and contradictory patterns of addictive thinking, and shows how to overcome them and the barriers they create; low self-esteem and relapse.

Emotional Sobriety: From Relationship Trauma to Resilience and Balance
Tian Dayton, PhD

Written by a clinical psychologist, this book provides new perspectives on how to gain back emotional stability after growing up with the trauma of addiction, abuse, and dysfunction. Dr. Dayton explains the latest research in neuropsychology and the role trauma plays on chemically altering the brain. The book teaches you how to rewire your brain to undo the negative effects trauma has on all aspects of life. As noted by Joseph R. Cruse, MD, Founding Medical Director, Betty Ford Center, "We all need to learn how to live with greater maturity and balance. In this book, Tian Dayton shows us how."

First Year Sobriety: When All That Changes Is Everything
Guy Kettelhack

The first in a series of three recovery guides for the first three years of sobriety, First-Year Sobriety uses the voices of many women and men who are struggling in the often baffling territory of their first year of sobriety to show that despite their differing experiences, all are united in the process of giving life without alcohol or other drugs a chance.

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SPIRITUAL APPROACHES

The Tao of Sobriety (amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0312242506)
David Gregson and Jay S. Efran

Written by two longtime therapists, this self-help book is designed to work with or without 12-step programs. After a brief explanation of Taoism (a Chinese philosophy and religion), the authors present the Tao, a Chinese term meaning "the way," as an ideal vehicle for attaining and maintaining freedom from substance addiction. Containing anecdotes, exercises (meditations, questions to explore, affirmations) and real-life applications of Taoist precepts, this guide shows how to apply eastern philosophy to enhance recovery from addiction to alcohol and other drugs.

The Wisdom of the Rooms (thewisdomoftherooms.com)
Michael Z

A collection of hundreds of sayings and quotes heard in 12-step meetings that impart practical wisdom on maintaining sobriety and developing your spiritual life. It acts as a guide on looking deeper and a daily support in the process.

The Zen of Recovery (innerself.com/Meditation/What_Is_Zen_by_Mel_Ash.htm)
Mel Ash

Applying the principles of Zen to the Twelve Step philosophy of recovery, this book offers inspiration to achieve spiritual fulfillment and peace. Drawing from his lifetime of experience as an abused child, alcoholic, Zen student, and dharma teacher, Ash gives readers a solid grounding in the Twelve Steps and the Eightfold Path and shows their useful similarities for those in recovery.

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TWELVE STEP

Alcoholics Anonymous
(www.aa.org/bigbookonline/en_tableofcnt.cfm)

Alcoholics Anonymous-the Big Book-has served as a lifeline to millions worldwide. First published in 1939, Alcoholics Anonymous sets forth cornerstone concepts of recovery from alcoholism and tells the stories of men and women who have overcome the disease.

Na Text: Narcotics Anonymous
(http://www.na.org/?ID=catalog-products)

First published in April 1983, this is NA’s primary text. Book One contains ten chapters explaining the NA Fellowship and their program of recovery.

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OTHER SITES WITH ADDICTION BOOKS:

Drug Abuse Books.com (drugabusebooks.com)
An extensive list of books on drug abuse and drug-related information, linked to Amazon.com for easy purchase.

Eight Clues to Happiness- Khushwant Singh

2010-01-24T08:10:00.000-08:00

EIGHT CLUES TO HAPPINESS
By- KHUSHWANT SINGH

Having lived a reasonably contented life, I was musing over what a person should strive for to achieve happiness. I drew up a list of a few essentials which I put forward for the readers' appraisal.

1. First and foremost is GOOD HEALTH. If you do not enjoy good health you can never be happy. Any ailment, however trivial, will deduct from your happiness.

2. Second, a HEALTHY BANK BALANCE. It need not run into crores but should be enough to provide for creature comforts and something to spare for recreation, like eating out, going to the pictures, travelling or going on holidays on the hills or by the sea. Shortage of money can be only demoralizing. Living on credit or borrowing is demeaning and lowers one in one's own eyes.

3. Third, a HOME OF YOUR OWN. Rented premises can never give you the snug feeling of a nest which is yours for keeps that a home provides: if it has a garden space, all the better. Plant your own trees and flowers, see them grow and blossom, cultivate a sense of kinship with them.

4. Fourth, an UNDERSTANDING COMPANION, be it your spouse or a friend. If there are too many misunderstandings, they will rob you of your peace of mind. It is better to be divorced than to bicker all the time.

5. Fifth, LACK OF ENVY towards those who have done better than you in life; risen higher, made more money, or earned more fame. Envy can be very corroding; avoid comparing yourself with others.

6. Sixth, DO NOT ALLOW OTHER PEOPLE to descend on you for gup-shup. By the time you get rid of them, you will feel exhausted and poisoned by their gossip-mongering.

7. Seventh, CULTIVATE SOME HOBBIES which can bring you a sense of fulfilment, such as gardening, reading, writing, painting, playing or listening to music. Going to clubs or parties to get free drinks or to meet celebrities is criminal waste of time.

8. Eighth, every morning and evening, devote 15 minutes to INTROSPECTION. In the morning, 10 minutes should be spent on stilling the mind and then five in listing things you have to do that day. In the evening, five minutes to still the mind again, and then to go over what you had undertaken to do.

Nathaniel Cotton (1721-1788) summed up my views on the subject in one verse:

If solid happiness we prize
Within our breast this jewel lies .
And they are fools who roam
The world has nothing to bestow
From our own selves our joys must flow
And that dear hut, our home.

Perfect Imperfections

2009-05-03T18:34:00.001-07:00

A funeral speech by a wife on her husband's passing.

Quite thought provoking.

Click on the link. .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nw0s4C0g5SM

Book Review: 'The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari' by Robin S Sharma

2009-05-03T13:03:00.000-07:00

This book is subtitled a ‘fable’ and is based on the fictional life of Julian Mantle, an ‘enormously successful ‘ criminal lawyer, who was obsessed with his hunger for ‘more prestige, more glory and more money’. At fifty-three years of age, his achievements included ‘a stellar professional reputation with an income in seven figures, a spectacular mansion….., a private jet, a summer home in a tropical island, and his prized possession—a shiny red Ferrari…’. But success had its own side effects. ‘Eventually his marriage failed, he no longer spoke with his father…… he still had not found whatever it was that he was looking for. It showed emotionally, physically --- and spiritually. ‘

One day he collapses in the court room. His health had failed him. Julian survives to confront his life and its spiritual crisis, the need for balance between life and work. The book then goes on to a mysterious visitor and the transformation of Julian Mantle, his ‘magical meeting’ with the Sages of Sivana, his becoming a spiritual student of the sages and learning the wisdom of personal change. The Sages of Sivana tell him the fable of the extraordinary garden, and the seven virtues to kindling the inner fire, about the ancient art of self-leadership and the power of discipline. In Chapter 11, it deals with time, the most precious commodity , and goes on to the ultimate purpose of life, and the timeless secret of lifelong happiness. In 13 Chapters and 200 pages, it takes you through a journey to wisdom that could help one to fulfill one’s dreams and reach one’s ultimate destiny.

It is a story about a successful man, who becomes a monk and then sells his most prized possession, his Ferrari car. It certainly gives every one a ‘wake-up call’ to spirituality and wisdom, just as it did to Julian Mantle. It is an inspiring tale giving the reader ‘the wisdom to create a life of passion, purpose, and peace’ ---to live life ‘with greater courage, balance, abundance and joy’.

The book gives a step-by-step approach to a balanced and fulfilling life through a simple philosophy of life.

· Developing joyful thoughts

· Following life’s mission and calling

· Cultivating self-discipline

· Acting courageously

· Valuing time, the most important commodity

· Nourishing relationships

· Living life fully, one day at a time.

Robin S. Sharma, LLM, is an attorney and speaker. He has authored a number of books that focus on leadership and life improvement. This book was originally published in 1997 by Harper Collins. More information on Robin Sharma is available at www. robinsharma.com.

The book is bound to bless one’s life and can be life-changing. It embodies the timeless principles of radiant living, the seven virtues of Sivana, made memorable through the symbols of the garden, the lighthouse, the sumo wrestler, the pink wire cable, the stopwatch, the roses and the winding path of diamonds. The message ‘never overlook the power of simplicity’ haunts me. The principles embodied in this book can raise one to the highest levels in life- to a life of enlightenment—through discipline. It does not make one look outside and dream, but to look inside, into oneself and to get awakened to the ‘secrets of the ages, for enriching the mind, cultivating the body and nourishing the soul.’ Wake Up.

Here is a presentation by the author on his book and its message in more detail:

http://www.bombaybookclub.com/download/Monk%20Who%20Sold%20His%20Ferrari.pdf

2009-05-03T10:23:00.000-07:00

Excerpt: 'The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who've Lived the Longest'

by Dan Buettner

NPR.org, June 7, 2008 · When Juan Ponce de León landed on the northeast coast of Florida on April 2, 1513, he was searching, it's been said, for a Fountain of Youth — a fabled spring of water that could bestow everlasting life. Historians now know there was more to the story. The reason the Spanish explorer set out to investigate lands north of the Bahamas was probably because Spain had reinstated Christopher Columbus's son Diego as military governor, effectively removing Ponce de León from the office. Nevertheless, the legend behind Ponce de León's voyage stuck.

The idea of discovering a magic source of long life still has so much appeal today, five centuries later, that charlatans and fools perpetuate the same boneheaded quest, whether it comes disguised as a pill, diet, or medical procedure. In an all-out effort to squash the charlatans forever, demographer S. Jay Olshansky of the University of Illinois at Chicago and more than 50 of the world's top longevity experts issued a position statement in 2002 that was as blunt as they could fashion it.

"Our language on this matter must be unambiguous," they wrote. "There are no lifestyle changes, surgical procedures, vitamins, antioxidants, hormones, or techniques of genetic engineering available today that have been demonstrated to influence the processes of aging."

The brutal reality about aging is that it has only an accelerator pedal. We have yet to discover whether a brake exists for people. The name of the game is to keep from pushing the accelerator pedal so hard that we speed up the aging process. The average American, however, by living a fast and furious lifestyle, pushes that accelerator too hard and too much.

This book is about discovering the world's best practices in health and longevity and putting them to work in our lives. Most of us have more control over how long we live than we think. In fact, experts say that if we adopted the right lifestyle, we could add at least ten good years and suffer a fraction of the diseases that kill us prematurely. This could mean an extra quality decade of life!

To identify the secrets of longevity, our team of demographers, medical scientists, and journalists went straight to the best sources. We traveled to the Blue Zones — four of the healthiest corners of the globe — where a remarkably high rate of the longest-living people manage to avoid many of the diseases that kill Americans. These are the places where people enjoy up to a 3 times better chance of reaching 100 than we do.

In each of the Blue Zones, we used a survey developed in collaboration with the National Institute on Aging to identify the lifestyle components that help explain the area's longevity — what the inhabitants choose to eat, how much physical activity they get, how they socialize, what traditional medicines they use, and so forth. We looked for the common denominators — the practices found in all four populations — and came up with what I consider to be a cross-cultural distillation of the best practices of health, a de facto formula for longevity.

Herein lies the premise of The Blue Zones: If you can optimize your lifestyle, you may gain back an extra decade of good life you'd otherwise miss. What's the best way to optimize your lifestyle? Emulate the practices we found in each one of the Blue Zones.

Facts ABOUT Aging

When taken together, the Blue Zones yielded nine powerful lessons to achieve a longer, better life. But before we get into the details, I think it's crucial to understand a few things about just how people age and establish some basic principles and definitions. How long can each of us expect to live? What really happens to our bodies when we age?

Why can't we just take a pill to extend our lives? How can we live longer? How can we live better? And why does changing our lifestyles add more good years?

To answer these and other fundamental questions, I've asked some of the world's experts to describe their latest research in everyday terms. Together these scientists represent the best thinking in biology, geriatrics, and the science of longevity.

Steven N. Austad, Ph.D., studies the cellular and molecular mechanisms of aging at the University of Texas Health Center at San Antonio. A professor at the Sam and Ann Barshop Center for Longevity and Aging, he is the author of Why We Age: What Science is Discovering About the Body's Journey Through Life.

Robert N. Butler, M.D., is President and CEO of the International Longevity Center-U.S.A., a policy and education research center in New York City. A professor of geriatrics and adult development at Mount Sinai Medical Center, he is the author of Why Survive: Being Old in America.

Jack M. Guralnik, M.D., Ph.D., is chief of the laboratory of epidemiology, demography, and biometery at the National Institute on Aging in Bethesda, Maryland.

Robert Kane, M.D., is director of the Center on Aging and the Minnesota Geriatric Education Center at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. He is a professor in the School of Public Health, where he holds an endowed chair in Long-term Care and Aging.

Thomas T. Perls, M.D., M.P.H., is director of the New England Centenarian Study, an associate professor of medicine and geriatrics at the Boston University School of Medicine, and author of Living to 100: Lessons in Living to Your Maximum Potential at Any Age.

I interviewed each of these experts separately, then sorted the best of their answers to each question. Here's what they told me.

What exactly is aging?

Robert Kane: That is a very profound question. Number one, aging starts at birth. If you think about it, there is a constant development that occurs within all species. You can think of it as the balance between the individual and the environment. In essence, we can think of aging as a loss of coping mechanism, a failure to be able to maintain internal control and balance.

We start out as children, and we gradually accrue various changes in our characteristics. Children are susceptible to the environment and must be protected. In the case of humans, we probably peak in our mid-20s. We hold our own for a while, then at some point, perhaps in our mid-40s, we start to decline. Some people would say we actually begin to decline at age 30. It depends on the system that you track.

Old age is another period when the balance favors the environment; older people need help in protecting themselves. The frailty we associate with old age is basically the loss of autonomy, the inability to withstand external pressures and perturbations.

Aging includes both the positive and negative changes that occur. A gerontologist would define aging as the risk of dying. Irrespective of the presence of disease, there is, given this finiteness of a life span, a continuous risk of dying. In most cases this increases as our age increases. Other factors can change your risk of dying as well as aging, so it's not that aging alone is the determiner, but it is the overarching change. People have been searching for biological markers of aging, and so far nobody has found any that are absolutely constant and separate from the onset of diseases.

People look at, for example, the loss of accommodation in the lens of the eye. Most people become farsighted, usually in their early 40s. It doesn't happen to everyone, so you can't say it's a universal sign of aging. Graying of hair, loss of collagen in the skin, all of these are changes that have been described with regard to aging. There's a change in body composition as people get older. It can obviously be influenced by exercise and diet, but in general, we lose muscle mass and gain body fat. The immune system changes with age and becomes less competent, but again, not in any universal way that we can say is a characteristic of aging.

Steven Austad: I would define aging as the gradual loss of physical capabilities, whether you're talking about the ability to run, to think, all those things. It's a gradual and progressive loss of physical and mental abilities, the ability to do things that you previously could do. What it means is that basically, you're not designed to maintain your physical integrity forever.

Robert Kane: There are several theories about aging. One is that there are genes in your system that turn on and turn off, either to ameliorate or to expedite aging. Another theory is the "Garbage-Dump Syndrome," which theorizes that you accumulate toxins as you go along and things happen.

But again, the question you have to ask is why does the body accumulate toxins? Well, you probably accumulate toxins because some of the intracellular mechanisms that were working at one point have stopped working. So are the toxins really a sign of aging or merely a concomitant of some other biological process that has changed, presumably driven by some genetic clock that exists inside the body? We honestly just don't know.

What is the average American lifespan?

Robert Kane: I would imagine that a 30-year-old person today has a reasonable chance of living — depending on whether a man or a woman — to his or her late 70s or early 80s. If you took away major risk factors such as heart disease, cancer, and stroke, you would be adding, I would guess, maybe 5 to 10 years to that initial life expectancy.

Tom Perls: For most of us, our bodies are like cars built to go 100,000 miles. A few cars can go 150,000 or more miles with the right genetic makeup. But they do deteriorate over time, even with the best upkeep. With that deterioration comes frailty. When you hit a bump in the road, you are less capable of bouncing back. There comes a point, with continued decline, where there's no bounce back, and that's when you pass away.

What are the chances of living to 100?

Jack Guralnik: Well, they are small of course, probably less than one percent. Again, figuring it out depends on what age you currently are. If you're talking about someone at birth, it's a different estimation than for someone who's already made it to 80. Also, if you want to consider health status, that plays a large role. Most people who make it to be centenarians when you look back, they were quite healthy at 80.

Tom Perls: I used to equate living to 100 to picking all five numbers in the lottery: The odds are pretty small. If you have longevity running in your family paired with good health behaviors, your chances are greater.

Centenarians today are the fastest growing segment of our population, partly because we're doing a better job of screening for high blood pressure. That's one important lottery ball that we don't need to leave to chance. Now instead of five numbers, it's down to four.

Another one that we've pretty much gotten rid of is substantial childhood mortality. With much better public health measures like cleaner water supplies, more years of education, improved social-economic status, these things are all reducing the number of lottery balls.

The best way to think about reaching 100 is: "The older you get, the healthier you've been."

Steven Austad: The question is — and here's where I think the best health practices are really important — if you live to be 100 years old, what sort of 100-year-old are you going to be? Are you going to be bedridden and unable to take care of yourself? Or are you going to be reasonably independent and alert? To me, that's what the best health practices can really have an impact on.

Is there a pill that can extend Life?

Robert Kane: There are a lot of nostrums out there. None of them has credibility. None of them has been even close to rigorously tested, everything from to human growth hormone to antioxidants. Every time anyone has studied them with any degree of rigor, they do not pan out. That does not mean that some new discovery may not be just over the horizon, but at the moment that is probably not the path.

Just think about it: If antioxidants were so healthful, the whole generation that grew up eating Twinkies, Wonder Bread, and the like (the kinds of foods that are loaded with antioxidants to assure that they had a long shelf life and would never spoil) should never grow old.

Robert Butler: DHEA, human growth hormone, and melatonin are all extremely questionable, and are probably ill advised.

Using human growth hormone in human beings bulks them up. But it does not just mean more muscle mass. With it can come hypertrophy of the heart, fluid retention, and other problems. And of course there's a disease, acromegaly, which is actually characterized by an excess of human growth hormone. DHEA is what's for years been called the "junk hormone." In large quantities in our bodies, it converts to both testosterone and estrogen. Most of the studies on almost all of these hormones have been very short-lived, that is six months to a year. So the long-term effects are not well known.

The best source of information on hormones is Marc Blackman at the Washington, D.C., Veterans Affairs Medical Center, or Mitchell Harman at the Kronos Longevity Research Institute in Phoenix, Arizona. They've done the most sophisticated studies and probably the best ones we presently have on the hormone story.

Are vitamin supplements helpful?

Robert Butler: Of course you should maintain your basic daily vitamin requirements. But you shouldn't get carried away either. Vitamin E was under study by the National Institute on Aging in the hopes that it would prove to be very valuable with Alzheimer's disease. But it was not. So I think, like so many things in nature, it's a matter of amount, what might be called proportionality, or just plain wisdom. People used to think if a multivitamin was good for them, then more of it would be even better, but that's just not true, unfortunately.

Most vitamin requirements are best achieved by eating six to nine servings of fruits and vegetables a day. Very few people do that, so probably the cheapest, least expensive multivitamin you can buy is not a bad idea to help achieve them. If you're an older man, you should not have a supplement with iron because iron accumulates in the heart and can lead to a condition called hemosiderosis. Look on the market for vitamin supplements that do not have iron that are designed specifically for men.

What's a smart diet for longevity?

Robert Kane: Eating a reasonable diet makes a lot of sense. Again, it doesn't mean that I think you have to be a vegetarian. One of the goals to a healthy lifestyle is moderation in all things. What one is looking for is moderation, taking in a level of calories that is necessary and balancing those calories across carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. Taking in really what you need. There are some things we know that are just generally bad. Most fast foods are not necessarily healthy. We seem to like a lot of the things that are bad for us: salt, sugar, fat. There is something about humans that is inherently self-destructive, at least when it comes to eating.

The best diet is basically one of moderation. You hear about all these people that live on legumes and plant foods and that's probably okay, but I don't think it's necessary.

One certainly can metabolize a certain amount of meat, but again it's a question of are you eating European portions or American portions? Are you eating meat a couple of times a week, or are you eating it every day for two meals a day? Are you eating processed meats that are filled with fat? Or are you eating good cuts of fairly lean meat?

To me, I just come back to moderation. Assuming that you were in pretty good shape in your 20s, if you could maintain that weight, you would be in good shape. The truth is at 20, you could for all sorts of reasons, eat all sorts of terrible things and maintain that weight, because you were more physically active, because your system was just more resilient. As you get older, you lose that resilience. So you are more susceptible to lifestyle behaviors that can do you harm than you were when you were younger.

What can add on more good years?

Robert Kane: Rather than exercising for the sake of exercising, try to make changes to your lifestyle. Ride a bicycle instead of driving. Walk to the store instead of driving. Use the stairs instead of the elevator. Build that into your lifestyle. The chances are that you will sustain that behavior for a much longer time.

And the name of the game here is sustaining. These things that we try — usually after some cataclysmic event has occurred, and we now want to ward off what seems to be the more perceptible threat of dying — don't hold up over the long haul. We find all sorts of reasons not to do it.

The second thing I'd tell you is don't take up smoking. The biggest threat to improving our lifestyles has been cigarette smoking. That trumps everything else. Once you're a nonsmoker, I would try to get you to learn to develop a moderate lifestyle in regard to your weight to build into your daily routine enough exercise to keep you going.

Does going to the gym help?

Robert Kane: Exercise has several quite distinct functions. You have cardiovascular exercise, which we describe as aerobic exercise, which increases your body's capacity to process oxygen. That's where you go out and work really hard and raise your heart rate. Swimming would be a good way to get that kind of exercise.

There's also antigravity exercise. For example, if you're trying to prevent osteoporosis, swimming isn't the optimal activity, because it doesn't increase the strength of your bones. There, working against gravity, walking, standing does more to increase bone metabolism than swimming does.

Then there are exercises designed to improve your balance. Tai Chi is one people talk about, or yoga. Those are exercises that have been associated with reducing the risk of falls. Then there are strength exercises, which run all the way from weightlifters, who probably put themselves into a disadvantageous state from overdeveloping their muscles, to people who do some modest amount of weightlifting or antigravity exercise that strengthens their muscles.

The data suggest that a moderate level of sustained exercise is quite helpful. There are studies that show that people who run marathons tend to have much better cardiovascular systems than people who don't. You could say that that says more is better, but those exercises generally take a toll on your joints. So marathoners have good cardiovascular systems, but they will probably have to have their joints replaced. But in general, if somebody could do a minimum of 30 minutes — maybe we could raise it to 60 — of exercise at least five times a week that would help. And it doesn't appear to have to be all at one time, although that seems to be better. If you did that and you could sustain it, that would be good.

How can we maximize the good years?

Robert Kane: Again, there are two issues here. How long can I live? The other is: How well can I live? And those are different questions. Living an extra two years on life support may not necessarily be your goal. The question is: Can you delay the onset of disability? "Good years" is a very important concept.

There are some things I'd certainly recommend for what people would call successful aging. One of them is, in fact, to have a sense of social connectedness. Most people enjoy the company of other people, particularly other people who they feel care about them. That seems to give you a sense of well being, whether that raises your endorphin level or lowers your cortisol level. We don't know why. People have looked for biological markers, and they haven't been successful at finding them. But something happens that makes life more worthwhile. The days take on more meaning.

The other thing that helps a lot of people is doing something they feel is either interesting or worthwhile. Again, different people have different things they like to do. For instance, people talk about workaholics as being at higher risk for stress-related illness. But there is no evidence that workaholics are necessarily a higher risk if they really are enjoying what they're doing. If they are driven by some externality and feel like they have to earn more money, it creates stress in their lives, which is probably not very healthy. So it's very individual when it comes to what people want to do.

For example, you can't just say family support is good, because some family support is good for some people, and some isn't for others. There are people who derive great satisfaction from being with their families. And then there are those who become very anxious and upset when they are with their families. It is a complex model, which is also very interactive.

But if we're talking about things that give you a sense of fulfillment, a good life, the sense of being valued, the sense of being cared for, and the sense that you are liked — these are all very positive.

Tom Perls: A good start to adding more good years to your life would be to get rid of the anti-aging quackery. Some people provide this very pernicious, ugly view of old people that's completely false in order to get you worried about getting older. They say they can stop — and even reverse — aging, claims which are absolutely false. You've got a bunch of people who are professing to be physicians or scientists, who are saying that they can stop or reverse the aging process. I will tell you that real scientists cannot do such a thing, so what makes the public think that these people can?

It is mostly hucksterism and charlatanism. They will cost you a lot of money, and these things do not work and, in some instances, can be bad for you. So stay away from it. These guys are just trying to sell you stuff. What does work is living the lifestyle of those who we know are living longer, like those people, I suppose, living in the Blue Zones.

Into the Blue Zones

Which brings us back to the Blue Zones project. Over the course of seven years, my team circled the globe, making several trips to each of the four Blue Zones and meeting the remarkable people who lived there. In each place we confirmed that people were as old as they said they were, interviewed dozens of centenarians, worked with local medical experts, and methodically studied each of the local lifestyles, habits, and practices.

Each Blue Zone revealed its own recipe for longevity, but, as we were to discover, many of the fundamental ingredients were the same. These common ingredients, our nine lessons of living longer, are deeply embedded in the cultures we studied. I suppose you could say that our quest was for a true fountain of youth, though this fountain does not spring from the ground but comes to us through centuries of trial and error.

For us, it all began on a small island off the coast of Italy.

Reprinted with permission of the National Geographic Society from the book The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who've Lived the Longest by Dan Buettner. Copyright © 2008 Dan Buettner. Available where all books are sold.

(Courtesy: NPR.org)

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=91274144

The Island Where People Live Longe

2009-05-03T10:18:00.000-07:00

The island of Icaria could be the newest of the world's so-called blue zones — places where residents have unusually long life spans. AARP Weekend Edition Saturday, May 2, 2009 · Making it to 90 years old is awe-inspiring in much of the world. But on a tiny Greek island in the North Aegean Sea, nonagenarians barely merit a second glance. The island of Icaria could be the newest of the world's so-called blue zones — places where residents have unusually long life spans. Dan Buettner has crossed the globe many times over the years in search of blue zones, and he recently teamed up with AARP and National Geographic to study Icaria. Buettner and a team of demographers work with census data to identify blue zones around the world. They found Icaria had the highest percentage of 90-year-olds anywhere on the planet — nearly 1 out of 3 people make it to their 90s. Plus, Buettner says, "they have about 20 percent lower rates of cancer, 50 percent lower rates of heart disease and almost no dementia." Our life spans are about 20 percent dictated by our genes, Buettner says. The rest is lifestyle. People in Icaria live in mountain villages that necessitate activity every day. "They have gardens," he says, for example. "If they go to church, if they go to their friends' house — it always occasions a small walk. But that ends up burning much more calories than going to a gym for 20 minutes a day." "They also have a diet that's very interesting," Buettner continues. "It's very high in olive oil; it's very high in fruits and vegetables." It's also very high in greens; about 150 kinds of veggies grow wild on the island. "These greens have somewhere around 10 times the level of antioxidants in red wine." And though they live on an island, Icarians don't eat much fish. Buettner says pirates pushed the culture up in the highlands and villagers couldn't depend on the sea as much as might be expected. Particularly unusual to this new blue zone are the villagers' drinking habits. Tea drinking, that is. Icarians drink herbal teas every day, morning and night, Buettner says. This seems to be one of their secrets to longer living. "We had five of these herbal teas sent to Athens and analyzed for their chemical composition," Buettner reports. "We found out that most of them were diuretics." "It turns out that diuretics actually lower blood pressure," he says, "so when you're chronically lowering blood pressure every day with these herbal teas, that does help explain why there's lower rates of heart disease." "That's something we haven't seen in Okinawa or Costa Rica or Sardinia or any of the other blue zones," Buettner says.

(Courtesy: NPR.org)

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103744881

Roja

2009-04-04T19:52:00.000-07:00

A beautiful song

Last Lecture- Randy Pausch

2009-03-28T04:32:00.000-07:00

These are a few of my favorite things

2009-03-22T19:26:00.000-07:00

Few of my favorite things from Sound of Music

Low-Salt Diet Improves Blood Vessel Function

2009-03-21T07:35:00.001-07:00

Salt May Restrict Blood Flow to Heart
Low-Salt Diet Improves Blood Vessel Function

By Salynn Boyles
WebMD Medical News

Reviewed by Elizabeth Klodas, MD,FACC

Jan. 22, 2009 -- Reducing the salt in your diet can help lower your blood pressure , but it may also lower your risk for having a heart attack or stroke in another important way.
Results from a new study suggest that eating a low-sodium diet can also help keep blood vessels working properly.
The study measured the impact of salt restriction on the endothelium, the thin layer of cells that line the interior of the blood vessels and help regulate blood flow.
Overweight and obese study participants with normal blood pressure who restricted the sodium in their diets showed evidence of improved endothelial function compared to participants who did not restrict salt.
The improvement appeared to be unrelated to the impact on blood pressure, suggesting that salt restriction is independently protective of blood vessel function.
"We found that if we reduced the salt in the diet, we saw a direct, positive impact on blood vessels," nutrition researcher and study co-author Jennifer B. Keogh, PhD, tells WebMD.
Salt and the Blood Vessels
It is generally recommended that healthy people eat no more than 2,400 milligrams of sodium a day -- about the amount found in one teaspoon (6 grams) of table salt.
But the average American eats more than twice that, even if they rarely pick up a salt shaker, says Mayo Clinic cardiologist Gerald Fletcher, MD, who is a spokesman for the American Heart Association.
"Processed foods are often loaded with salt, even those that don't taste all that salty," Fletcher tells WebMD. "That is why it is so important to read labels."
The newly published study included 29 overweight and obese men and women who ate either 3 1/2 grams of salt a day (low salt) or 7 1/2 grams a day (normal salt) for two weeks. Then they switched to the other diet for two weeks.
None of the participants had high blood pressure when they entered the study.
While on the salt-restricted diet, but not the normal diet, the study participants showed improvements in endothelial function in tests designed to measure blood vessel dilation and blood flow.
The low-salt diet also led to small reductions in systolic (top number) blood pressure but not diastolic (bottom number).
The findings appear in the latest issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
"This study suggests, but does not prove, that salt in the diet has an independent impact on blood vessel function," Keogh says.
She and Fletcher agree that larger studies are needed to confirm the findings.
"This tells us that lowering blood pressure may not be the only benefit of eating a lower-sodium diet," Fletcher says. "I would think this is certainly something that should be explored."
Tips to Lower Salt Intake
The American Heart Association (AHA) offers the following tips:
Read labels. The FDA has established guidelines for processed foods that can help you choose wisely. A product labeled "very low sodium" must have less than 35 milligrams of sodium in a serving, and "low-sodium" foods must have less than 140 milligrams of sodium. A food labeled "reduced sodium" must contain 25% less sodium than the original product.
Watch those seasonings. Soy sauce, steak sauce, bouillon cubes, Worcestershire sauce, and even cooking sherry are all loaded with sodium. Good, low-sodium choices include lemon juice, vinegar, and herbs.
Choose fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables over their canned counterparts. Drain and rinse canned foods before preparing them or choose low-salt or no-salt canned items.
Know the names. In addition to sodium chloride, sodium in foods may be labeled sodium alginate, sodium sulfite, sodium caseinate, disodium phosphate, sodium benzoate, sodium hydroxide, monosodium glutamate or MSG, or sodium citrate.

SOURCES:Dickinson, K.M., American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2009; vol 89: pp 485-490.Jennifer B. Keogh, PhD, CSIRO Human Nutrition, Adelaide, Australia.Gerald Fletcher, MD, cardiologist, Mayo Clinic Jacksonville, Jacksonville, Fla.; spokesman, American Heart Association. American Heart Association: "Cutting Down on Salt."

Joseph Ponnoly

Omega 3 and You

2009-03-21T07:00:00.000-07:00

Omega 3 is good for the heart and the mind.

If you are tired and having trouble concentrating, Omega3 can help.

n3 fatty acids, popularly known as omerga-3 fatty acids are unsaturated fatty acids. Nutritionally essential n3 fatty acids are alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), eicosa pentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosa hexaenoic acid (DHA). These are essential to the normal growth in young children.

Omega 3 is an essential fatty acid that

-reduces triglyceride levels and blood pressure and improves cardiovascular health,

-improves mental health (preventing depression, schizophrenia, dementia) and

-prevents some forms of cancer (examples: prostate cancer and breast cancer).

Consumption of more n3 fatty acids than n6 fats can have great impact in preventing thrombosis, immunity, inflammatory system response, arthritis, lupus, and asthma.

Omega 3 fatty acids sources:

Fish oil, fish (salmon, tuna, mackerel, Hoki).

But fish also may have contaminants such as mercury and dioxin.

Flax seed oil (linseed oil). is a botanical source of n3 fatty acids

Fish oil supplements have the 3 essential fatty acids in condensed form.