Houston, U.S.A. – A tiny heart pump that maintains blood flow in babies and small children with serious heart failure proved effective and life-saving in a pioneering study involving 17 institutions led by Texas Children’s Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine (BCM). A report on this study appeared recently in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The study looked at the safety and probable benefit of the Berlin Heart EXCOR Pediatric Ventricular Assist Device (VAD), the only VAD available for babies and children. Patients who received the Berlin Heart lived longer on the device and were more likely to receive a transplant or recover heart function than children who were maintained on more traditional support using extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), according to the study’s results.

“This study is unprecedented and represents broad collaboration among the top pediatric cardiac transplantation centers in North America, really the who’s who in the field,” said Dr. Charles Fraser Jr., surgeon-in-chief at Texas Children’s Hospital and professor of surgery and pediatrics at BCM. Fraser is also the corresponding author of the report and was national principal investigator of the study. “This study is now the gold standard for VAD therapies in children. Everything going forward will be compared to this.”

Before the Berlin Heart

Before the Berlin Heart, physicians used complicated medical therapies to treat children with heart failure, hoping to keep them alive until a suitable donor heart became available. Newborns and small children often died as they waited since no more than 70 or 80 small donor hearts become available each year. ECMO provided only short term support when the child’s heart failed completely. The Berlin Heart offers families a new ray of hope.

“With the Berlin Heart, we have a more effective therapy to offer patients earlier in the management of their heart failure,” said Fraser. “When we sit with parents, we have real data to offer so they can make an informed decision. This is a giant step forward.”

Children on the device can leave the intensive care unit and go to a regular hospital room where they receive rehabilitation and better nutrition while they wait for a transplant. While there are many such devices available for adults, development and approval of devices for children and especially for babies has lagged.

Prospective study

“This prospective trial is unprecedented because it was not a look back at how children on the device had fared but instead followed their clinical course from the device’s implantation. The results were compared to those of children who received ECMO, the only other method of treatment,” said Fraser, also chief of congenital heart surgery at Texas Children’s.

“We thought we knew a lot about this device and how it worked, but the FDA was insistent that we conduct a trial and they were right. We did not know as much as we should about how the device performs in practice.”

Higher survival rate

For example, he said the survival rate with the device is higher than anticipated and so was the stroke rate. While the stroke rate was of concern, residual effects from the stroke did not prevent most patients from receiving a transplant, the researchers note.

The Berlin Heart is not totally implanted inside the body. Physicians insert cannulas, or flexible tubes, in the heart and they extend through the skin and connect to a small pump located outside the body. That pump, along with its computerized drive unit, maintains blood flow.

Fraser and his colleagues in the United States and Canada compared the outcomes for 48 children (infants to 16 years) who received the device between 2007 and 2010 to matched patients in a national registry for those patients supported by ECMO. They divided the patients who received the German-manufactured heart assist device into two groups based on their body size.

Those in the cohort of smaller patients (average age 1 year) survived on the heart for a median time of 28 days compared to five days for the children on the ECMO device. The longest time a child in this cohort was on the Berlin Heart was 174 days compared to 21 days for the ECMO group. At 174 days, 88 percent of the children in the cohort had been successfully transplanted and 12 percent had died or failed weaning. In the comparison group, 25 percent of the children had died at 21 days and none were still on the ECMO device.

For children in the second cohort with a larger body size (average age 9), the median survival on the Berlin Heart was 43 days compared to five days for the ECMO group. The longest a child stayed on the assist device was 192 days; the longest a member of the matched group was on ECMO was 28 days. In the device group, 92 percent of the children who had received the VAD had been successfully transplanted or weaned off the device at 192 days and 8.3 percent had died. In contrast, 33 percent of the children in the ECMO group had died at 30 days and none were still on that device.

Some children did suffer serious side effects, including major bleeding, infection stroke and high blood pressure. These findings are as important as the survival statistics because they set the stage for future development and refinement of these devices, said Fraser.

Humanitarian Device Exemption approval

The Berlin Heart EXCOR Pediatric Ventricular Assist Device was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in children in 2011. That allows the device to be used as a bridge to transplantation. The Berlin Heart has been used in approximately 1,000 children worldwide.

It assists the ventricles – the pumping chambers of the heart – in circulating blood throughout the body. In most children with heart failure, the left ventricle fails and the device is used to assist its activities. However, in a few instances, two devices are used to replace both chambers of the heart. This pump is available in a variety of sizes.

Without the assistance of the device, children awaiting a transplant would become increasingly sick as their heart failed. The device improves their circulation and keeps them alive until they receive a heart transplant. In some rare instances, patients recover enough to come off the device and maintain blood flow on their own.

Fraser first used pump seven years ago

Fraser first used the pump in an infant – tiny Brady Burch of Corpus Christi – seven years ago. Brady, now 7, went on to receive a transplant and enters first grade this fall. The success with Brady stimulated Fraser to push for a study of the device to determine its effectiveness.

Fraser said a major limitation of the study is that it is not truly randomized – a method by which patients are assigned an experimental treatment or currently accepted treatment by chance, as in the flip of the coin.

“There was no way we were going to randomize patients. Even using ECMO as a comparison was difficult,” Fraser said. They drew their comparison patients from the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization registry based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. They matched each patient who received the Berlin Heart to two closely comparable individuals in the registry. While using these historical control patients was difficult, it was the only ethical method of obtaining comparison, Fraser said. He believes the study will provide important information for the future.

“I don’t think we are far from a small, implantable VAD in children,” he said. “The implantable devices will be less cumbersome. There are approved, fully implantable devices already available for adults. This gives us the drive to push even further for more devices like this that can be life-saving options for these children who have no other treatment options.”

Texas Children’s Hospital implanted more Berlin Heart devices in the course of the study than any other center and has one of the most comprehensive pediatric ventricular assist device programs in the world.

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The Woodlands, Texas, U.S.A. – Berlin Heart announced recently that a study published in the current issue of the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) concludes that survival using the Company’s EXCOR Pediatric Ventricular Assist Device (VAD) is “significantly greater” than the standard-of-care (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, or “ECMO”) as a “bridging therapy” for children in need of a heart transplant.

The principal author, Charles D. Fraser, Jr., M.D., Surgeon-In-Chief and Head of the Division of Congenital Heart Surgery at Texas Children’s Hospital, and Professor of Surgery and Pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine served as the National Principal Investigator for the clinical trail.

The trial was a prospective, multi-center, single-arm cohort study. Children implanted with the EXCOR Pediatric VAD as a bridge to cardiac transplantation were compared to a historical control group of children supported by ECMO that were selected from the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization registry. Seventeen pediatric cardiac centers in the United States and Canada participated in the trial.

A total of 48 patients in need of support (ages 16 and under) were divided into two cohorts based on body size. Each cohort included 24 patients, Cohort 1 the “smaller” participants and Cohort 2, the “larger” participants. Among participants in Cohort 1, median time of support was 27 days in contrast to the matched ECMO control median support time of 5 days.  In Cohort 2, the median support time was 43 days whereas the ECMO control group was supported a median of 5 days. Overall, 88% of participants in Cohort 1 and 92% of participants in Cohort 2 survived to either heart transplantation or weaning with the use of the EXCOR Pediatric Ventricular Assist Device.

“The EXCOR Pediatric Ventricular Assist Device represents a major medical advance in the treatment of children who need a heart transplant,” said Dr. Fraser. “Most of these babies and children would not otherwise survive without the support of EXCOR while awaiting donor hearts. I know that I speak for all of the medical professionals who participated that we are tremendously gratified to have been a part of this ground-breaking study.”

“Until the FDA approved EXCOR, options for mechanical circulatory support as a bridge to heart transplantation in children with severe heart failure were finite,” added Robert Kroslowitz, President and CEO of Berlin Heart’s North American operations. “More specifically, the effective period of ECMO support is typically limited to only 10 days before life-threatening complications ensue that often preclude transplantation.

The narrow duration of support afforded by ECMO is often inadequate considering current waiting times for a pediatric heart transplant (a median of 119 days for all infants in 2008). Consequently, less than 50% of the children supported on ECMO survive to undergo heart transplantation.”

“Publication of the EXCOR study results in one of the most esteemed peer-reviewed medical journals in the world offers strong testimony that the FDA’s recent approval of EXCOR represents a landmark event for children suffering from terminal heart failure,” said Kroslowitz. “Indeed, the worldwide medical community is now offered this lifesaving device to support desperate children who would not otherwise survive while waiting for a heart transplant.  No doubt, EXCOR represents a new era for treating children with heart disease.”

The Berlin Heart EXCOR Pediatric VAD is a mechanical cardiac support system for critically ill pediatric patients suffering from severe heart failure. The system is designed to support pediatric patients of all age groups, from newborns to teenagers, and is intended to bridge patients awaiting heart transplantation from days to many months, until a donor heart becomes available. The FDA granted “Humanitarian Device Exemption” (HDE) approval of Berlin Heart’s EXCOR Pediatric VAD in December 2011. The device is also approved for use in Europe and Canada.

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Orlando, U.S.A. — A cross-disciplinary team of international researchers gathered in Orlando, July 6-7 to present emerging research on the role glucose transporters and glucose metabolism may have in the management of chronic health conditions such as diabetes, cancer treatment, heart disease, epilepsy Glut1 Deficiency Syndrome and Alzheimer’s. The conference represents the first time researchers and healthcare professionals from different specialties have gathered to present research on the topic.

The organization of the conference is all in a day’s work for the mother of two, Samra Savioz. In 2010, she worked with her husband to start a foundation, the Remi Savioz Glut1 Foundation, aimed at raising awareness for their daughter Remi’s rare neurometabolic brain disease, Glut1 Deficiency.

But with many cases still going undiagnosed because of the lack of information available and the rarity of their daughter’s condition, the Savioz’s started to leverage their own medical backgrounds to help others impacted by the disease.

The Foundation has become a valued asset for parents needing support and guidance on treatment options, like the ketogenic diet, which has been identified as an integral part of disease treatment. Now, Samra provides one-on-one diet training and hopes to expand the understanding of how ketones can impact other diseases.

Sponsored by the Remi Savioz Glut1 Foundation, The Glucose Transporter Conference brought together several medical disciplines including pediatrics, neuro-oncology and endocrinology.

Eighteen abstracts were presented on the role of glucose transporters:

Topics for the conference included:

• The link between glucose starvation in shrinking cancerous tumors or slowing down the progression of cognitive diseases.
• Insights into the structural basis of Glut1 transporters in the brain to expand the clinical spectrum.
• Alternative therapies like ketone esters, which can have broader applications, like restoring cognitive function to Alzheimer’s patients or preventing seizures.
• Applying knowledge about glucose metabolism in the brain for obesity and diabetes treatment.
• Among the highlights of the research will be exploring the role of ketone esters.

“The conference will provide an important platform for us to share research focused on exploiting the anti-seizure and neuroprotective effects of therapeutic ketosis. Ketone esters may offer great hope for patients with drug-resistant seizure disorders and neurodegenerative diseases,” stated Dr. Dominic D’Agostino, Ph.D., Professor of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida before the conference. “Our recent studies have demonstrated that specific ketone esters mimic the anti-seizure effect of fasting and the ketogenic diet.”

Glut1 is a glucose transporter protein, which is directly or indirectly involved in a host of diseases, including cancer and diabetes. Novel therapeutic agents aimed at altering glucose transport activity may have a broad impact on human health. There are four types of glucose transporters with Glut1 being responsible for moving glucose from the bloodstream into all of the cells in the body, especially the brain.

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New York, U.S.A – A balanced and healthy diet is crucial to good health and overcoming stress. In his forthcoming book called entitled Stress Pandemic, lifestyle and stress expert Paul Huljich shares a simple and holistic approach to nutrition, paying added attention to the effects of what we eat on our neurochemistry.

“Ensuring that we are supporting a healthy neurochemical balance is a vital and proactive step toward managing our stress,” Hulijch asserts. “When you feel tense, stress eating or emotional-eating is triggered like an automatic response. That’s especially so if your body reacts strongly to stress-released hormones.”

A 2010 study from the University of Michigan showed that when levels of the stress hormone cortisol were boosted in healthy, non-stressed adults, they ate more junk food. When people feel stressed out, most either stop eating altogether or binge on high-fat, high-sodium products such as chocolate, doughnuts, potato chips and other snack foods. And when combined with America’s growing portion sizes, people grow sicker, gain weight and develop bad habits that can endure a lifetime unless they say “NO” and take charge of what and how they eat.

Bad eating habits start young so where else to begin teaching kids about good nutrition outside of home but in this nation’s schools?  Thankfully, people like Michelle Obama are championing this crusade. Hoping to combat the growing problem of childhood obesity, the Obama administration recently announced its long-awaited changes to government-subsidized school meals, a final round of rules that adds more fruits and green vegetables to breakfasts and lunches and reduces the amount of salt and fat.

“As parents, we try to prepare decent meals, limit how much junk food our kids eat and ensure that they have a reasonable balanced diet,” Mrs. Obama said in a statement. “And when we are putting in all that effort the last thing we want is for our hard work to be undone each day in the school cafeteria.”

About 32 million children participate in school meal programs each day. The new rules are a major component of Mrs. Obama’s campaign to reduce the number of overweight children through exercise and better nutrition. The announcement came months after the food industry won a vote in Congress to block the administration from carrying out an earlier proposal.

“Children born in the year 2000 or later are not expected to outlive their parents,” stated Dr. David Katzof the Yale Preventive Medicine Research Center at a nutrition conference in April. Why are our kids so sick? One reason is that they eat too much bad food.  In March of last year, Dr. Katz quoted in a Wall Street Journal article that a “poor diet in kids is more dangerous than alcohol, drugs, and tobacco combined!”

If you can believe it, the top 3 foods consumed in America are hot dogs, white bread and coffee. And the marketing industry is capitalizing on our society’s obsession with eating junk food, evidenced by an announcement made last week by 7-Eleven, the nation’s largest convenience chain, of a low-cal line of Slurpees! The move comes at a time when companies have been marketing everything from “Spam Lite” to “skinny cocktails” aimed at calorie-conscious consumers.

Huljich believes that as a society we must revolutionize the ways in which we eat beginning with cutting out all the C-R-A-P (an acronym for coffee, refined food, alcohol and processed food). He also does not endorse the use of fad diets, counting calories or choosing to eat certain food groups over others.

His approach to a healthy diet, which is outlined in detail in his forthcoming book Stress Pandemic, is a balanced and practical one, which first identifies and bases his diet on the good foods and eating patterns in your life while eliminating the bad ones. “The human body is designed to thrive on a variety of foods therefore I feel a more holistic approach to diet is far more effective and supportive to overall health and well-being than any of those revolving popular diet fads can ever be,”  Huljich states.

“When you go on a fad diet and exclude any of the necessary nutrients, you’re putting yourself at risk for illness.” It is precisely as Gary Taubes warned in Newsweek’s recent cover story “The government has spent hundreds of millions telling Americans to exercise more and eat less. But the country is getting heavier every year. It’s time to change the way we think about fat.”

A balanced eating plan supports all of the body’s functions so that it can absorb and use nutrients efficiently and effectively. Health maintenance promotes physical fitness and disease prevention such as the risk for heart disease, heart attack, stroke, type 2 diabetes and some forms of cancer.

America is a nation trying to find a cure yet not looking closely enough at the symptoms. By finding the courage to and wisdom to look at the root cause and going back to basics, individuals can learn how to master stress and live longer and healthier lives.

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Foundation for Health Improvement and Technology (FHIT), announced the launch of its nonprofit, with the mission to rid the world of preventable cardiovascular and related metabolic diseases through educational programs promoting early detection and aggressive medical treatment.

“Recent advances in biomarker research have made it entirely possible to detect many of the underlying pathologies of metabolic disorder and other contributors to heart disease before overt clinical symptoms manifest. Many of these factors will respond to appropriate treatment,” said Russ Warnick, co-founder of FHIT.

Warnick, a recognized expert in cardiovascular biomarkers and a co-editor of the Handbook of Lipoprotein Testing, has been published in over 200 medical and scientific journals and has more than 35 years of experience in analytical methods for characterizing cardiovascular and related diseases and in the application of laboratory testing to manage diseases.

“FHIT was created to increase awareness and educate physicians and other clinical and laboratory professionals across the United States and around the world about the latest scientific developments in cardiovascular and related diseases,” said Warnick. The organization was formed as a response to over fifty years of research proving that early detection and aggressive medical treatment can prevent cardiovascular disease and Type II diabetes.

The board of directors at FHIT, which will be announced later this month, have a history of serving at the forefront of medical, educational, and industrial institutions. As the foundation begins to reach out to the medical community during the spring of 2012, it will roll out new technology, interactive platforms, and other educational programs designed to help physicians combat the alarming increase in metabolic diseases and other contributors to cardiovascular and related chronic diseases.

The unique aspect of FHIT is the organization’s ability to not only spread the message of early detection, but to also develop unique, online resources for peer-to-peer education. “These comprehensive and dynamic compilations of biomarkers and other cardiovascular resources will undoubtedly become invaluable to medical professionals and set a new standard for the medical community,” said Warnick.

FHIT, which advocates for comprehensive testing to help physicians personalize treatment based on a total patient profile, will measure its success by how well it helps the medical community detect risk factors that pre-dispose patients to disease at an earlier stage. By taking a preventative approach, FHIT argues that physicians now have the opportunity to access advanced tools and scientific evidence to predict angiographic disease or coronary heart disease events.

“FHIT will encourage the medical community to move beyond total cholesterol and other outdated measurement techniques, and instead provide physicians with education and research that demonstrates firsthand how medical practices can surpass the mainstream lipid panel and take advantage of the more advanced biomarkers now readily available,” said Warnick.

“Through the FHIT organization, we will teach physicians around the world how to focus on all of the cholesterol components, other biomarkers, and their impact on overall heath. This is an important step toward turning cardiovascular and related metabolic disorders into diseases of the past.”

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The Health Impact Project, a collaboration of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and The Pew Charitable Trusts, announced the awardees of 15 new grants on March 5.

Selected following a nationwide call for proposals, the grantees will conduct health impact assessments (HIAs), a type of study that looks at potential health impacts of policies and projects in other sectors. HIAs help policy makers and communities take a broad look at the impacts of a decision, which can help avoid unintended consequences, maximize benefits, and balance trade-offs.

“The conditions in the places where we live and work affect our health even more than access to health care,” said Aaron Wernham, M.D., director of the Health Impact Project. “Decisions in housing, agriculture, transportation, or energy policy, for example, may raise or lower our risks for heart disease, asthma, diabetes, traumatic injuries, and some cancers.

These new grantees will be using health impact assessments to inform important decisions for which the health implications might otherwise be missed. Capitalizing on investments in other sectors to prevent disease is one of the most important opportunities to improve Americans’ health.”

Three additional foundations—The Kresge Foundation, The California Endowment, and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Foundation—contributed funding toward these HIAs. The grant recipients and their respective projects are listed below:

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Adults aren’t the only ones who should be thinking heart smart this February, as heart disease is a concern for an increasing number of children too. Research shows that overweight kids are more likely to develop heart disease as adults. And many overweight children already have conditions like high blood pressure and high cholesterol, which puts them at risk for heart disease now.

The good news is that most kids can address these risks with changes in diet and exercise. Throughout February, which is American Heart Month, BeSmartBeWell.com highlights the heart risks facing overweight kids and provides advice for how to manage them.

At BeSmartBeWell.com, real-life kids, like Maya, share their stories. Maya was only 5 years old when her family learned she had dangerously high triglycerides. Triglycerides are a type of fat in your blood; having too much increases the risk for heart disease. By making changes to her diet and encouraging her to be active, Maya’s family helped her lower her triglycerides and improve her heart health.

“Fatness hurts your heart. If your heart is hurt, you won’t live that long,” says Maya in a video on the site. “I don’t want to be unhealthy and I’d rather have this diet than get those high triglycerides again.”

The alarming numbers

According to the American Heart Association, an estimated one out of every three kids in the United States is overweight or obese. It’s not that hard to understand how they got there. Kids can be picky eaters. Like most kids her age, Maya preferred pizza and chicken nuggets to fruits and vegetables, and her parents didn’t realize the health risks of this kind of diet.

But the consequences of an unhealthy diet can be significant. A recent study published in the journal Obesity showed that overweight kids are more likely to have high cholesterol, which is associated with higher heart-disease risk in adulthood.

“Type 2 diabetes, high triglycerides, high cholesterol–these used to be considered old people problems and we are seeing them in little kids,” says David Thoele, M.D., a pediatric cardiologist and one of the experts featured on BeSmartBeWell.com.

What can I do about it?

BeSmartBeWell.com/Childhood-Obesity provides practical information to help parents understand the health risks of childhood obesity. Produced by the country’s largest customer-owned health insurer, in collaboration with medical experts and national health organizations, BeSmartBeWell.com features:

• Life stories of real kids who are managing weight issues
• Interviews with parents who provide practical tips for getting kids to eat healthy
• Practical videos featuring leading health experts
• Reputable resources and links for more information
• Childhood obesity news and updates
• Health quizzes

At the site, visitors can also register for the monthly Spotlight Newsletter and News Alerts for in-depth articles and breaking news on childhood obesity and other important health topics.

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According to the American Heart Association, ninety percent of women have one or more risk factors for developing heart disease. That’s why The Quaker Oats Company, is encouraging women to take just five minutes a day to do something good for their hearts during American Heart Month through the “Nourish What Counts” campaign.

To support heart disease awareness and elevate the importance of preventative lifestyle changes for women, “Nourish What Counts” provides simple, proactive steps to help women eat healthy, become more active, take the quick American Heart Association “My Life Check” risk assessment and join the Go Red For Women movement.

Recent figures from the American Heart Association estimate that eight million women in the U.S. are living with heart disease, yet only one in six American women believes that heart disease is her greatest health threat, representing a significant disconnect between women’s beliefs about their heart health status – and reality.

“With the growing incidence of heart disease, it’s important now more than ever to help women make simple lifestyle changes,” said Andrew Sutherland, Senior Director of Marketing, Quaker Foods & Snacks North America. “For more than a century, Quaker has been committed to nourishing America’s families with heart-healthy whole grain oats, and we’re proud to help raise awareness with the American Heart Association’s Go Red For Women movement.”

Throughout February, American Heart Month, QuakerOats.com will feature multiple ways people can start making changes in just five minutes. Nutrition tips, heart healthy recipes and exclusive fitness routines from Quaker Coach Bob Harper are also available. A sneak peek of tips includes:

• Eat heart healthy meals: You don’t have to go on an extreme diet to be more heart-healthy. Replace some of the refined grains you eat with whole grains. Start making the change at breakfast by eating 100% whole grain Quaker Oatmeal.Three grams of soluble fiber daily from oatmeal, in a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may help reduce the risk of heart disease. Old Fashioned Quaker Oatmeal provides 2 grams per serving.

  Each serving of super grain Quaker Oatmeal helps provide energy plus fiber to fill you up and at least one serving of whole grains – a great first step towards meeting the recommended minimum of three daily servings of whole grains for overall good health.

• Increase your workout time: Take five minutes to post your favorite workout to Facebook or Twitter, and ask your social network to share their top picks in return. You’d be surprised what great workouts you can learn from your friends!

Experts cite lifestyle habits, like poor diet, lack of exercise and smoking as significant contributors to poor heart health among Americans. “While genetics play a role in everyone’s individual heart health, there are many simple things you can do to change your routine to benefit your heart,” said William H. Roach Jr., Chairman of the Board of the American Heart Association.

“Over time, these changes could have a powerful effect on your life and your family. Partners like Quaker are so important because they help to extend our efforts to raise awareness and educate Americans about the importance of a heart-healthy lifestyle.”

Image Courtesy of   https://www.facebook.com/GoRed

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Did you know that February is American Heart month? In addition to Valentine’s Day festivities, Lady Foot Locker wants you to celebrate your heart by making sure you take care of it. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, heart disease is the leading cause of death for men and women alike in the United States.

The best way to reduce your risk of heart disease is through a healthy diet and active lifestyle. The American Heart Association suggests at least 150 minutes per week of moderate exercise or 75 minutes per week of vigorous exercise (or a combination of both). That’s just 30 minutes a day, five times a week! Lady Foot Locker wants you to be prepared with the right shoes and clothing to get you moving:

• Physical activity is anything that will get your body moving and burn calories, which, in turn, will get your heart pumping. If you are looking for a training shoe that is made for everything from dancing to kickboxing, try the Nike Free TR Twist. The flexible sole will work with any activity you choose.
• Taking your daily walk or run outdoors is a great way to diversify your workout. If you are looking to start running, the right footwear is essential in order to protect your feet. The Asics Kayano 18 is a reliable sneaker choice by runners, known for its fit and function. The American Heart Association also recommends spending time outdoors as sunlight on your skin helps your body produce vitamin D, resulting in additional health benefits.
• Proper support and confidence in your apparel are key to a successful workout. Finding the right sports bra, one that provides comfort and mobility, is the foundation for any physical activity.
• If you’re looking for a fun way to express yourself even while working out, own it with exclusive graphic tees . They will be extra motivation to help you stay on the right track while making a statement about who you are.

Lady Foot Locker knows that looking good means feeling good, so start working towards a healthier you this February.

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January 8-14 is considered Folic Acid Awareness Week and is a good time for people to be reminded of the importance of getting some of that vitamin each day. Folic acid is an essential B vitamin, and a lack of it can lead to birth defects. It also serves a variety of functions within the body, and a shortage or absence of it can lead to health problems.

“Folic acid is important to our health, yet many people are not even familiar with what it is or why we need it,” explains Dwayne Adams, registered nurse and creator of the RNHealthCoach.com, an online health and wellness coach directory. “The more people know about it, and where to get it, the more they are able to make a point of including it in their diet. And the health benefits that result speak for themselves.”

Folic acid is considered a fundamental building block in our body. It is used for cell growth and reproduction, and it also helps in the building of DNA. Other health benefits of getting an adequate supply include it helping to protect against heart disease, stroke, and some mental conditions, such as Alzheimer’s Disease.

To help avoid birth defects, such as spina bifida and anencephaly, it is important that women get enough folic acid, not only during pregnancy, but for at least a month before becoming pregnant, as well. Those not pregnant can still suffer serious health consequences from not getting enough folic acid, including anemia and irritability.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, women need 400 micrograms each day. Getting the recommended daily amount of folic acid can be achieved as easily as taking a multivitamin that contains it, but a full daily supply can also be found in a variety of breakfast cereals, such as Kellogg’s Special K, Kashi Heart to Heart, and General Mills Total Raisin Bran.

A quick scan of the nutritional label will show how much folic acid is found in the cereal per serving. Additionally, some folic acid can be obtained through foods such as spinach, broccoli, black beans, pinto beans, and chickpeas. ”Getting enough folic acid is crucial,” adds Adams. “The good news is that it is surprisingly easy to accomplish that each day.”

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Environment News Network (ENN) states that “more than 1.9 billion people worldwide were overweight in 2010, a 25 percent increase since 2002.” Doctors have found that people throughout the world are getting fatter with the possible exception of East Asia.

Overall, 24 percent of men and 27 percent of women seeing their doctors in a typical day are obese, and another 30 percent of men and 40 percent of women are overweight. This trend is strongly correlated to rising income and to an increase in preventable health problems.

The trend over the last decade toward heavier populations cuts across regions and income levels. In India, 19 percent of adults are overweight, up from 14 percent in 2002. In Mexico, the figure has risen by 8 percent since 2002, while Brazil’s is up by 7 percent and the rate in the U.K. is up by 5 percent. East Asia has seen a 4 percent increase over the period. The United States leads all industrialized countries with 78.6 percent of the adult population overweight.

That analysis shows that some 75 percent of adults in the 10 richest countries are overweight, while in the 10 poorest, only 18 percent are. On a regional level, the correlation between income and being overweight holds reasonably well. Europe generally has elevated levels, for example, while low-income sub-Saharan Africa averages lower body mass index (BMI) levels.

At a national level, however, the situation is more complex. A comparison of percentages of overweight people in all countries and their GDPs reveals a positive but weak correlation, with cultural, societal, and possibly genetic factors playing heavily into the mix.

People with a BMI between 18-24 are considered healthy. A BMI of 25 or greater is considered overweight, while a BMI of 30 or above is labeled “obese.”

Only about 7 percent of people in eastern Asia were obese, compared to 36 percent of people in Canada, 38 percent of women in the Middle East, and 40 percent in South Africa. In Northern Europe, men had an average BMI of 27 and women 26, just into the overweight category. Southern Europe, Australia, and Latin America had similar averages BMI of 28.

However, these are the calculations of those people who were all seeing doctors at the time of the study. While the poorest people in industrialized countries tend to be among the most overweight, this is not the case in the developing world, where the poorest have a very little chance of seeing a doctor, not to mention they are often undernourished.

People who are overweight and obese have a higher risk of heart disease, diabetes and some types of cancer. Exercise alone will not cut the risk of heart disease unless they also slim down.

“Even high quantities of physical activity are unlikely to fully reverse the risk of coronary heart disease in overweight and obese women without concurrent weight loss,” said Dr. Amy Weinstein of Boston’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

In a study conducted by Weinstein, active women with normal weight had the lowest risk of developing heart problems while there was a slightly higher risk for those with normal weight who were not active. The risk was next highest for active women who were either overweight or obese, and the highest for similar women who were inactive.

Weinstein explained that fat cells produce chemicals that can speed up hardening of the arteries and increase inflammation, harming blood vessels. On the other hand, physical activity makes for healthier blood vessels and reduces the risk of blood clots.

Before trying any exercise or diet regiment, Weinstein and other researchers urge people to visit their doctors first. Only with the right method and with someone watching over them can people lose weight and maintain it.

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A report published this week by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy organization, cautions that eating meat daily can contribute to obesity, heart disease and cancer.

“Although this issue has been reported on for a long time, Americans continue to have really high rates of meat consumption, particularly children,” said Kari Hamerschlag, senior analyst at EWG and author of the new report. “As a country, we’re producing and consuming 60 percent more meat per person than Europeans.”

For the study, EWG looked at the environmental impact of production, processing, transportation, cooking and waste of meat. Nearly 20 percent of edible meat ends up in landfills while millions of people go to bed hungry. The conclusion of the study is that people should eat less meat and dairy. In particular, the EWG points to lamb, beef, pork, cheese and farmed salmon as the protein-packed foods that take the largest toll on the environment.

The high rate of meat eaters in the United States is known to have significant detrimental effects on human health. Increases rates of heart disease, cancer and obesity have been linked to heavy meat eating. Eating significant amounts of meat also harm the environment, releasing greenhouse gases in the air.

“We’re not advocating that people stop eating meat and cheese, we’re just suggesting that people consider eating less,” said Hamerschlag. “Ultimately, we need better policies and stronger regulations to reduce the environmental impacts of livestock production. But personal shifting of diets is an important step.”

The report points out that minor changes can have a significant impact on the environment. If each American cut meat and cheese from their diet one day a week, it would be the equivalence to taking 7.6 million cars off the road.  “The world is better off with than without cattle,” said Gidon Eschel, a professor of climate physics at Bard College in New York, who was not involved in the new report. He explained that optimal land use includes predominantly plants — “foods that feed people directly rather than indirectly through animals.” But cattle, he added, are key for cycling the nutrients in the soil and maintaining long-term crop fertility.

Production for the feed of cattle takes up nearly 150 million acres of U.S. land. “Even if you don’t directly clear land to grow feed crops, you are using land that could otherwise go to other purposes like food or biofuels. Somewhere forest or grassland will be cleared and carbon will be released into the atmosphere,” added Simon Donner, a climate and agriculture expert at the University of British Columbia in Canada, who was not involved in the report.

Although typical carnivores hate to hear about studies and data like this, the fact is that Americans eat way too much meat. The world is unsustainable as it is and we have to change things in order to continue to exist. With so many soy-based meat alternatives, there is no reason why meat must be consumed every single day. And there are plenty of reasons why you shouldn’t eat meat every day.

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The research on the positive impact of human-canine relationships on health is extensive. For nearly 25 years, research had indicated that living with pets can have a positive influence on a person’s health.  Although all pets to some degree improve an individual’s health, dogs in particular have been studied.

Dogs allow improved independence and mobility for the blind.  They are used as service dogs with people that suffer from epilepsy because they are able to detect seizures before they come.  Dogs lower their owner’s blood pressure, significantly reduce anxiety, and boost immunity.

A growing number of studies suggest that children who grow up with animals will have less risk of asthma and allergies.  In a recent study, researcher James E. Gern, MD, a pediatrician at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, analyzed the blood of babies immediately after birth and one year later. He was looking for evidence of an allergic reaction, immunity changes, and for reactions to bacteria in the environment.   The results may surprise you.  If a dog lived in the home, infants were less likely to show evidence of pet allergies – 19 percent vs. 33 percent. They also were less likely to have eczema, a common allergy skin condition that causes red patches and itching. In addition, they had higher levels of some immune system chemicals — a sign of stronger immune system activation.

Studies have also shown that people with Alzheimer’s disease have fewer anxious outbursts if there is an animal in the home.  Walking a dog or just caring for a pet — for elderly people who are able — can provide exercise and companionship.  Elderly that have a pet are less likely to feel depressed and are more likely to have fewer hospital stays than their petless counterparts.

Although, not as studied as some other areas, research also suggests that owning a dog can help prevent diabetes.  According to research by exercise scientist Cindy Lentino, dog owners who regularly walk their dogs had about one-third of the risk of diabetes in comparison to non-dog walkers. Dog owners also had additional signs of good health not seen in the non-dog walking group, like lower rates of depression.

Pet owners are likely to have better mental health than those who don’t own a pet.  In one study, stockbrokers with high blood pressure who adopted a cat or dog had lower blood pressure readings in stressful situations than did people without pets.

Studies show a link between these stressful chemicals, Cortisol and norepinephrine, and plaque buildup in arteries, the red flag for heart disease, says Blair Justice, PhD, a psychology professor at the University of Texas School of Public Health and author of Who Gets Sick: How Beliefs, Moods, and Thoughts Affect Your Health.

Like any enjoyable activity, playing with a dog can elevate levels of serotonin and dopamine — nerve transmitters that are known to have pleasurable and calming properties, Justice said.  “People take drugs like heroin and cocaine to raise serotonin and dopamine, but the healthy way to do it is to pet your dog, or hug your spouse, watch sunsets, or get around something beautiful in nature,” says Justice, who recently hiked the Colorado Rockies with his wife and two dogs.

Heart attack patients who have pets survive longer than those without, according to several studies. Male pet owners have less sign of heart disease — lower triglyceride and cholesterol levels — than non-owners, researchers say.  According to preventive cardiologist Barry Franklin, Ph.D., of William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan, patients with heart disease who have dogs and walk them have a better prognosis.

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