Category: Lifelong Learning

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Lifestyle Habits and One Not So Scary Chart

Suicide by lifestyle takes ages.

Bill Bryson

Yesterday was haircut day and Kevin the Barber being typically Kevin asked again how old I was. When you run a busy shop with lots of customers I’m sure the personal details of all of us just sort of run together. When I confessed my age Kevin complimented me by saying I was the youngest looking almost 69 year old he’s ever seen. Of course a comment like that sends me straight into overthinking mode.

Having spent nearly a half century researching and understanding what kills people I’ve come to the conclusion (like Bill Bryson) that the majority of us tend not to do the simple small things that make a big difference. Since this blog started as a food blog here’s a simple observation about my dietary habits. I had pizza last night for dinner. This morning I was two pounds heavier than I was yesterday morning. This variation in weight for me is eerily predictable. Can you imagine how much I’d weigh if I ate pizza 2-3 times a week? I can, so I don’t.

One of the upsides of my blog writing is connecting with my readers. Ol Red Hair sent me a link to an interesting article on lifestyle habits. I already had a version of the article saved for future reference and unlike my usual spur of the moment let’s blog this link I started to overthink (again). But Kevin’s compliment made me think more about overall lifestyle and despite the observational construct of the study I’ll claim causality exists. I’m 8/8, batting 1000% on this list.

A new study involving over 700,000 U.S. veterans reports that people who adopt eight healthy lifestyle habits by middle age can expect to live substantially longer than those with few or none of these habits. The eight habits are: being physically active, being free from opioid addiction, not smoking, managing stress, having a good diet, not regularly binge drinking, having good sleep hygiene, and having positive social relationships.

For the study, scientists used data from medical records and questionnaires collected between 2011-2019 from 719,147 people enrolled in the Veterans Affairs Million Veteran Program, a large, nationally representative study of U.S. veterans. The analysis included data from adults age 40-99 and included 33,375 deaths during follow-up.

These eight habits could lengthen your life by decades – https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/995553
The estimated impact of adopting different numbers of healthy lifestyle factors on additional years of life expectancy among men as compared to men with none of these habits. While adopting more healthy lifestyle factors at a younger age is associated with the greatest gains in life expectancy, adopting even a few of these factors or adopting them at an older age can still bring significant gains. Image Credit VA Million Veteran Program

“Habits can be changed, if we understand how they work.”

“This process within our brains is a three-step loop. First, there is a cue, a trigger that tells your brain to go into automatic mode and which habit to use. Then there is the routine, which can be physical or mental or emotional. Finally, there is a reward, which helps your brain figure out if this particular loop is worth remembering for the future.”

“To change a habit, you must keep the old cue, and deliver the old reward, but insert a new routine.”

Charles Duhigg from The Power of Habit

All of this overthinking has reminded me I need to write the Changing Habits chapter in my future Best Seller. But first I need to work on my procrastination habit.

Tomorrow.

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Drink More Water (another reminder)

Extreme heat is the number-one weather-related cause of death in the U.S., and it kills more people most years than hurricanes, floods and tornadoes combined. Yet research shows that compared with their thinking about dramatic events such as storm surges and wildfires, people tend to feel more uncertain about what to do under the threat of extreme heat and don’t perceive as much personal risk. This mismatch between the reality of the danger and the actions people take to protect themselves extends beyond individual perception to the policy level. Heat risks to human health are not often prioritized in climate mitigation and adaptation plans—if they are factored in at all.

Extreme Heat Is Deadlier Than Hurricanes, Floods and Tornadoes Combined — https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/extreme-heat-is-deadlier-than-hurricanes-floods-and-tornadoes-combined/

Remember The Death of Common Sense?

A 71-year-old Los Angeles man died in California’s Death Valley National Park on Tuesday, likely due to heat, as the afternoon high recorded in the park was 121 degrees, officials said.

Man featured in LA Times story dies in Death Valley amid 121-degree heat — https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/man-collapses-dies-in-death-valley-18211076.php

“It’s a dry heat.”

Steven Curry (the dead guy)
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Eat This Way – PURE Study

A diet comprised of higher amounts of fruit, vegetables, nuts, legumes, fish, and whole-fat dairy is associated with lower CVD and mortality in all world regions, especially in countries with lower income where consumption of these foods is low.

Our findings suggest that globally the key to a healthy diet is probably one that includes diverse natural foods in moderation, rather than restricting intake to a small number of food categories.

Diet, cardiovascular disease, and mortality in 80 countries — https://academic.oup.com/eurheartj/advance-article/doi/10.1093/eurheartj/ehad269/7192512

Presented without the usual snarky comment about some of my dietary choices like whole-fat Greek yogurt and full fat cheeses.

Time to make lunch. Spinach quesadillas with whole-fat cheddar cheese.

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Happy 4th of July (2023 iron edition)

Nearly 40% of girls and young women in the U.S. may have iron deficiency, which can lead to fatigue and increase the risk of many health problems, according to a new study.The study was published Tuesday in the  Journal of the American Medical Association  and included 12 years of data for a total of nearly 3,500 girls and women ages 12 to 21 years old.The Cleveland Clinic says the most common causes of iron-deficiency anemia are those that involve blood loss, including heavy menstrual periods. The body gets iron from food, and not getting enough iron from food, such as due to eating a vegan or vegetarian diet, can also lead to deficiency. 

Young Girls, Women Are at High Risk of Iron Deficiency: Study – Medscape – Jun 29, 2023 — https://www.medscape.com/s/viewarticle/993864?src=rss

There are two forms of dietary iron: heme and nonheme. Heme iron is derived from hemoglobin. It is found in animal foods that originally contained hemoglobin, such as red meats, fish, and poultry (meat, poultry, and seafood contain both heme and non-heme iron). Your body absorbs the most iron from heme sources. Most nonheme iron is from plant sources.

Iron-Rich Foods – https://www.webmd.com/diet/iron-rich-foods

The Boss went for a walk while I stayed back with my caffeine. I let her walk by herself because I’m getting so darned slow. This way she gets her heart rate up a bit and I get my caffeine RDA. Win win.

We decided to invite the Old Guy across the street over for a burger tonight. This morning the grill got cleaned. Easily >90% of the cleaning was done by The Boss. I’ve been to three different grocery stores picking up stuff for what potentially could be a total of four eaters. I also get to do the cooking. Win win again.

Trouble in Paradise Update. I bought a six pack.

Burgers, baked beans (vegetarian), Rocky Top Coleslaw – 2020 Update, watermelon, and ice cream. Make sure you get some iron today.

But DO NOT EAT (crickets for iron).

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DO NOT EAT (crickets for iron)

Iron absorption from house crickets and fortified maize porridge with crickets is low, which may be explained by the presence of chitin and other inhibitors in the cricket biomass.

Absorption of iron from edible house crickets: a randomized crossover stable-isotope study in humans — The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Volume 116, Issue 4, October 2022, Pages 1146–1156, https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqac223

Always remember to eat a well balanced diet.

And find other dietary sources for iron besides crickets.

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More Sugar More Fat Please

Food Addiction?

The study, published online Wednesday in the journal Cell Metabolism, found eating a snack high in fat and sugar every day alters the reward circuits in human brains to create lasting preferences.

Fatty and sugary foods train your brain to hate healthier options: Yale study — New York Post, March 22, 2023

HT to Sally Feltner for the original post. Link to the original post is provided above. I’ve also credited the New York Post because I’m not sure who wrote the sentence I’ve quoted.

What I am sure about is my cerebral reward circuits still function very well if I have to choose between a piece of fruit or a cup of ice cream. Or a piece of pizza versus a salad. Or french fries rather than a plain baked potato.

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Cranberries

A global study looking at the benefits of cranberry products published in Cochrane Reviews has determined cranberry juice, and its supplements, reduce the risk of repeat symptomatic UTIs in women by more than a quarter, in children by more than half, and in people susceptible to UTI following medical interventions by about 53%.

Flinders University. “A myth no more: Cranberry products can prevent urinary tract infections for women: New medical evidence shows consuming cranberry products is an effective way to prevent a UTI.” ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/04/230420080722.htm (accessed April 23, 2023).

Journal Reference – Gabrielle Williams, Deirdre Hahn, Jacqueline H Stephens, Jonathan C Craig, Elisabeth M Hodson. Cranberries for preventing urinary tract infections. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2023; 2023 (4) DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD001321.pub

UTI is short for urinary tract infection but if you are prone to these infections you already knew that.

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Eat Broccoli, Protect Your Gut

Broccoli is known to be beneficial to our health. For example, research has shown that increased consumption of the cruciferous vegetable decreases incidence of cancer and type 2 diabetes. In a recent study, researchers found that broccoli contains certain molecules that bind to a receptor within mice and help to protect the lining of the small intestine, thereby inhibiting the development of disease. The findings lend support to the idea that broccoli truly is a ‘superfood.’

Penn State. “Broccoli consumption protects gut lining, reduces disease, in mice: Researchers discover that a certain molecule in broccoli interacts with a receptor in mice to promote gut health.” ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/04/230406152639.htm (accessed April 9, 2023).
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Chicken Thigh Week – Sunday, The End

Another short post today. There’s too much bracketball to watch today.

Breakfast – Roasted chickpeas and veggies

Lunch – Ampaipitakwong Fried Rice (aka Pete’s), egg roll (yes, it does resemble last night’s dinner)

Dinner – Chicken fajitas

I enjoyed tracking my meals this week and learned a lot.

I no longer need to track consumption like I have in the past. The habit and behavioral changes have stuck around.

My snack last night was grapes and crackers. They found my mouth after I posted.

The very ripe spotted bananas seemed to ripen faster when residing in the same bowl as the once rock hard green avocados that are now ripe enough to eat hence fajitas for dinner tonight.

I made Whole Wheat Banana Muffins (updated). See above.

Snack – muffin?

For the week 1/3 of my meals were meat based. Time to rename The 90% Solution The Nearly 70% Solution.

Still not a vegan.

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