‘Interval walking’ a more efficient way to lose weight

Tired of the same old exercise routine? Changing it up could do more than just beat boredom. Interval walking may help jump-start your metabolism.

It's one thing to get your exercise through walking. But in his book "The South Beach Diet Super Charged," Dr. Arthur Agatston advocates something called “interval walking.”

“Instead of going at a steady state, warm up for three, four or five minutes,” Agatston explains. “Then, walk almost as fast as you can for 30 seconds. Then, recover for 30 seconds, a minute.”

Agatston suggests repeating the cycle throughout the workout. He says it's a more efficient way to lose weight.

“You will burn more calories, more fat, in less time,” he said. “The time will go much faster and you'll improve your fitness levels.”

More from wbst.com

South Dakota Remains First Abortion-Free State after Planned Parenthood Abortionists Refuse to Work

On Monday, July 21, eight women arrived at the Planned Parenthood office in Sioux Falls abortions but were instead met with locked doors and a hand-written not indicating the only abortion clinic in South Dakota was closed.

Planned Parenthood remains closed for abortions after their abortionists, who are flown in from other states, refused of work under the new law that went into effect last Friday. The law orders abortionists to inform patients of the humanity of their babies and that the procedure could affect their mental health two hours before the abortion can be done. The law also provides that abortionists can be sued if they do not comply.

This law was the brain-child of attorney Harold Cassidy and passed with the help of determined pro-life leaders Dr. Alan and Leslee Unruh, who pushed for the regulation in the face of opposition even from those in the pro-life movement. The Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals cleared the way for the law's enactment last week.

In remains unclear if the Planned Parenthood office has permanently ceased the practice of abortion. However, several women who were scheduled for abortions this week went to a pro-life center instead where some have reportedly changed their minds about having abortions.

More at Christian News Wire

The 20 Best Curing Herbs

Today, many people looking for alternatives to prescription and over-the-counter drugs are turning to herbs for relief from everyday ailments and chronic diseases. But, with so many herbs to choose from, how can one be sure which are the most useful and effective? For our Fifth Anniversary issue, Veggie Life clears up some of the confusion by gathering the most effective, well-researched herbs we've covered since our debut. There's a brief synopsis of each herb, including when and how to use them and recommended dosage for optimal healing power.

More from The Wellness Blog

Accidental fungus leads to promising cancer drug

A drug developed using nanotechnology and a fungus that contaminated a lab experiment may be broadly effective against a range of cancers, U.S. researchers reported on Sunday.

The drug, called lodamin, was improved in one of the last experiments overseen by Dr. Judah Folkman, a cancer researcher who died in January. Folkman pioneered the idea of angiogenesis therapy -- starving tumors by preventing them from growing blood supplies.

Lodamin is an angiogenesis inhibitor that Folkman's team has been working to perfect for 20 years. Writing in the journal Nature Biotechnology, his colleagues say they developed a formulation that works as a pill, without side-effects.

More at Yahoo News

14 Simple Ways to Super Charge Your Brain

Have you ever felt exasperated when you bumped into someone at the store but absolutely couldn't remember their name? Sure, it happens to all of us.

Despite being the strongest computer on the planet, our brains do lapse. It's hard to blame them really. As humans, we spend much of or existence stuffing our brains with stuff. Some stuff is worthless, some of it's meaningful, some of it, well, it's just stuff and there is an endless amount of it.

No matter how powerful our brains are, they need recuperation time, to be kept in shape, and even an occasional charge. Think of it as a tune up for your brain. Skipping brain maintenance is as silly as the person wandering the parking garage because they forgot where they parked. Is that you? Are you that person? Sure. We all are at some point. No worries, there is hope.

Now I am not a brain surgeon and I am not going to suggest you do anything surgical or dangerous. I am however an astute student of human behavior, so I always look for simple ways to super charge my brain.

Here are some things you can begin doing as soon as today to begin the great brain tune up.

From Dumb Little Man

Scientists find childbirth wonder drug that can 'cure' shyness

It can turn anything from job interviews to the most routine of family gatherings into a sweat-inducing ordeal.

But a 'love drug' produced naturally by the body during sex and childbirth could offer hope to the millions of people blighted by shyness, scientists have said.

Investigators believe oxytocin - a natural hormone that assists childbirth and helps mothers bond with newborn babies - could become a wonder drug for overcoming shyness.

More from This Is London

Vitamin D May Help Patients Survive Cancer - New Report Suggests Sunshine Vitamin May Have Significant Cancer Benefits

When Joanna Fuchs was diagnosed with colon cancer last year, a blood test revealed she was severely deficient in vitamin D.

"I was obviously very concerned and very worried," Fuchs said.

So, too, was her husband, Dr. Charles Fuchs of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, who is the senior author of a study published today that found colon cancer patients deficient in vitamin D were almost twice as likely to die over a 10-year period than patients with healthy levels of the nutrient.

"These findings make considerable sense," Dr. Fuchs said, "because in the laboratory we find that vitamin D reduces the growth of colon cancer cells, prevents its spread to other organs, and actually reduces the growth of blood vessels to these tumors."

More from ABC News

People with type 2 diabetes can help control the disease by taking better care of their teeth and gums

That's the case dentists were expected to make at the American Diabetes Association's annual meeting in San Francisco this weekend.

"Several recent studies have shown that having periodontal disease makes those with type 2 diabetes more likely to develop worsened glycemic control, and puts them at much greater risk of end-stage kidney disease and death," George W. Taylor, an associate professor of dentistry at the University of Michigan schools of Dentistry and Public Health, said in a prepared statement. "Given the numerous medical studies showing that good glycemic control results in reduced development and progression of diabetes complications, we believe there is the potential that periodontal treatment can provide an increment in diabetes control and subsequently a reduction in the risk for diabetes complications," he said.

Intensive periodontitis intervention, for example, can significantly lower one's levels of A1C, a measure of long-term glucose control.

More from US News

Golfers Live Longer Than Other People

People, who play golf, can expect to increase their life expectancy up to five years, scientists suggest.

The study conducted at Karolinska Institutet, Sweden found that irrespective of the sex, socioeconomic status and age, golfers show 40 percent lower death rate in comparison to other people.

It is widely known that exercises improve health, still the health effect of different physical activities was not clear. The study included the data from 300,000 golfers to find the potential health effects. The team of scientists revealed that death rate among golfers was 40 percent lower in comparison with other population. This means that golfers have a five years increase of life expectancy.

Professor Anders Ahlbom, the leading author of the study together with his colleague Bahman Farahmand said that the results of the study show that golf has a number of aspects that contribute to better health. First of all, the golfer spends at least four or five hours outside during a round of a game, walking fast pace for up to seven kilometers. Also people can play golf till their old age and benefit from other social and psychological effects.

The findings showed that other factors such as sex, age and socioeconomic status do not influence the death rate of golfers. It was also suggested that golfers having blue-collar jobs had more benefits than those who have white-collar job. And the greatest health benefits were seen among golf players with the lowest handicap.

From Infoniac.com

Celebrex shows promise in lung cancer prevention

The Pfizer Inc drug, also known as celecoxib, works by blocking the COX-2 enzyme that causes inflammation, which has been linked with cancer.

A six-month study of 212 current or heavy smokers found a reduction in a specific type of precancerous change in lung cells in people who took a high dose of Celebrex compared with those who took a placebo.

None of the study participants had any heart-related problems such as those with Merck & Co Inc's now withdrawn arthritis drug Vioxx, another COX-2 inhibitor.

"Celebrex was safe and we did not see any cardiovascular events," said Dr. Edward Kim of M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, who presented his findings at a meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in Chicago.

He said the study suggests that a high dose of Celebrex might alter some of the cellular changes that lead up to lung cancer. But the finding is very early and would need to be confirmed in longer, larger studies.

More from Reuters

Mediterranean diet may also help stop diabetes

A Mediterranean diet rich in fruits and vegetables -- already known to protect against heart disease -- also appears to help ward off diabetes, Spanish researchers said on Friday.

The study published in the British Medical Journal showed that people who stuck closely to the diet were 83 percent less likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those who did not.

Type 2 diabetes accounts for 90 percent of all cases and is closely linked to obesity and heart disease. The condition accounts for an estimated 6 percent of all global deaths.

More good health news at Reuters

The Magnifying Glass Gets an Electronic Twist

PEOPLE who lose part of their sight to macular degeneration, diabetes or other diseases may now benefit from some new technology. Several portable video devices that enlarge print may help them make the most of their remaining vision. Swipe one of the devices over an airline ticket, or point it at a medicine bottle on a shelf, and all of the fine print is blown up and displayed in crisp letters on a screen.

The tiny, high-resolution video camera within the device captures the image, and the electronics bolster the contrast in the display, making it easier to read words on the monitor.

From the New York Times

'Good' Bacteria Aid Weight Loss Surgery

A bacteria pill a day may enhance weight loss among obese people undergoing gastric bypass surgery.

Researchers studied 42 morbidly obese people who had weight loss surgery. Six months after surgery, those who took a daily probiotic supplement had shed 70% of their excess pounds vs. 66% for those who did not.

Study participants who took probiotics after surgery also had less nausea and bloating and generally felt better than those who did not, says researcher John M. Morton, MD, of the Stanford School of Medicine.

"It's a very safe, cheap, and easy-to-administer adjunct to weight loss surgery," he tells WebMD.

More from WebMD

How Your Dentist Can Save Your Life

Runaway dental infections can be treacherous. They have eaten through the skin in people's necks, choked off airways, migrated to the heart, burrowed into brains and, yes, even killed people. Have we scared you enough yet? Here's the point: Everyone is vulnerable, because bacteria that routinely lurk in the mouth cause tooth decay and gum disease. The problem: Most people don't know they have these infections. They often cause no pain and few symptoms, but can lead to far worse. Gum disease may also heighten the risk for heart disease, diabetes, pneumonia and premature birth, according to recent clinical trials.

But the good news is that with good old regular brushing and flossing, you may prevent all that. And by seeing your dentist often, you can nip most problems in the bud.

I really hate going to the dentist, but this may be some wise advice. I had a sinus infection lead to the loss of two molars once.
More at Readers Digest

Deep Brain Stimulation Helps Depression

Researchers are becoming increasingly convinced that tiny electric shocks delivered deep into the brain could mean new hope for patients with severe depression and other mental illnesses.

Several small trials are suggesting direct electrical brain stimulation has the ability to relieve deep depression and obsessive compulsive disorder in some patients who get no help from drugs or talk therapy.

While the results are far from perfect, researchers believe that the treatment, known as deep brain stimulation (DBS), could be a help to some patients who otherwise might be at a dead end in their treatment.

"If we can get people out of the pit, we can get them on the road to recovery," says Helen Mayberg, MD, an Emory University neurologist who studies DBS in severely ill patients.

Deep brain stimulation involves the placement of electrodes into the brain that deliver electrical stimulation to specific brain areas. It is a treatment option for severe symptoms of Parkinson's disease and other neurological conditions.

More from WebMD

Happy Mother's Day: Woman pregnant with 18th child

It's a happy Mother's Day for an Arkansas woman - she's pregnant with her 18th child. Michelle Duggar, 41, is due on New Year's Day, and the latest addition will join seven sisters and 10 brothers. There are two sets of twins.

"We've had three in January, three in December. Those two months are a busy time for us," she said, laughing.

The Duggars' oldest child, Josh, is 20, and the youngest, Jennifer, is nine months old.

The fast-growing family lives in Tontitown in northwest Arkansas in a 7,000-square-foot home. All the children - whose names start with the letter J - are home-schooled.

Duggar has been been pregnant for more than 11 years of her life, and the family is in the process of filming another series for Discovery Health.

More from AP

Bone marrow treatments 'repair' MS patients

An experiment that went wrong may provide a new way to treat multiple sclerosis, a Canadian researcher said on Tuesday.

Patients who got bone marrow stem-cell transplants — similar to those given to leukemia patients — have enjoyed a mysterious remission of their disease.

And Dr. Mark Freedman of the University of Ottawa is not sure why.

More from MSNBC

Ibuprofen May Cut Alzheimer's Risk

The long-term use of ibuprofen and possibly other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory pain relievers may help protect against Alzheimer's disease, but it is still not clear if the risks outweigh the potential benefits.

Use of ibuprofen pain relievers like Advil and Motrin for more than five years reduced Alzheimer's risk by 44% in a study reported in the May issue of Neurology.

Long-term users of several other types of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) also had a lower than expected risk of Alzheimer's.
More from WebMD

Wal-Mart cuts prices on more drugs

In another expansion of its prescription drug program that has helped to increase its pharmacy sales, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said it's adding 90-day prescription drugs for $10, increasing additional medications for women, and unveiling $4 over-the-counter medicines.

Wal-Mart and its Sam's Club pharmacies will fill prescriptions for as many as 350 generic drugs costing $10 for a 90-day supply. Wal-Mart also is adding $9 women's generic prescription drugs for up to a 30-day supply that are used to treat osteoporosis, breast cancer, menopause and hormone deficiency.

More than 1,000 over-the-counter medications, including its private label Equate brand versions of drugs such as Zantac, Pepcid and Claritin as well as its Spring Valley private label prenatal vitamins, also will be priced at $4 or less, a price rollback of up to $7, Wal-Mart said.
More from Marketwatch

The amazing 'pixie dust' made from pigs bladder that regrew a severed finger in FOUR weeks

Scientists are claiming an amazing breakthrough - regrowing a man's severed finger with the aid of an experimental powder.

Four weeks after Lee Spievack sliced almost half an inch off the top of one of his fingers, he said it had grown back to its original length.

Four months later it looked like any other finger, complete with "great feeling", a fingernail and fingerprint.

Note: The pictures are a little gross.

More at the Daily Mail