We’re making plans to visit our daughter and family for Thanksgiving and I already noticed the fleeting moments of stress and negative thinking. The thoughts are not about anything concrete – merely anxious moments about what might happen. This post is a reminder to me to manage my stress and a heads up for those of you who sometimes find the holidays difficult

First of all keep in mind that heavy meals and constant snacking will take a toll on you physically. Add stress to that and you will feel tense. The chances are good you aren’t on any sort of schedule so exercise may move to the bottom of your priorities especially if you are spending time visiting and not getting much sleep.

Then there’s the time pressure of how do you visit with everyone in the short span of time that you’re in town or when they’re visiting you. Time pressure, stress, lack of exercise and overindulgence in good and drink – enough ingredients to make a perfect recipe for a holiday season sick in bed.

The good news is you can pre-empt holiday stress and blues. Read the rest of this entry

One of the best known of a group of chemicals called fruit acids or alphahydroxy acids (AHA) is glycolic acid. It’s derived from sugar cane so it’s considered a natural product just as citric acid from oranges and other citrus fruits.

Most of us know glycolic acid for its cosmetic purposes as a natural skin exfoliant and moisturizer because of its high acidity. What you may not know is that industrial uses for the product include rust removal and degreasing but that’s in concentrations of 70% or better which would be extremely dangerous to anyone exposed to the ingredient. In fact, the government considers any product with a concentration of glycolic acid over 10% to be a hazardous material which is why your cosmetic products usually offer less than a 10% glycolic acid concentration.

Glycolic acid works as an exfoliating agent because of its high acidity but is easily soluble in water.  When you put an exfoliating cream or gel on your skin, the glycolic acid goes under the upper layers of skin and destroys the material which holds dead skin to the surface. This dead skin is chemically burned off, the other ingredients in the acid carry the individual flakes away and a rinse with water neutralizes the remaining acid. All of which results in a much smoother skin surface and more youthful appearance.

Another benefit from glycolic acid is its ability to draw moisturizers into the newly exfoliated skin surface. That is why you will often find a complete system of skin care sold with a glycolic product because the other products contain moisturizers and neutralizers to counteract the more corrosive actions of the glycolic acid.

You need to be careful of exposing yourself to the sun even when you use the cosmetic version because the glycolic acid leaves the skin especially sensitive to the sun. You should be using sunscreen as part of your daily routine, but when you used a winkle cream with glycolic acid you can actually damage your skin.

Customers who want a more complete exfoliation often opt for what is called a chemical peel. Usually a chemical peel involves a scrubbing of the skin followed by an application of a powerful AHA such as glycolic acid. Concentrations of glycolic acid may be as high as 50 % or more.  As a result, a patient will look like he has a sunburn after a chemical peel.  It takes a couple of days to recover completely which means staying out of the sun for that time. Most patients say they have little discomfort and the results are worth the inconvenience.

Still another use of glycolic acid recommended for some is to prevent skin cancer. Glycolic acid peels are taken on a regular basis to exfoliate the actinic keratosis, a scaly patch of skin usually caused by too much exposure to the sun and considered a precursor for basal cell and squamous skin cancer.

As with any other acid, glycolic products should be kept in the correct storage conditions and kept somewhere where kids can’t get to them.

Some consider glycolic acid a miracle ingredient and the next best thing to the Fountain of Youth. Do you have any thoughts on this? Have you used products with glycolic acid. I welcome your comments.

To your success at healthy aging,

Ruthan

Anti wrinkle Skin Care Secrets
http://ruthanbrodsky.com
http://fromretirementtocareerchange.com

Spending money on products that you believe will help you look younger is an expense for both women and men. If you haven’t thought much about your skin and the wrinkles around your mouth or the crow’s feet near your eyes, but now you’re looking to re enter the work force, chances are you will start paying attention to those battle scars of getting older.

I love listening and watching the ads on TV informing us about this or that product that promises to make us look 20 years younger. I still can’t figure out how a cream can get rid of the jowls under your chin or the loose skin around your neck.

To determine whether a wrinkle cream works, you first have to ask yourself what are your expectations for the cream? If you think the cream will get rid of all your wrinkles, the product is not going to work for you.  No cream can do that.

If you’re looking for a face lift in a bottle, that’s not going to happen either o matter what the ads read.  However, the research does suggest that you may slightly improve the appearance of your skin depending upon how long you use the product and the type of the active ingredient in the cream.

Retin-A

Retin-A is probably the best thing you can do for your skin, no matter your age, along with using a reliable non-allergic moisturizer.  It happens to be a prescription medication for retinoic acid which has few side effects, up or down.

Retin-A accelerates the natural removing of the outer layer of your skin. Your skin is constantly turning over. Cells migrate to the top and then are eventually shed. It’s those cells at the top layer that give your skin the older and weather beaten look. Retin A removes that layer so that the next layer of skin shows which is smoother and doesn’t have the characteristics of older skin such as those aging brown spots. Retin a should be used nightly and covered with a moisturizer because the ingredient does dry out your skin.

Retinol is a vitamin A compound and is the first antioxidant used in a nonprescription wrinkle cream. Antioxidants are the substances that neutralize free radicals such as unstable oxygen that breaks down the skin cells and cause wrinkles. Retinol is less potent than the vitamin A derivative tretinoin, which happens to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration for treating wrinkles.  Tretinoin, however, is only available in prescription.

Your next line of defense is the exfoliants which are not prescriptive. More about  those in my next post.

What do you think about wrinkle creams? Do you think they work? Type your answer under comments and let me know if you want me to share them with the other readers.

I recommend reading and using the information in this book if you’re interested in a more natural way to improve the appearance of your skin: Leon’s Anti-Aging Beauty Secrets

To your success at healthy aging,

Ruthan

http://ruthanbrodsky.com

http://fromretirementtocareerchange.com

Most of us believe that the older we are the more tired we will be.

News Flash!  Lack of energy is not necessarily a normal part of aging.

Feeling tired all the time can be a sign of serious health problems, however. The fact is if you are tired all the time so that you spend most of your day sitting on a sofa you need to see a doctor and let her tell you why you’re tired.

I learned this fact when I did my course work in gerontology. So much of those studies did focus on health issues and explanations of what was fact and what was pure myth. There have been studies throughout the years that repeatedly support this fact, the latest one taking place at Columbia University Medical Center and published in the July 2008 issue of Journal of Gerontology.

Here are other conclusions reported by the study:

• Fatigue or anergia as the medical term is noted is more common in women than men.

• It is more common in unmarried men and women.

• Patients who reported lack of energy had more impaired functions such as being more depressed, in pain, hearing problems, dizziness and isolation.

Part of the problem is that patients usually tell their physician that they don’t feel well and they don’t have much energy rather than describing any possible underlying causes. It is up to the physician to ask questions and determine if anergia is the result of a heart or kidney dysfunction, arthritis, lung disease, anemia and depression. It may even be a side effect from a medication.

What is probably the most important symptom for me is that 40 percent of adults with heart failure report anergia as a symptom of heart failure. It is also a major symptom of depression for people of all ages.

If you respond yes to these statements, my advise is to make an appointment with your doctor:

• I haven’t had much energy recently.

• My slowness is worse in the morning.

• I wake up feeling tired.

I nap more than 2 hours during the day.

You may want to make the same suggestion to your friends and family if they seem to be constantly tired.

To your success at healthy aging.

Ruthan

Ruthan Brodsky
Copywriter & Content Marketer
Freelance Business & Health writer

http://ruthanbrodsky.com

http://fromretirementtocareerchange.com

Researchers are just beginning to figure out how thousands of different compounds in one plant may interact with each other and with other plants. They are also learning how the concentration of a particular plant chemical affects its potency. For instance, peppermint tea is safe to drink, but peppermint oil, which is used for irritable bowel syndrome and indigestion, can be toxic if taken in high doses.

Some of you may also realize that the potency of wild plants varies even among themselves which is why many researchers are growing their own plants for study.  In either case, Consumer Lab tests supplement brands for quality and says it finds problems with 25% of all supplements especially with herbal products that ingredients from overseas. The difference is herbal and other supplements don’t require regulatory approval like prescription drugs which need to be tested in clinical trials and approved by the FDA before they can be marketed.

Now the federal government is stepping up research into the safety and effectiveness of a wide range of over-the-counter supplements. The purpose is to understand how compounds in the plants affect health and to help consumers make better educated decisions about supplements which can interact with their prescription drugs and cause serious side effects.

One of the problems is because they are natural, people feel supplements must be safe. Many use supplements for which they weren’t intended after diagnosing themselves for a certain condition. For instance, a current concern is the heavy use of black cohosh used by women to treat menopause. The problem is not enough is known about the herb even though it has been linked in some patients to liver damage.

This August the National Institutes of Health awarded grants totaling about $27 million to five dietary supplement research centers expanding the program that was already receiving  $250 million since 2002. The NIH is also funding research into botanical products through the National Cancer Institute which wants to find out how herbal ingredients can increase or decrease the risk of cancer.

A few of the recent findings from all this research:

• Chamomile capsules may help reduce anxiety compared to a placebo;
• An extract from the milk thistle plant can interfere with the life cycle of the hepatitis C virus;
• Ginkgo biloba does NOT prevent heart attack, stroke, or cancer or stem memory loss;
• St. John’s wort is no better than a placebo in treating symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in children and teens.

There is so much we have to learn about what nature has provided us. It promises to be an exciting journey.  In the interim, let’s all become better informed consumers and learn what we can about supplements before taking them. So much of our food is already fortified with vitamins and minerals we could be over dosing one or two vitamins without knowing it. More importantly, if you’re on medication, check with your physician to make sure that the supplement you want to take doesn’t interfere with your meds.

To your healthy aging,

Ruthan

Ruthan Brodsky

http://ruthanbrodsky.com

http://fromretirementtocareerchange.com

Contaminants, such as trace amounts of lead, were found in most of the dietary supplements tested in a Congressional investigation this past May.  The investigators also found that some supplement sellers also made illegal claims that their product cures cancer and other diseases.

The investigation was part of the effort of several consumer groups to get a bill through congress that would toughen the regulations of supplement manufacturers. The levels of heavy medals, such as mercury, cadmium and arsenic, did not exceed levels considered dangerous.

The bad news, however, is that 16 of the 40 supplements tested contained pesticide residues that did exceed allowable levels. For some of those found, the amount was not known to be dangerous or not because the government hasn’t set down the allowable levels of those pesticides since there isn’t enough research.

Investigators also found that 9 or 10 of the products made illegal health claims including a product containing ginkgo biloba that was labeled as a treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. There was also a product containing ginseng that was labeled as a treatment to prevent diabetes and cancer. The investigators also told of a salesperson at a vitamin store who told them garlic could be taken in place of her blood pressure medication.

The point here is that products are considered to be drugs if they claim to treat, cure, prevent or improve treatment. Every drug must go through strict regulatory reviews and tests.

The supplement industry has strong and powerful lobby groups which are working to dilute the bill if not cancel it altogether. Keep in mind that dietary supplements are a big business amounting to over $25 billion a year in revenues. At least half of the US adult population takes some type of dietary supplement. This amounts to $1100 a year spent on supplements by every American.

It is up to the Food and Drug Administration to oversee that supplements are safe and health claims substantiated. In spite of recent report by Consumer Labs which reported that more than 25 percentage of supplement manufacturers had quality problems ranging from inadequate quantities of the ingredients that are listed and many contained heavy metal. It was also reported an increase in the amount of imported supplements from China spiked with illegal drugs.  In spite of this information, the FDA reassures us that the trace amounts of minerals are not unsafe and everything is okay.

A representative of a trade association representing the dietary supplement industry responded that is was not surprising that herbal supplements contain trace amounts of heavy metals because they are found in the soil and plants.

More about herbal supplements facing renewed scrutiny for my next post. I welcome your comments.

To your successful healthy aging,

Ruthan

Ruthan Brodsky
Copywriting & Content Marketing
Freelance Health & medical Writer
http://secretstohealthandaging.com
http://ruthanbrodsky.com

Supplements that claim cures should be raising red flags on your computer.
You already know the dance: If it’s too good to be true, it probably is.

It is so easy to assume that any product that promises to help you lose weight, relieve cold symptoms, boost your immune system or reduce your joint pain has been approved by federal regulators just like prescription drugs. The occasional headline s in the last 2 years tell you differently.

In May 2009 the US Food and Drug Administration or FDA announced a recall of 14 diet aid products because of reported liver damage and one death in 2007 associated with the dietary supplements. That was the Hydroxycut brand. In April that same year the FDA warned to stop using Zicam intranasal cold-remedies because there were 130 reports of people losing their sense of smell. It had to do with the products containing zinc because zinc can be toxic to nasal nerve receptors.

If you believe that being a savvy consumer is important to where you are now in your life then you should know this regulation distinction about supplements although it may surprise you.  Diet pills and other dietary supplements, ranging from ordinary vitamins to herbal mixes are governed by the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of DSHEA of 1994.  Treatments such as Zicam, on the other hand, are treated as homeopathic drugs under the 1938 Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.  In both cases, however, and unlike prescription drugs, manufacturers are responsible for insuring that their products are safe. The government does not review the products’ claims before the packages hit the shelves.

That means when something goes wrong there is a huge impact because the product is on the shelf already. For instance, regulators didn’t know about the man who died in 2007 from the diet pill until 2009. Reporting any incidents is strictly volunteer. What’s more, supplement producers aren’t required to give the FDA precise ingredient formulas so if someone dies no one know if it were one ingredient or a combination of ingredients.

Until 2007 over-the-counter product and dietary supplement manufacturers were not required to report the adverse events to the FDA.  Zicam cold remedies settle 340 lawsuits in 2006 from people who claim loss of smell.

Part of the problem is that people who do suffer side effects tell their physicians or the manufacturer of the product rather than contacting the FDA. My advice if you’re interested in making  your adverse effect count. You can use the agency’s on line MedWatch reporting system at
http://www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

In the meantime part of the new regulations is that supplement producers are now required to test all their dietary ingredients in their products to make sure they are not contaminated. Based on recent headlines, that’s not working so well either.

Mind you, I’m not advising to stop taking supplements. I am recommending that you stay updated with what is going on in the supplement industry.

More on supplement contamination in my next post.

To your healthy aging,

Ruthan

Ruthan Brodsky
Copywriter & Content Marketer
http://ruthanbrodsky.com

In my last post I wrote about the healing aspects that a pet can have on his owner. There are also many psychological benefits. One of them is that many people are able to relax when animals are present. Tests show that there is a decrease in the heart rate and blood pressure when people are with their pets. Even watching fish swim in an aquarium can be calming.

I’ve also read that some people feel a spiritual fulfillment or sense of oneness with life and nature when they are with their pets. Authors have described their relationships with animals and nature as part of sustaining their life energy.

Pets’ soothing effects have been clinically observed and the results published. One researcher concluded that animals help humans relax by reducing their primitive fight or flight response. This is a biological reaction which floods the bloodstream with adrenaline to sharpen the senses in dangerous situations. It’s the response that helped prehistoric men out of the jaws of the saber tooth tiger.

Other studies show that seniors who share their days with an animal companion are less likely to be depressed, enjoy a larger social circle and are more active than those who don’t have pets. All of this certainly makes sense when you understand that 99 percent of pet owners regard their animals as family members.

Based on my experience pets are a natural conversation starter. When I am out walking if a dog shows me even the smallest interest of curiosity I am eager to pet that dog. People with dogs are approachable and I estimate that I end up talking to complete strangers 75 percent of the time. A British research study found that 40 percent of dog owners say they do make friends more easily as a result of having a dog.

Another study found that men with AIDS were less likely to suffer from depression when they owned a pet. Pets help fight depression and isolation, promoting an interest in life. The same guidelines hold for seniors. When they face adversity or extreme stress, the unconditional love from their pets becomes very meaningful and their bonding behavior seems to foster a sense of security.

The advice health professionals give frequently is to consider a pet companion for someone who has been grieving or is becoming more isolated. Talk to your local hospital or veterinarian about agencies in your local area that are accredited to train therapy dogs and companion dogs.

Then tell us what you know about therapy dogs and your favorite story.

To your healthy aging,

Ruthan

Ruthan Brodsky
Copywriter & Content Marketer
http://ruthanbrodsky.com
http://secretstohealthandaging.com

There is always one or two people and at least one couple who are walking their dog when I walk – regardless of the time or day or even the weather. It was raining this week-end and I still saw people and dogs walking. Mind you, it wasn’t storming but everyone was getting wet. (I was walking with an umbrella.)

Owners of dogs, cats, horses and probably other pets although I can’t imagine what they may be, have proclaimed for years that their pet has this magical ability to make them feel better. No matter how bad the day at the office or even how much the pain, the comfort of petting a purring cat or scratching a dog’s tummy brings a smile and sense of comfort.

It’s official now. The term companion animals and therapy dog are designated to those pets who help heal people with heart disease, get through to children with autism, and even benefit couples in marriage counseling. These companion animals have demonstrated their unique ability to calm, revitalize and brighten moods. There are dozens of published reports in peer review journals of Alzheimer’s patients in nursing homes becoming more responsive and cooperative when they’re visited by the home mascot. There are case studies of autistic kids exhibiting more social behaviors around dogs.

Just in case you’re not convinced here are some other research findings:
·  Seniors with pets visit the doctor 20 percent fewer times
·  Heart-attack patients with pets have a better chance of their first year survival following a heart attack.
·  Pet owners have lower cholesterol and triglycerides
·  Owners who walk their dogs are in better shape
·  Children wit pets are more active in sports and hobbies and tend to have a higher cognitive ability.
·  Infants raised with pets have fewer cases of adult asthma
·  Families with pets report their life is happier.

What’s even better is that many pet owners are convinced that their pets read their moods and demonstrate empathy.

What is important to me is the concrete evidence that pets not only help maintain our physical health but they can sooth our mood, engage our minds and left our spirits. What more could you ask for in your quest for healthy aging?

I’d love to read your special pet stories. You can send them to me in the comment box and I’ll reply or include as many as I can in the next posts. Share your stories! Who doesn’t like a miracle?

To your successful aging.

Ruthan Brodsky
Health & Business Writer
Copywriter

http://ruthanbrodsky

Stress is a major issue in the U.S. I believe I can say safely, without knowing all the facts, that stress reduction along with anger management is a part of every corporate wellness program in the states.

In my last 2 posts I wrote about stress reduction with mindfulness. We have all had our mindlessness moments when there’s a loss of awareness and we forget something, run through a red light, almost separate from ourselves and feel like we’re living mechanically and time rushes past. Restoring a balanced sense of health and well being does require mindfulness because we need to be aware of all aspects of our body and our mind, as well as our hearts.

It isn’t difficult to incorporate mindfulness into your daily life. It doesn’t take much time. The most difficult part, at least for me, was to remember to do it and keep doing it. It means setting a few minutes a side to meditate and if you’ve taken the class to practice your mindfulness exercises in the morning before you start the day and at night before you go to bed.

If you have ever practice yoga, you know the exercises. If you are brand new to all this check out your local hospital and see what they have to offer or sign up for a beginning yoga class. You will learn the concept of the yoga breath which is an important basic of mindfulness stress reduction.

In the meantime try these 4 techniques to reducing stress:

1.    Power Off

Set healthy boundaries for yourself to help alleviate stress which means setting technology boundaries. Some say we have an addition today with people on their cell phones and e-mails. Don’t get me wrong; technology’s a good thing but not when you require 24/7 contact.

2.    Learn to quiet your mind.This is easier said than done because we are on overload when it comes to information,.  I wrote about meditating in my last post which can help get through some of those piles of information.
3.    Turn off the TV and your video games
Both of these are great sources for entertainment but it can become an opiate. I am a big fan of PBS and a few of the other channels but too much of something is too much and zaps our time and energy.

4.    Practice compassion.
I heard others describe compassion or love as a technique for reducing stress and I’m become a big fan. Practicing random acts of kindness is something I try to do, albeit on a small scale, but it works for me. Other ways to arrive at a place of balance is to spend more time with your family and friends. It’s probably time you acknowledged your relationship with some of your friends instead of staying isolated on the computer.

None of these are quick fixes to reducing stress but practiced consistently you will get positive results.

And before I forget again, check out this digital book on reducing your stress.  Click on this link to check it out: Reduce Stress, Depression and Anxiety I will receive a commission should you purchase the book.

To your success at healthy living.

Ruthan

Ruthan Brodsky
Copywriter & Content Marketer
Health & Business Writer
http://ruthanbrodsky.com
http://fromretirementtocareerchange.com