Staying Healthy : News, products and health information for you and your loved ones.

I saw an article that seems to confirm the old tale that eating fish is good for your brain. A lot of people throw around that statement as if it had already been proven, but here’s some research that actually seems to show that a diet rich in fish actually may lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease and helps keep your mind sharp in general.

The studies were done in Chicago on over 3500 people. Although in the study it was shown that people who ate one meal of fish per week seemed to slow the onset of decline in thinking by about 10 percent, the researchers caution that it could be something else related to eating fish that is responsible for helping out with keeping fish eater’s minds sharp.

The benefits of fish that have a lot of Omega-3 Fatty Acids is an added plus of course for fish eaters. These fatty acids occur in abundance in fish like salmon.

Source: CNN / AP

I guess it’s common knowledge that a healthy diet along with lots of fruits and veggies is going to be better for you than eating a lot of fried processed foods. But I saw this article that said that some studies were done that show that eating foods that have a lot of phytoestrogens seem to reduce lung cancer risks. Foods that have these compounds include Soy as well as carrots and broccoli.

Though the study really wasn’t a conclusive one, it’s probably true that eating these healthier foods would be good for you anyhow. But of course, cutting down on smoking is still the best way to reduce lung cancer.

Source: Medpage Today

I came across a sort of interesting article on Weight Loss and Hypnosis online. I had no idea this type of thing was even seriously considered because of how hypnosis is viewed by the average person. But apparently hypnosis is being used in some medical conditions as an actual alternative way to treat a wide range of issues from smoking to

The professionals who actually do the hypnosis are called “hypnotherapists”. Some of these people have been saying that the numbers of people looking to use hypnosis as a possible additional treatment for weight problems has increased by a large amount. With more and more overweight people desperately looking for alternative methods to decrease their weight hypnotherapist report large increases in patients. But experts caution that it’s not meant as a cure-all “diet” in any way, and most patients who report success in using hypnosis have used it in conjunction with other lifestyle changes.

Source: The Associatd Press / CNN

I read today in the news about the possible benefits of very low fat diets for those who have prostate cancer. Heart-related health expert Dr. Dean Ornish, who is somewhat famous for proposing strict vegetarianism combined with lowfat diets and exercise, led an intial study regarding prostate cancer. The study, which was published in The Journal of Urology showed that the participants who followed Ornish’s low fat diet and regimen had a 4 percent decrease in prostate specific antigen (PSA) which is an indicator of the growth of this type of cancer.

Those in the study who weren’t treated by the Ornish method saw an increase of 6 percent in PSA. While the research and results are extremely preliminary, the researchers note that it is promising and because of the multitude of other benefits of a low fat diet (reduction in weight and heart problems) it is definitely something to consider for men who have prostate cancer.

Source: The Associated Press / CNN

I had previously heard that dark chocolate could actually be beneficial to your health, but I never really paid attention to it. After all, it sounds too good to be true and never mind the negative effects it might have with your dental bill and waistline!

But I saw an article yesterday that explained a little bit more about why dark chocolate might be good for you. A study done by the AHA (American Heart Association) reinforced research that has shown that the “flavonoids” that occur in chocolate might aid blood vessel transport. They found that it seemed to lower blood pressure for people with hypertension. Interestingly, the study was done with dark chocolate which had a lot of flavonoids versus white chocolate which had none.

Another benefit seemed to be that dark chocolate seemed to reduce LDL cholesterol and impove body usage of insulin.

Well, they definitely don’t recommend going hog wild on dark chocolate bars as of yet, but still it’s a promising (and quite delicious) study…

Source: CNN/Reuters