According to Jarett Berry, a cardiologist at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, one must be vigilant about keeping physically active. Yes, in what they used to call “Middle Age.”  Wasn’t that the time we thought would be a little slower, a tad less “vigorous,” an entitlement to ease up a bit? Not if you want to hit 85 says the good Dr. “If you are fit in mid-life, you double your chance of surviving to 85.”

Dr. Berry’s findings, presented last week in San Francisco at the American Heart Association’s Annual Epidemiology and Prevention Conference, are based on an analysis of 1,765 men and women who had physical examinations performed during the 1970’s and 1980’s at the Cooper Institute, the Dallas-based birthplace of the aerobics movement. Put another way: If you’re not fit in your 50’s, your projected life span “is eight years shorter than if you are fit,” Dr. Berry says.

So regular exercise is the most cogent weapon we have to ward off illness and fight disease- as it results in lower blood pressure, healthier cholesterol, and lower blood sugar.

Rest assured… there is a silver lining to all this before you start jogging, digging ditches, or playing singles tennis:  Studies also indicate that exercise’s greatest impact occurs when individuals move from a sedentary lifestyle to embarking on regular moderate exercise regimens.

That’s encouraging. You go, Girl!

by Natalia Freeman

Excess weight is bad for your heart. You know that – but do you know why?
Fat changes the way your body metabolizes your food. Sugar that might be available as energy is packed away as fat, and fat is harder to break down for energy. Your entire metabolic system is out of whack. This, in turn, affects the entire body, including the blood vessels. Without the right sort of energy arriving at the right speed, the system begins to experience strain. And strain is what causes poor health. The vascular issues that can arise affect the heart and blood vessels, leading to weakness, poor circulation, and failure.
Often, obese people are placed on many medications – for diabetes, for heart conditions, for atherosclerosis, for hypertension… Many – if not all – of these conditions exist because of the excess weight causing system strain. It can be reversed. But, just as it takes time to reach an unhealthy state, it takes time to reverse it. A strictly adhered-to diet can, in a few years time, reduce or eliminate the necessity of a good portion of the drug cocktail.

There’s a link between the mind and the body. If you think you’re ill, you can make yourself ill, and if you think you’re well, it can help you recover. All of this is part of the well-documented though poorly understood placebo effect.
But some mind-body connections are more physical. And it is both documented and understood how depression, stress, and anger can lead to high cholesterol and diabetes.
The most obvious connection is the affect it has on behavior. When people are stressed, they eat more, particularly unhealthy foods; smoke more; and exercise less. The result is lethargy and poor health which can lead to hypertension and diabetes.
But there’s also a hormonal effect. Negative emotions increase the circulation of fight-or-flight hormones. In the short term, these hormones increase our cognition and performance. But in the long-term, they begin to damage the system, reduce happy hormones, and damage blood vessels. The results aren’t pretty.
What to do if you’re under stress? Relax. Try a massage or day spa, or exercise, even if you don’t feel like it. Exercise is great for both the mind and body. If necessary, seek therapy or medical intervention. In the long run, it can prevent physical deterioration and poor health.