Launched in Boulder, Colorado in January 2001, City Cliffs is the brainchild of Boulder resident Connie Hammis. Hammis recalls that she struggled through her own teen years, which included finding herself homeless in Denver at age 14 and briefly dropping out of high school before finding a job and re-enrolling. After a self-described “maze of self-destructive violent behavior and broken relationships” through high school and college, Hammis stumbled into the world of rock climbing, and therein found a supportive community of diverse individuals. She finished college, becoming an expert climber along the way, and then earned master’s degree in education from Harvard.

“(At Harvard,) I studied to understand and find a way to bring my expanded sense of family and community, which included the environment, to at-risk youths. Climbing is lauded for its empowering and team-building attributes, but there is much more to be gained by joining in the long-term relationships this sport can foster. This climbing program is the synthesis of that graduate work and my experience as a youth worker, an athlete and a friend,” explained Hammis.

As the executive director of City Cliffs, Hammis has created a program to help underprivileged and troubled youths have a better chance at excelling academically while also introducing them to the often prohibitively expensive sport of rock climbing.

“After-school activities reduce violence and provide healthy sources of connection. (And while) climbing challenges individuals both physically and mentally, and fosters healthy competition on all levels individually and in a team, our strongest goal (is) to improve academic performance,” said Hammis.

Accordingly, the program’s participants will spend half of their time after school rock climbing and half of their time in tutoring. In addition, they will participate in community service activities such as trail building. Through such projects, City Cliffs aims to cultivate participants’ appreciation of the desperate need to preserve Colorado’s natural environment. Participants are required to commit to the program for three years (through middle school). City Cliffs’ academic and program directors will meet with the participants’ parents and teachers in order to negotiate the commitment contract and to keep lines of communication open and clear.

“This program will be a model of educational, community, athletic and environmental collaborations,” Hammis noted. “Many programs have been designed to address grades, computer skills, gangs or athletics, but few combine these efforts to maximize resources and foster positive, peaceful relationships in ways that parallel the lives and needs of at-risk youths. City Cliffs balances the needs of participants by addressing all of these components in a challenging, fun, engaging way.”

Statistics show that programs such as City Cliffs are urgently needed in the Denver metro area and across the country. Twelve of Denver’s 21 public middle schools have standardized test score averages that fall below the 30th percentile nationally. In addition, many underserved populations struggle with providing adequate technical training for today’s business world, which requires computer literacy for success. Also lacking in such populations is contact with and meaningful relationships with adult role models who can help guide youths toward successful choices.

City Cliffs anticipates that it can help change these grim statistics. Goals for the program include a 95 percent participation rate, a one-quarter grade increase over the course of a year, improvement of reading and computer skills, and increased community awareness and concern. In its first year of operation, City Cliffs is already experiencing marked success, and financial backing is in place for dramatic program expansion in the near future.

Endurance athletes face an uphill battle in gaining weight. Performance requirements restrict them from doing so to any great degree. They may want to weigh more, but their coaches and teammates depend on them to win. There is generally perceived to be an inverse relationship between weight and proficiency in endurance activities.

Can an endurance athlete gain weight and still perform well? That depends on the athlete’s current physical condition, bone structure and what type of weight is gained. Gaining excess fat clearly has negative consequences for endurance.

Aerobic capacity is expressed as oxygen consumption per kilogram of bodyweight. Gaining fat will increase the requirement for oxygen without increasing the ability to utilize it. Excess fat produces no increase in the force that can be generated, but increases the workload.

Can an Endurance athlete be too thin? The answer is yes. The minimum healthy bodyfat for men is 3% and for women it is 12%. Below this level, negative health consequences may occur. Inadequate fat stores reduce the body’s ability to conserve heat and absorb shock. Sufficient fat is also important for hormone production, bone density and proper immune system function. Certain fats (omega 3’s), considered essential fatty acids (EFA’s), are required for proper brain and nervous system function and regulation of blood lipids, such as cholesterol and triglycerides. EFA’s may also help prevent breast cancer. In addition, vitamins A, D, E and K are fat-soluble, which means they are only able to be stored in the body fat. These vitamins essential to proper body functioning, Vitamins A and E are important anti-oxidants. These are especially important for endurance athletes who produce large amounts of free radicals during training. Vitamin D is important for strong bones and vitamin K is required for proper blood clotting.

Endurance athletes need to “strength endurance.” This is the ability to contract the muscles used in your sport repetitively for long periods of time with no diminution of force. That would result in a faster time even in marathon running or triathlons. A stronger athlete will do better on hills or against a headwind. They will also have an easier time if there is jostling in the pack during a race. If there is a close race at the end, the athlete who has a higher strength to weight ratio will be able to attain higher final speeds if all other factors are equal.

Making the choice about what weight to be at is not only dependent on what works best for performance, it also depends on the degree to which top performance is important to the individual athlete. Some people enjoy the competition, but are doing it for fun and for health.

Others may be using the competition as a way of conditioning as part of a larger plan for another sport or for his or her occupation. A police officer or professional boxer may run to develop endurance, but need more muscle to do his job. A weekend warrior type athlete may find his appearance and health more important than his competitive ranking. The build that does best for the sport may not be perceived as the most aesthetically pleasing by that person or by their significant other. A choice may need to be made about what is considered most important – aesthetics or performance.

TRAIN AND EAT TO GAIN MUSCLE, NOT FAT

Different types of activities make different demands on the body.
The body adapts by making changes to more easily accommodate that demand. The body uses different energy systems to fuel activities of different intensities. It is the intensity and duration of the activities that determines the type of training and caloric intake required for top performance.

High intensity exercise that lasts for 10 seconds or less, use Adenosine Tri Phosphate (ATP) as fuel. In that period of time, energy is produced when the bond between one phosphorus atom and the rest of the ATP is broken and energy is released. After 10 seconds, all the ATP has been used up and became ADP (Adenosine Di Phosphate). Taking Phosphorus from Creatine Phosphate regenerates the ATP. This is used up in about 30 seconds.

Events of sustained effort that last longer than 30 seconds require more energy than is available from the Creatine-ATP system. This type of activity generates more energy from a process known as anaerobic Glycolysis. Energy is produced from the breakdown of sugar molecules in a process that doesn’t use Oxygen. The sugar is found in the blood and a stored form of carbohydrate found in the muscles and liver called Glycogen. This type of metabolic process produces lactic acid, lowers the pH and produces large quantities of Carbon Dioxide. The result is breathlessness and a burning sensation in the muscles.

The longest burning energy source is the aerobic system, which breaks down fats and sugars in the presence of oxygen. That is a process that produces moderate amounts of energy for as long as the stores of fat and glycogen are available. The fat is burned systemically rather than locally, which is why spot-reduction of fat stores does not occur. In practice, the body usually uses more than one of these processes during exercise, the intensity of activity and the availability of the energy substrates being the trigger for the relative proportions of each energy source.

The more a particular energy system is used, the more the body creates adaptations to make those processes more efficient. Aerobic exercise stimulates and increases the body’s ability to deliver oxygen to the tissues. The more time an athlete spends exercising aerobically, the more the muscles become efficient at removing lactic acid. Athletes who train with short intense bursts of power develop a greater ability to store Creatine Phosphate in the muscles. That is why Creatine is a lot more effective in producing gains in strength and muscle size for people who do hard strength training and sprinting. The body will just excrete what it doesn’t need.

The muscles are made up of three types of fibers. Each fiber contracts either completely or not at all. The more fibers contract, more force is generated.

The first fibers to contract are known as slow-twitch or Type I fibers. These fibers do not contract very hard, but can continue contracting for long periods of time without fatigue. These muscles contain large quantities of Fat-burning enzymes and sub-cellular structures to use fat as fuel. They also don’t become much larger when trained.

Increases in cross-sectional area are the result of increased size and numbers of mitochondria, which are the powerhouses of the cell. Type IIb fibers are the last to contract when great amounts of force are required. The contract powerfully, but fatigue quickly and grow much thicker through increased contractile proteins when trained with very heavy weights. This type of fiber is lacking in fat-burning enzymes because they do not contract unless the intensity is very high. These types of fibers have a high concentration of glycolytic enzymes that produce energy from sugars.

Type IIa fibers are an intermediate type of fiber with qualities between the other two. They can actually convert to Type I fibers when subjected to extensive endurance training for long periods. Strength training for any athlete should include variability in the workloads used. Endurance athletes should primarily use lighter loads 50-70% of one rep maximum single, but should periodically work up to 80% or more for short periods. Endurance athletes will need to use higher intensities of weight training during the weight gain program and temporarily do less aerobic training.

Athletes in strength and power sports should primarily work at 70-90+% of one rep maximum single. However, they should also periodically use lighter loads for high reps to create variability so they can avoid stagnation. In addition, these athletes do need to include a moderate aerobic program to increase recovery ability and burn fat to prevent the wrong type of weight gain.

Athletes in sports requiring strength, speed, endurance and power such as Basketball players, martial artists, boxers, wrestlers and decathlon competitors need to develop all these aspects of athletic abilities and carve a nutritional path midway between the two extremes.

The type of program that would produce increases in the ability of the slow-twitch muscle fibers to contract repetitively for long period without reduction of force would use primarily high reps with lightweight. It is important to try to increase the weight while maintaining the number of repetitions. Some of the time each training year should be spent doing heavier weight and fewer repetitions, which increases overall strength. After that routine is finished and a higher repetition program is resumed, it will be with a higher weight than was used previously in those high rep sets. Varying the intensity in the program is important to avoid plateaus and over-training. In endurance training, only doing long slow distances will actually reduce your speed for races. High intensity techniques such as Interval training, Fartlek’s, sprints and Hill training should also be part of the program, to retain or increase speed in races. Comparisons of intensity in strength training are referred to by percentage of the weight the athlete can lift one time, which is known as the one repetition maximum. Intensity in running, swimming and cycling is measured by speed and percentage of maximum heart rate.

The differences in energy systems, used by the different sports have a profound influence on the percentage of fats, proteins and carbohydrates required. Athletes in endurance sports burn a higher number of calories in relation to body weight than strength and power athletes do and a higher percentage of these calories are fat calories. Strength training and training burns mostly carbohydrates. The overall calories may be higher for the strength and power athlete because they tend to be larger. Individualized eating programs are beyond the scope of this article. However, general guidelines can be presented. More specific information about calculating calorie expenditures can be found in Ultimate Sports Nutrition by Fred Hatfield Ph.D. Nutritional information about particular foods may be found in Dr. Art Ulene’s Nutrition Handbook. Dr. Ulene’s book also has nutritional software for sale to keep track of your eating program.

As indicated in the previous article, have bodyfat and girth measurements taken at the outset of any weight-gaining program. Try to do the program during the off-season of the sport, since it will be easier to do when fewer calories are burned. If there is no off-season, you may need to take a little time off to make the program work. Be sure to do strength training during the weight gain program and do no more aerobic exercise than is necessary for maintenance. The thinnest athletes may find this most critical. Always record all food and beverages you ingest each day. Recording this information will make it more likely to adhere to the program and let you know if you need to increase your food intake if weight is not being gained. Eat every 3-4 hours, but do not gorge yourself. Do not eat junk food to increase calories; it makes the system work harder. Eat a variety of nutritious, healthy food to assure enough fiber, vitamins and minerals are being eaten. Include low-fat high protein foods such as poultry, fish, and low-fat dairy products. Eggs are a good source of protein, but are high in cholesterol. You can eat one whole egg and the rest as egg whites. Eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables every day. Eat them either raw or cooked. Eat only whole grains, because refined flour and rice only provide starch, no fiber or little in the way of vitamins except those that they are “enriched” with. If you feel you need more fat in the diet, eat nuts. If you feel the need for “snack foods”, do it in moderation. You can also try dried fruits as a sweet snack. They have plenty of sugar and calories, but also have plenty of fiber and are actually more nutritious than fresh fruit. Weight gain drinks often have too much sugar or fat and may be too many calories to take in at once. Instead, you can make your own weight gain drinks using a low or non-fat protein powder, fresh fruit or fruit juice or milk or soy milk. If you have an especially high calorie requirement, add peanut butter or other nut butters, preferably non-sweetened. You can also add flax oil to your drinks.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is essential to understand your initial condition, what your goals are, and how to gain weight without sacrificing performance. Your nutritional program and exercise program must be designed to reach your goal without sacrificing your competitive edge or your health. Monitoring your progress and keeping track of your eating program will enable you to change the program if you find you are either a.) not gaining weight or b.) gaining too much fat.

# They feel they would look better and feel better weighing more. Also, in some sports, being large is considered an advantage. However, most people instinctively feel there is an inverse proportion between weight and speed. How the change in weight affects performance depends on many factors. Which sport does the athlete practice?

# What is the initial size and physical condition of the athlete?

# How much weight has been gained and how fast was it gained?

# How much of the increased weight is muscle and how much is fat?

# Did the athlete continue to practice his or her sport?

# Was strength training performed, if so was the program sport specific?

# Was endurance and flexibility training included in the program?

While all sports depend to some extent on delivery of force to an object, an opponent, the ground, or the weight of the athlete’s own body, some depend less on strength and power and more on speed, endurance or agility as determining factors of the winner. Sports such as the marathon, badminton, lawn bowling, Long distance swimming, tennis and archery are all considered events where size and strength are not a major factor. Indeed, many would argue that large size is a handicap in those sports rather than an asset.

Everyone has seen an athlete who had taken time off from training and ate or drank too much, gained weight and lost speed. People always attribute the decreased performance to the weight being gained. Actually the relationship between body weight (mass) and speed (velocity) is more complicated then that.
Decrements in performance can be related to decreased conditioning and strength, and inadequate practice of the skills of the sport. In this case, the weight gained was fat and the athlete had suspended the training program. Try to gain only muscle unless your bodyfat is very low.

The final speed attained by any object, expressed as vf, is dependent on its initial speed and direction (vi), acceleration, and how long the acceleration is applied (t = time), as expressed in the equation vf=vi + t(Dv/t) or as vf=vi + t(a). Acceleration (a), the increase in speed over time, is also expressed as Dv/t. Acceleration requires force to be applied to the object in the direction the object is desired to travel. F is the force applied to the object. The equation F = ma expresses the relationship between the force applied, the mass of the object and the acceleration. If one divides both sides of the equation by the mass, it is shown that, acceleration is equal to the force divided by the mass of the object (F/m = a). If the same amount of force is used on objects of unequal weight, the heavier object will have less acceleration. That is why an athlete who gains weight without gaining strength will experience less acceleration and have a slower final speed. It would seem obvious that more bodyweight results in less speed. However, if one could increase the force applied to a greater extent than the increase in weight, there would be an increase in speed.

In sports where collisions are part of the game, momentum will carry the day over pure speed. If M is momentum, m is mass and speed is v, than M = mv. As you can see, there are many variables in determining performance. Momentum also plays a part in the jostling that occurs under the net in basketball or in the pack during a marathon.

Finding Your Optimum Weight For Performance

The trick to finding the best weight for speed is strength to weight ratio. That is one reason many athletes endeavor to reduce their level of bodyfat. Fat is excess baggage that reduces speed and increases drag. However, losing too much weight, or losing it too fast results in loss of muscle mass, functional strength and speed.

However, if strength increased the same amount for every pound of muscle gained, and that strength increase could be converted directly to increased speed, the worlds’ best sprinters would all be very large and muscular. Anyone who has watched the Olympics can see that is not the case.

Is there a point of diminishing returns for strength gained versus the increase in muscle mass? Force needs to be applied where and when needed and in the amount required to optimally perform the function desired. Undirected force simply is wasted or even counterproductive. If the strength and flexibility of the muscles performing a function are out of balance with the muscles performing the opposite movements, injuries will occur. If the muscles that stabilize the body for a particular function can occur are weak, the strength is poorly translated into speed and is often misdirected. All strength training must take this into account. In addition, changes in body mechanics occur with increasing muscle size and at some point become less optimal. It is also important to continue practicing the skills of your sport when increasing strength and size so the neurological system can adapt to the changes.

What is the optimal amount of muscle mass for a given sport? That depends on the sport and on each individual athlete. Every sport has different requirements for strength, speed, endurance and coordination. In addition, each athlete has individual variations in the physical parameters that make up an athlete’s suitability for a particular athletic event. These include; height, body proportions, joint flexibility, joint stability, muscle fiber ratio’s, neuromuscular efficiency, insertion points for muscle attachment to the bones, lung capacity, body fat percentage just to name a few.

Weight Classes, Performance And Health

Some sports have weight classes or weight limits, such as boxing, wrestling, martial arts, and rowing (crew). For the most part, athletes strive to have a fairly low level of fat and high level of muscle, while making weight for these sports. Unfortunately, some athletes and coaches seem to believe that the lower the weight class, the greater will be the advantage for the athlete. Sometimes an athlete may be more effective in a higher weight class then they are currently competing in. At a certain point, too much muscle or water is lost and performance suffers. The proof of the suitability of a particular weight class for an individual is in comparing the performances and overall health between the different weight classes.

Even in Olympic Weightlifting and Powerlifting, there is a limit to the effectiveness of more muscle mass and more strength. At a certain point, going up another weight class will result in placing lower in competition, even though the athlete is lifting more weight.

Athletes will use extreme measures to gain weight or lose weight. Wrestling is notorious for fast weight loss using dietary and fluid restriction, diuretics, laxatives, saunas and “Sauna Suits”. On the other side, people trying to gain weight will overeat, restrict aerobic exercise and take Anabolic Steroids to gain weight. These practices can damage your health or even kill you. In the case of Steroid use, they are also illegal and will disqualify you from further competition.

In most non-weight class sports, the process is the same, although less formalized. These comparisons should also take into account any other variables such as differences in training, nutrition, stress and injuries.

A proper strength-training program is essential to most athletic pursuits and is especially important when gaining weight. Each sport places a different emphasis on strength, speed and endurance for particular areas of the body.

Excess muscle mass in areas not central to the functions of an athlete’s sport may reduce speed. The areas that require extra strength need to be trained harder than other areas, which should receive only enough work to enhance overall fitness improve balance.

Athletes in power and speed events need to produce more force per contraction and greater speed of contraction than endurance athletes do, but for shorter periods of time. The type of contractions and the period of time that must be performed in their event will determine what type of training should predominate.

Weightlifters, Track and Field Jumpers and throwers need to contract rapidly and powerfully, but only for a few seconds. However, the shot-putters and javelin throwers do not need to propel their own bodyweight, there is no weight limitation. The High Jumpers and long Jumpers need to find an optimum strength to weight ratio to achieve the best possible height or distance.

Short distance runners, swimmers and football players need to contract rapidly and powerfully repeatedly for less than one minute. Middle distance runners 400 to 1500 meters need to contract less rapidly, but for several minutes. Football lineman, Wrestlers and practitioners of Judo and Jiu-Jitsu need to contract both rapidly and maintain near static contractions for multiple bouts of time ranging from 10 seconds to 2 minutes.

to be continued…

First of all, obesity is not created equal. From the Leptin view point, there is obesity with increased and with decreased Leptin levels. The ones with increased Leptin level are associated with very low sensitivity to Leptin and they represent the majority of all cases. However, in 10 to 15% of all obesity, Leptin levels are below normal, for example, it is true for Pima Indians. So, no matter what the reason — low level or low sensitivity — when Leptin does not work properly, obesity occurs.

Weight loss, no matter what the reason, results in decrease of Leptin level : when obese individuals were reduced by 15% of their initial body weight, the serum Leptin level decreased by 50%.

This can be the reason why dramatic weight gain is inevitable after food restriction is over. That’s why many diets fail. It is interesting, by the way, that in anorectics Leptin level quickly increases during re-feeding, much faster than body weight recovery. Some think this might be the reason why successful rehabilitation is so difficult in anorectics: their bodies perceive higher Leptin levels as higher fat content and resist furtherfeeding.

Genetically caused Leptin insufficiency in humans is rare and leads to severe obesity. In the human gnome, the locus for Leptin is situated close to locus for red hairiness, and indeed, two obese red-haired subjects with mutation around the Leptin locus in the gene, have been described. Only this and a very few other cases of the identification of Leptin gene mutation in humans have been described so far.

Does this mean that Leptin therapy is only for those few or can it include the 5-10% of obesity with low circulating Leptin levels? It is not clear. There is hope that for those with a high level but low sensitivity to Leptin (this represents the majority), higher doses of exogenous — injected or infused — Leptin should do.

In 2008, the Nature journal reported about unpublished results of ongoing clinical trials. Under-skin injections of 0.3 mg of Leptin for every kg of body weight for 6 months resulted in 8 subjects’ weight loss that totaled an average of 7.1 kg (1.7 kg in placebo group). Sounds promising?

Not so fast. “Leptin may not be a miracle pill,” says Dr. JoAnn Manson, Harvard Medical School. Actually it is no pill at all (maybe not yet). One of the problems with Leptin is in the delivery method. Given once a day as an injection into the abdomen (intraperitoneal) it is generally ineffective. Subcutaneous permanent infusion as we had the chance to see, is more effective but much less feasible as you can imagine.

The most effective way is injecting Leptin directly into the fluid that circulates inside the brain and spinal cord (intracerebroventricular injection) though one will probably have to have a really good reason to commit to this kind of therapy since it means permanently having a tube injected between the vertebrae and penetrating nervous tissue to reach the internal duct.

Another problem is that over time, adults seem to lose their responsiveness to Leptin.

On the other hand, researchers are in the process of filing for a patent on the new, long-lived form of Leptin.

There is hope in the prospect of gene therapy that is just starting to be investigated in animals. This hopefully will repair mistakes in Leptin production. As to the reduced sensitivity, it is not completely clear yet how this problem can be approached, but Stanford medical school has recently reported that the newly identified protein may overcome Leptin resistance

However, all these theories are in the beginning stages. Who will be eligible? Is weight loss the goal or just the corresponding diseases (co-morbidities) are? One thing is clear. Do not expect your doctor to prescribe you a course of injections soon. Leave the bottle of supplemens called Leptin on the shelves. On the other hand, Leptin is so fashionable that I would not be surprised if supplement manufacturers fail to grasp the opportunity to exploit these circumstances. When you see anything claiming Leptin-like effects — do not believe your eyes! Not quite yet!

What’s so bad about stress? Stress makes us more alert, true. But it also means poor sleep, memory and concentration. It also results in the ’short fuse’ when dealing with friends and family. To help bring the equilibrium of stress and relaxation back to normal, try these tips:

Vitamin C helps support the adrenal glands and reduces the effects of chronic stress. Eat lots of uncooked fruits and vegetables such as kiwis, grapefruit, mangoes, broccoli, cabbage, beans and dark green leafy veggies.

The B vitamins are needed for calm nerves and mental stability. Avoid the insanity of an overwhelming schedule with whole grains like oatmeal and couscous, green vegetables, beans and seeds, fish, eggs, nuts and nutritional yeast. The good news is that these foods also make you feel full for a longer time, which means you’ll be less tempted to waste your bucks on junk.

Magnesium is the most critical mineral for coping with stresss. It’s important in a wide array of chemical reactions in the brain and for the immune system. The last thing you need in your studious life is to get sick, so fill up on watermelon, seafood, dark leafy green veggies, bananas, dates, figs, beans, buckwheat, oats, millet and organ meats. Constant stress depletes this mineral from your body and it’s easy to become deficient on a dorm food diet.

Calcium is a mild tranquilizer for the nervous system. Use stress to your advantage and build your bones and hair at the same time with milk, yogurt, lean meats, eggs, nuts, beans and seeds, seafood and dark leafy greens!

The things which help to set your body off balance include caffeine and alcohol. These also take the glow away from your skin, and drain away your B vitamins and calcium. If you need to stay awake to cram, how about a cold splash of water on the face or a bit of stretching to get the blood circulating instead?

Excess sugar gives you momentary energy, but it robs your body of B vitamins. It also brings mood swings, low blood sugar, and can make you feel restless, tired and depressed.

Too much salt in your Ramen noodles (more than 5 grams a day or 1 teaspon) can cause a sodium/potassium imbalance and stress your kidneys. Potassium is another mineral important to proper brain and nervous system function.

Stress doesn’t have to be a bad thing. A healthy attitude towards problems and avoiding last minute dashes for the assignment deadline will help decrease pimples and increase your academic grade anyhow, so eat up our tips for anti-anxiety!

The Reuters news service reported last week that “nutritional risk…increased when the number of regular medications was at least three,” according to Dr. K. Lancaster who helped conduct the investigation. Medications such as anti-depressants can cause dry mouth or slow gastric motility, an effect that may be more pronounced in the elderly compared to younger patients.

Many medications activate liver enzymes which may have additional effects on appetite. Patients who take 5 or more medications are at greatest risk for weight loss, Dr. Lancaster told Reuters.

There may not be a causal association between lack of appetite and prescription drugs side effects, Dr. Lancaster stressed. Other factors such as reduced fluid intake and decreased nutrients due to poor eating habits could also explain the oral and gastro-intestinal complaints that were recorded by the researchers, according to the Reuters report. Appetite drive is usually diminished after a few days of fasting in most people.

Sudden, dramatic loss in weight that is not regained is unhealthy because it usually means that body proteins are being broken down, resulting in reduced organ masses and possibly severe heart disease.

This category of patient includes infants less than 6 months old, the elderly, those undergoing cancer treatments and persons with HIV infections. Healthy persons are not at risk for serious illness, but other segments of the population risk hospitalization if infected by contaminated food.

Food recalls by the Food and Drug Administration are at their highest levels since 1986, the Times reports. One of the problems with the recall system, according to the Times is that there are too few inspectors so that foods can only be recalled after illnesses are reported by consumers.

Last year 315 food products were recalled by the FDA. The CDC reports that 5,000 deaths, 325,000 hospitalizations and 76 million illnesses are caused by food poisoning every year, according to The New York Times.

Although the article by Greg Winter acknowledges that “Not all scientists agree with” the conclusions of the CDC, no specific sources or reasons for disagreement are cited.

One factor not discussed in the Times article that may argue against its focus includes increases in the number of immunocompromised persons in the United States population, such as the growing number of senior citizens. Modern access to cancer therapies which suppress functioning of the immune system was not available in 1968, nor were there any reported cases of HIV at that time.

A plausible alternative hypothesis might be that the incidence of food contamination has not risen. Rather, an increased susceptibility to serious illness in the population may be the significant variable worth addressing. The Times article does state that food industry representatives assert “the nation’s food supply…(is)…already the safest in the world…”

New safeguards, whether personal, medical, pharmaceutical or societal may reduce the incidence of disease for the expected increase in people whose immune systems are not functioning well.

Certainly that does not mean that all supplements have no effect. The reason the supplements industry exists is that they work. But, without studying what you are purchasing, it’s simple to wind up with supplements that just don’t bring the results you desire. The following simple pointers will help you select the proper supplements that will work for you and help you reach your weight loss goals.

– Make sure to double check the active ingredients.

Many popular supplements are flavored with artificial sweeteners as well as other potentially harmful chemicals. Of course they will help you lose weight, but you do not want to jeopardize your health and fitness in your quest to lose weight. If you have allergies to anything, you must check the label to see if they are included as ingredients in any supplement or weight loss product that you are considering.

– Supplements work better when combined with a proper diet.

You cannot consume 10 McDonalds every day and use pills for weight loss. Eating extreme amounts of bad calories while taking a weight loss supplement will get you nowhere. If you are using weight loss supplements as part of your weight loss regimen, be sure to eat a balanced diet.

– When strategically timed, supplements have the most effect.

The rigorous schedules used by bodybuilders allows them to get the most out of their supplements. It’s not necessary for the average person to be so strict but some research and planning is needed when figuring out a supplement schedule. If protein supplements are part of your weight maintenance regimen, they should be taken after you exercise. If you take weight loss supplements that require you not to eat for a lengthy time period, it is wise to take them before going to bed.

– When combined with other supplements, some supplements are not as effective.

Using a weight loss supplement with bulking shakes or protein powder will lead to a cancellation of its effects. For a weight loss supplement to work to its maximum effect, it must be carefully fixed into your supplement routine. Don’t just start purchasing things haphazardly; devise a plan so that each supplement you take works on its own to provide the desired results and does not interfere with the effects of another supplement that you are taking.

These pointers will assist you in locating weight loss supplements that will actually be effective in your quest to lose weight. Keep in mind that weight loss drugs will not be effective unless you maintain a somewhat healthy lifestyle, and there is no point in spending money on supplements unless you plan to adopt a realistic weight loss regimen. Best wishes, enjoy your lost weight, and be healthy!

Do antidepressants work for people who have been identified as having fibromyalgia? Even for individuals who have no symptoms of depression, studies show that anti-depressants can lower the fatigue and generalized aches that accompany fibromyalgia. In one study, fibromyalgia patients who received antidepressants were four times more likely to show an improvement in their symptoms.

A recent research paper published in the Journal of the American Medical Association confirms the benefits of using antidepressants for treating individuals diagnosed with fibromyalgia. Eighteen, credible, high quality clinical trials were analyzed by a group of German researchers, and they concluded that people with fibromyalgia can benefit from treatment with an antidepressant. Tricyclic antidepressants have been on the market since the 1960’s, and it is this category of antidepressants that seems to be the most effective in treating fibromyalgia. Less effective in fibromyalgia treatment are the newer and more commonly used SSRI antidepressants as well as other groups of antidepressants.

From this study it has been concluded that tricyclics are the very best type of prescription medication in treating fibromyalgia; they may be especially effective for improving the moodiness as well as sleep problems that often afflict individuals diagnosed with fibromyalgia. Although there are benefits to using tricyclic medications, the numerous side effects involved from the medication usage indicates that such usage should be implemented only after a series of lifestyle changes have occurred.

Many patients with fibromyalgia report that exercise, which includes 30 minutes of regular aerobic exercise done each day, helps alleviate symptoms and improves sleep. Eating less sugar and processed food might help. Caffeine should not be consumed, particularly if there are issues with insomnia. People have reported a decrease in pain and fatigue and a better mood, after using meditation and massage therapy. In some cases, these non-invasive treatments can reduce or eliminate the need for the drug therapy that can cause unwanted side effects.

People who are identified as having fibromyalgia might be helped with a tricyclic antidepressant if their lifestyle alterations don’t help with the symptoms, however a natural method is still better.

Let’s examine the reasons that sensible and conscientious BV treatment is critical, and even more so with our current recession.

It is critical to treat cases of BV because not doing so may result in complications, like developing susceptibility to HIV infection or other STDs. Even though BV signs occasionally clear themselves up, anyone with persisting symptoms should pursue medical attention.

The advised course of treatment for the condition of BV includes:

Metronidazole or Flagyl Medications

Metronidazole is administered by mouth or via the vagina for a period of a week. A pill of 500 mg is consumed twice a day with oral usage. Intravaginal dosing does not have as many side effects as using it orally. The application of it to the vagina once each day is another method of administration. To decrease the effects on the fetus, pregnant women are given a smaller dose of metronidazole. Among the typical negative side effects linked with treatment with metronidazole are diarrhea, feelings of nausea, and a metal-taste in the mouth. During treatment and for 24 thereafter, patients should not drink alcohol.

Cleocin or Clindamycin

Clindamycin lotion is administered vaginally at night for a period of a week. Alternative regimens include oral consumption for one week, or the use of vaginal ovules for 3 days. During the second half of pregnancy, clindamycin preparations that are topical should not be applied. The oil base in clindamycin lotion could cause deterioration of latex condoms or diaphragms for up to 5 days from use.

If the symptoms go away, then a follow up visit is not needed. If infection recurs, the next treatment will be different from the one that was tried previously.

Sexual transmission is not the only avenue of infection with BV, but it is associated with sexual interactions. Only in cases of recurring or resistant BV, is treating the male sexual partner advised, which is a common occurrence.

Armed with this information, you can make informed judgments about your course of treatment for vaginosis.