The Telangana Science Journal

Health and Nutrition

(An International Electronic Science Digest Published from the United States of America)
(Dedicated to one of the most backward regions in India, "Telangana," My Fatherland )

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Issue 115

5109 Kali Era, Sarvajit Year, Ashada/Shravana month
2065 Vikramarka Era, Sarvajit Year,  Ashada/Shravana month
1929 Salivahana Era
Sarvajit Year, Ashada/Shravana month
 2007 AD, July


Contents
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Vedah

Diet and Exercise


The Company You Keep!
Pumping Iron
Dieting During Sickness
Benefits of Turmeric Powder
Coffee
Diet Soda is as Bad as Regular Soda


Miscellaneous


Western Cattle Ranches
Circumcision for Promiscuous Men
Leaves that Heal


Recipes


Strawberry Sorbet
Creamy Vegan Ambrosia (Fruit Salad)
Vegetarian Avocado and Chili Soup Recipe


Diet and Exercise



The Company You Keep!
An old saying says, 'you are what you eat" and another says, "I can tell who you are by the company you keep" or "You are the company you keep." Ancient wisdom and most religions tell us "gluttony is a sin." The world's most ancient texts, Vedas, forbid it. Ayurveda treats food with respect. Bible forbids it - Proverbs 23:19-21 says "Hear thou, my son, and be wise, and guide thine heart in the way. 20 Be not among winebibbers; among riotous eaters of flesh: 21 For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags." Proverbs 28:7 declares, "He who keeps the law is a discerning son, but a companion of gluttons disgraces his father." Proverbs 23:2 proclaims, "put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony." We also know about peer pressure and social acceptability.  If you didn't know or don't believe in religion or ancient wisdom, scientists are here to reinvent it for you.  Now there is a startling revelation by scientists after an elaborate research.
 
If your friends and family get fat, chances are you will too, researchers report in a startling new study that suggests obesity is "socially contagious" and can spread easily from person to person. The large, federally funded study found that to be true even if your loved ones lived far away. Social ties seemed to play a surprisingly strong role, even more than genes are known to do. The study found a person's chances of becoming obese went up 57 percent if a friend did, 40 percent if a sibling did and 37 percent if a spouse did. In the closest friendships, the risk almost tripled.
Researchers think it's more than just people with similar eating and exercise habits hanging out together. Instead, it may be that having relatives and friends who become obese changes one's idea of what is an acceptable weight. Report was published in New England Journal of Medicine and funded by the National Institute on Aging. By the way, that doesn't mean that you sever friendships and relations, the scientists warn.

Pumping Iron
Pumping a little iron can help elderly nursing home residents and heart failure patients gain strength for everyday life, the American Heart Association says, expanding on earlier advice. It was noted that elderly people and women who suffer from coronary heart disease (a narrowing of the small blood vessels to the heart), or are frail could benefit from workouts including resistance training because they build muscle strength. Resistance weight training includes using one's body for weight resistance by doing things like abdominal crunches to using resistance-cord exercises, dumbbells, wrist weights or weight machines.

The statement recommends that those who do resistance training start out slow, setting the resistance or weight load at a moderate level to achieve the prescribed repetition range without straining. Elderly people should start with a low level of resistance. As progress is made, they should first increase the number of repetitions before adding weight or resistance.



Dieting During Sickness
Dieting when sick and taking medication is ancient technique to help body recover. More than 5000-years old ancient medicine, Ayurveda, prescribes certain foods and proscribes certain foods depending upon sickness and medication taken by the patient.  Now the Western medicne has recognized the effect of diet on medication.  Combining medicines with the right food could improve the effectiveness of drugs and reduce the costs of treating patients, Western experts say. The comments come after research showed taking a breast cancer drug with fatty food, rather than on an empty stomach, boosted absorption of the drug.


Benefits of Turmeric Powder
Researchers isolated bisdemethoxycurcumin, the active ingredient of curcuminoids – a natural substance found in turmeric root – that may help boost the immune system in clearing amyloid beta, a peptide that forms the plaques found in Alzheimer’s disease. Using blood samples from Alzheimer’s disease patients, researchers found that bisdemethoxycurcumin boosted immune cells called macrophages to clear amyloid beta. In addition, researchers identified the immune genes associated with this activity. Turmeric powder is an important ingredient in powder called curry powder used in Indian dishes, especially curry (cooked vegetables or meat).



Coffee
Three cups of coffee a day could slow the loss of mental function in men, says a European study. The results appear in line with a growing body of evidence linking coffee consumption to improved cognitive function, and follow a recent report from Austria that “showed” how caffeine boosts brain function through its effects on distinct areas of the brain.



Miscellaneous


Western Cattle Ranches Contribute to Global Warming
Experts claim cows are responsible for about 3% of Britain's greenhouse gases. Experts consider cows the biggest single source of methane - a gas 23 times more potent than carbon dioxide when it comes to global warming.  The average dairy cow is capable of producing up to 500 liters of the gas every day, mostly through belching. Cattle and sheep were responsible for about 30% of methane emissions in the UK. In Wales, they produced nearly double that - which amounts to 5% of Wales's greenhouse gases. In north America, they reckon the livestock production would be responsible for up to 20 per cent of the methane gas in those countries

However, the humble cow pat could become the latest weapon in the fight against global warming.  An agricultural college is using methane from the muck produced by its dairy herd to power its working farm.  The dairy cows at Walford and North Shropshire College are housed for eight months a year and their dung is collected and pumped into a digester. There it is converted into methane and used to power a generator. This produces enough energy to run the farm.


Diet Soda is as Bad as Regular Soda
People who drank one or more diet sodas each day developed the same risks for heart disease as those who downed sugary regular soda, a large but inconclusive study found. The results surprised the researchers who expected to see a difference between regular and diet soda drinkers.  They suggest that people who indulge in sodas probably have less healthy diets overall. The research comes from a massive, multi-generational heart study following residents of Framingham, Mass., a town about 25 miles west of Boston. The new study of 9,000 observations of middle-aged men and women was published online in the journal Circulation.


Circumcision for Promiscuous Men
A U.S. health experts urged governments worldwide to endorse circumcision to slow the spread of HIV, because promiscuous men without the procedure have a greater risk of contracting the virus from infected female partners.  Experts at an AIDS conference in Sydney also warned that HIV infection rates were rising among men who have sex with men in developing countries. In Kenya, around 40 percent of men who have sex with men are estimated to be HIV positive, compared to a 6 percent rate in the country's overall population.  According to the World Health Organization, male circumcision reduces the risk of transmission through prostitutes by around 60 percent for those men who do not use condoms and are promiscuous. However, many health officials were still unclear about the benefits of circumcision.


Leaves that Heal
The leaves of Aspilia africana, a plant used in African traditional medicine, can stop bleeding, block infection and speed wound healing, a new study from Nigeria confirms. The leaves and flowers of A. Africana, a bristle-covered herb known as the "hemorrhage plant," have been used to stanch bleeding, remove foreign bodies from the eyes, treat scorpion stings, and for several other purposes across the African continent, note Dr. Charles O. Okoli and colleagues at the University of Nigeria. Dr. Okoli is currently located in Sydney, Australia at the University of New South Wales.



Recipes
Strawberry Sorbet
INGREDIENTS: 1 cup sugar, 1 1/2 tsp cornstarch, 2 cups water, 2 cups pureed strawberries.
PREPARATION:Dissolve the sugar and cornstarch in the water in a large saucepan over low heat, then boil until thick, like syrup, about ten minutes. Remove from the heat and cool.  When the sugar syrup is completely cooled, add the pureed fruit and mix well. Place in a plastic contained and freeze, uncovered, until it is solid. Cut the sorbet into chunks, then process in a blender or food processor until smooth and creamy. Put the sorbet back into the freezer and allow to freeze for another 4 hours.
http://vegetarian.about.com/od/desertrecipes/r/strawberrysorb.htm?nl=1



Creamy Vegan Ambrosia (Fruit Salad)
INGREDIENTS: 1 cup chopped fresh pineapple, 1 cup sliced fresh apples, 1 cup orange slices, 1 cup strawberries, sliced, 1 cup grapes, 1/2 cup shredded coconut, 1 tbsp cornstarch, 1/3 cup lemon juice, 3 tbsp sugar, 3 tbsp orange juice, 1/2 cup soft (silken) tofu, pureed, 2 tsp grated orange rind, 1 tsp poppy seeds (optional).
PREPARATION: In a large bowl, toss the fruit and coconut until well blended. Refrigerate. Combine the cornstarch with the lemon juice in a medium saucepan and stir until well blended. Place the saucepan over medium heat and add the sugar and orange juice. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens, about 5 to 10 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the stove and allow to cool thoroughly. Fold the pureed tofu, orange rind and poppy seeds into the juice mixture and chill for at least one hour.  Immediately before serving, pour the dressing over the fruit and serve.
http://vegetarian.about.com/od/soupssalads/r/ambrosia.htm?nl=1


Mango Soup
INGREDIENTS: 2 mangoes, juice from 1 lime, 1/2 tsp ginger powder, dash salt and pepper, to taste, 1 tsp chipotle powder, 2 cups water or vegetable broth
PREPARATION: Puree all ingredients together in a blender or food processor until smooth and creamy. Add more spices to taste, and serve cold.
http://vegetarian.about.com/od/coldsoups/r/mangochipotle.htm?nl=1


Vegetarian Avocado and Chili Soup Recipe
INGREDIENTS: 2 ripe avocados, 3 cups soy milk, 1 4 ounce can of green chilies, 1/2 onion, chopped, dash salt and pepper, to taste, 2 tbsp lime juice, 2 tbsp dry sherry, 2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
PREPARATION:
In a food processor or blender, process together all ingredients except cilantro until smooth. Stir in the cilantro and serve chilled.


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Notice: This material contains only general descriptions and is not a solicitation to sell any insurance product or security, nor is it intended as any financial, tax, medical or health care advice. For information about specific needs or situations, contact your financial, tax agent or physician.
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Source: The primary sources cited above,  New York Times (NYT), Washington Post (WP), Mercury News, Bayarea.com, Chicago Tribune, USA Today, Intellihealthnews, Deccan Chronicle (DC), the Hindu, Hindustan Times, Times of India, AP, Reuters, AFP, womenfitness.net, about.com etc.




Copyright ©1998-2007
Vepachedu Educational Foundation, Inc
Copyright Vepachedu Educational Foundation Inc., 2007.  All rights reserved.  All information is intended for your general knowledge only and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for special medical conditions or any specific health issues or starting a new fitness regimen. Please read disclaimer.





Om! Asatoma Sadgamaya, Tamasoma Jyotirgamaya, Mrityorma Amritamgamaya, Om Shantih, Shantih, Shantih!
(Om! Lead the world from wrong path to the right path, from ignorance to knowledge, from mortality to immortality and peace!)
One World One Family





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