|
|
|
|
| ||||
South of Boston |
|
GOOD ALTERNATIVES FRIENDLY BACTERIA Probiotics can boost immunity 
Don't take sick leave - take a probiotic. Swedish doctors gave 181 factory employees either a daily drink containing 100 million units of the healthful bacteria Lactobacillus reuteri or a placebo. After 80 days, only 11 percent of the nine-to-fivers sipping supplements had taken 1 sick day or more, compared with 26 percent of placebo takers. Night-shift workers showed an even bigger effect: None in the probiotics group called in sick; 33 percent of those on a placebo did. Probiotics can ease stomach problems; L. reuteri also boosts immunity. Try two 6-ounce servings a day of Stonyfield Farm yogurt, the only U.S. brand to contain this strain; or get it from daily tablets. - Rodale Copyright 2006. All rights reserved by New York Times Syndication Sales Corp. This material may not be published, broadcast or redistributed in any manner. PORTION PLANNING Frozen entrees can help with weight loss 
New research suggests that frozen entrees may help you survive diet minefields and reach your weight goals. University of Illinois scientists taught 51 overweight and obese men to devise 1,700-calorie-per-day diets, giving 25 of the men two frozen entrees to eat each day. After 8 weeks, those who'd eaten the entrees lost more weight - 16 versus 11 pounds - and fat pounds - 8 versus 5.5 - as well as waist inches - 2.6 versus 1.7 - than those who ate their normal diets. "Automatic portion control" built into the frozen entrees may have made the difference, the researchers say. - Rodale Copyright 2006. All rights reserved by New York Times Syndication Sales Corp. This material may not be published, broadcast or redistributed in any manner. PINPOINT BLADDER CONTROL Acupuncture shown to provide relief Current medications and therapies fail to help many of the 17 percent of Americans with overactive bladders. But those people may find a solution in acupuncture. Oregon Health & Science University researchers gave 74 female patients acupuncture either in points believed to control bladder function or in placebo points. After four once-a-week sessions, those who received treatment had 30 percent fewer urgent trips to the bathroom compared with a 3 percent decrease among the placebo group. The women also experienced reductions in their incontinence episodes and distress, as well as an increase in their bladder capacity. Their improvements easily equaled those offered by drug or behavior therapies when they are effective, say researchers. - Rodale Copyright 2006. All rights reserved by New York Times Syndication Sales Corp. This material may not be published, broadcast or redistributed in any manner. NO MORE BUZZ KILL Try non-greasy, unscented mosquito repellents 
As the weather heats up and mosquitoes threaten to ruin spring and summer outings, it's time again to break out that mosquito repellent. If you're among those who hate using repellent because of its greasy feeling and - well, repellent - odor, don't turn to dubious folk remedies like vitamin B12 or garlic, says Joe Conlon, adviser to the American Mosquito Control Association. The U.S. government's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, aware that many continue to shun mosquito repellent (namely DEET) despite the danger of West Nile infection, now recommends repellents that include Picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus as active ingredients. Compared to DEET, the newly supported repellents are not greasy and have little to no smell, yet are just as effective. And unlike other remedies you may have heard about, there is a body of evidence to prove their effectiveness. Picaridin-based repellents are under the Cutter Advanced brand, and lemon-eucalyptus-oil-based repellents are under the Repel brand, among others. - Rodale Copyright 2006. All rights reserved by New York Times Syndication Sales Corp. This material may not be published, broadcast or redistributed in any manner. BREAST DEFENSE Working out seems to protect against breast cancer, though no one's sure why. The answer may lie in the hormone melatonin, which appears to slow cancer growth and increase immunity. In a study of 213 women, Canadian researchers found that the longer a woman exercised, no matter what the intensity, the higher her melatonin levels rose the following night. - Rodale Copyright 2006. All rights reserved by New York Times Syndication Sales Corp. This material may not be published, broadcast or redistributed in any manner. |
|
|
|
|
South of Boston Media Group, 400 Crown Colony Drive | ||||||