Happy 4th (paint the donkey)
Memo to My Younger Self
Tommy Lundberg, an exercise researcher at the Karolinska Institute in Solna, Sweden, and the author of The Physiology of Resistance Training, says that strength training is far more important than most people realize.
“You get improved glucose control, especially if you have Type 2 diabetes,” he says. “You feel better —which is a very important effect, as it can reduce stress levels — and you typically get better sleep. As you age, it helps you function better so you can carry out your daily activities for a longer period of time. It also helps reduce your risk of falls.” https://www.newsmax.com/health/health-news/strength-training-resistance-longevity/2024/01/24/id/1150856/
More on Blue Zones and a Diet You Probably Never Heard Of
Food is another key component of healthy living in blue zones, says Buettner. People there tend to consume unprocessed foods, beans, legumes, fruits, and vegetables—often following traditional recipes that have been passed down through generations. That style of eating is good for heart and cognitive health, says Linda Hershey, MD, PhD, FAAN, professor of neurology at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in Oklahoma City. “Numerous high-quality studies support the benefits of the MIND, DASH, and Mediterranean diets, which emphasize green leafy vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts, fish, poultry, oil, and whole grains, and discourage fried food, processed meat, snack foods, and sweets,” Dr. Hershey says.
“Blue Zones” Author Dan Buettner Shares the Secrets to a Long and Healthy Life — https://www.brainandlife.org/articles/author-dan-buettner-shares-secrets-to-long-healthy-life
Just Another Diet You Probably Never Heard Of
Researchers used the portfolio diet score to rank the participants’ consumption of plant proteins, nuts and seeds, viscous fiber, phytosterols and plant sources of monounsaturated fatty acids. After up to 30 years of follow-up, those with the highest portfolio diet score had a 14% lower risk of coronary heart disease and stroke compared to those with the lowest score. The findings were published Wednesday in the American Heart Association journal Circulation.
“We’re always looking at ways to reduce the risk of heart disease, and one effective way to do that is to lower blood cholesterol levels, particularly LDL cholesterol,” said Dr. Kristina Petersen, an associate professor of nutritional sciences at Penn State in University Park, Pennsylvania.
Petersen, who was not involved in the research, is well-versed in how diets can affect heart health. She co-authored an AHA scientific statement published in April that scored 10 popular diets for their heart-health benefits. The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension – or DASH – diet was the only eating pattern to get a perfect score, with the Mediterranean and pescetarian diets rounding out the top three. The portfolio diet was excluded from the assessment “because it’s not particularly common,” she said.
Ever heard of the portfolio diet? — https://www.heart.org/en/news/2023/10/25/ever-heard-of-the-portfolio-diet-it-may-lower-risk-for-heart-disease-and-stroke
There’s Another Blue Zone in the US
“It’s really what they’re not doing. They’re not doing anything consciously, and there’s where we get it wrong,” Buettner said. “We think we can resolve to get on the right diet, the right exercise program, supplement plan, superfoods, and get healthier. But it never works.”
Buettner said that the “superagers” are often walking outside, having spontaneous conversations with the people they bump into, having a smaller dinner, and eating mostly a whole food, plant-centric diet.
A look inside the United States’ first-ever certified “Blue Zone” located in Minnesota — https://foodfactsandfads.com/2024/02/04/6306/
Remember, Eat More Plants.
Also Research Reveals One Simple Habit That Promotes Longevity AND Provides Extra Income in Retirement
The Role of Diet and Dietary Patterns in Parkinson’s Disease
The Role of Diet and Dietary Patterns in Parkinson’s Disease — Nutrients 2022, 14(21), 4472; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14214472
A few changes in food choices here and there can’t hurt and may just help.
How Butter Beans Went From Gross to Glamorous
I was mystified. Butter beans — or lima beans, as I grew up calling them in the Midwest — are the most banal of ingredients, a boring bean relegated to the darkest corner of every home cook’s pantry. Why, then, were food influencers drowning them in luxurious sauces, crisping them up as a crouton substitute, and braising them as if they were a fine cut of meat? What the heck was going on?
Beans, broadly speaking, are having a moment. The dry bean market is expected to grow to $8.7 billion by 2028, while the canned bean industry raked in $5.65 billion in 2023 and is projected to be worth a whopping $15.5 billion by 2033, according to the market research firm Fact.MR.
How Butter Beans Went From Gross to Glamorous — https://www.eater.com/24008145/why-are-butter-beans-so-popular
Beans are cheap and nutritious. More people will be incorporating this staple into their diets because they are unable to afford the more expensive foods.
It’s not the vegan/vegetarian/let’s save the world movement. It’s basic economics.
Trouble in Paradise,,,Confirmed
Two-thirds of those surveyed said they overindulge in food, nearly 45% said they take a break from exercise and more than half report feeling tired and have less time for themselves. Plus, a third admit they drink more alcohol during the holidays.
Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. “Survey finds Americans struggle to maintain healthy habits during the holiday season.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 4 December 2023 —https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/12/231204135305.htm
Trouble in Paradise (it’s Weight Gain Season again) confirmed.
BTW I’m hanging around 175 and SO FAR still hanging around 175.
Yeah!
How To Reduce Your Risk of Developing DM2 (type 2 diabetes)
Replacing one serving of red meat a day with a serving of plant-based protein sources like nuts or legumes decreased the risk of type 2 diabetes by 30%, and substituting a serving of red meat for dairy decreased the risk by 22%.
More Than One Red Meat Serving A Week Can Increase Diabetes Risk — https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2023/10/19/more-than-one-red-meat-serving-a-week-can-increase-diabetes-risk-study-finds/
The Forbes article has links to other research studies on meat consumption and health.
Link to the Harvard press release — Red meat consumption associated with increased type 2 diabetes risk — https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/press-releases/red-meat-consumption-associated-with-increased-type-2-diabetes-risk/
The study featured in the articles above was published on Thursday, October 19, in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
My Personal Opinion
If you eat meat, eat less. If you don’t eat meat, consider the occasional meal with meat for its nutritional benefits. My diet is approximately 75% meat-free, I do not have diabetes.
Snake Bite Nachos!
Snake Bite Nachos, Pioneer Wagon: Crispy nacho chips smothered in cheese, topped with real rattlesnake sausage and famous Venom Sauce.
From pickle pies to meat candy, this is all the new food you can try at the Oklahoma State Fair — https://www.oklahoman.com/story/lifestyle/food/2023/08/17/oklahoma-state-fair-2023-menu-new-food-items-to-try/70612194007/
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.
garyskitchen.net 