Debbie Mandel’s
Turn On Your Inner Light
Weekly Wellness Newsletter
November 14, 2004
www.TurnOnYourInnerLight.com


Affirmation of the Week
 A giant oak
is an acorn
that held its ground.
Weekly Wellness Radio Show

The Turn On your Inner Light Radio Show airs Tuesday evenings 7:00 to 7:30pm, on WGBB 1240AM in Long Island. Listeners outside the Long Island area can listen to the show live by going to WGBB Live. The shows are archived for your listening pleasure.

Guest of the Week - Dr. Michael Stein

On November 16, 2004 - Dr. Michael Stein, a Professor of Medicine at Brown University, and author of This Room is Yours, a novel about care-giving for a mother with Alzheimer’s

Health Tips of the Week

  • Older overweight women have another compelling reason to shed excess pounds. A new study shows that older overweight women significantly increase their risk of acute leukemia. An impaired immune system is to blame. Obesity has already been implicated in breast and colon cancers.
  • Chronic sleep deprivation may be part of America's obesity problem. Lack of sleep has a bad effect on the "appetite control" hormone leptin. During periods of sleep deprivation, low leptin levels tell the brain there is a shortage of food and therefore increase appetite. Researchers feel that less than seven hours of sleep can trigger the appetite.
  • Aricept, a drug used in treating Alzheimer's disease, might improve memory and mental function in some people with multiple sclerosis. Roughly 50% of all MS patients experience problems with memory and thinking, making this a leading cause of disability from the disease, which currently has no cure.
  • If you hate fish – good news! A healthy dose of flaxseed oil (2 capfuls) or a handful of walnuts may provide enough alpha-linolenic acid to help keep you heart smart.
  • Eating white bread is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes. By the way sugar was not implicated.
  • Taking Vitamin E supplements from 400mg and up may be harmful to your health. Get your Vitamins from nutrient dense foods. Common food sources of Vitamin E are vegetable oils, nuts, green leafy vegetables, and fortified cereals.
  • This is important to note: People presenting with chest pains often end up in the emergency room and then released with a clean bill of health. However, researchers find that a significant number of these people suffer heart attacks, or other cardiac problems within 30 days. Some even needed surgery and others died. ERs can do better by taking into consideration family history, high cholesterol, diabetes and other indicators of heart problems. If the patient history fits, you must admit!

Article of the Week -
How to Deal with Grief - Don't Rush the Process

The Latin root of adversity means to turn or pay attention to. When we experience adversity, we should follow the advice of its literal meaning and pay attention to, become mindful of the body's emotional signals. When we grieve, we should let these emotional signals speak to us and accept them. Too often we are in a hurry to deal with grief. Sometimes when we mourn, those around us feel uncomfortable. "How long are you going to mourn your mother? She was old and ill. This is the natural order." As a response, we begin to suppress our feelings, numb them and put on a happy face for others even though there is a hole in our heart.

The last thing we want to do is to surrender to the grief, to the emotional pain. After all, who wants to be in pain? However, it is the best thing that we can do. Pain is not a bad thing. Without the sensation of pain, we might not realize the need to withdraw our hand from the fire. Allowing ourselves to feel makes us powerfully human and ultimately protects us. Ironically, when we grieve, we expand our heart instead of constrict it in a knot of unresolved despair. We let our grief flow out. We are challenged to do better and to be more compassionate as we connect to others to help us process what has happened. More
Frank Mikulka's Fitness Tip Of The Week
I have been training consistently for a number of years. I am always looking for new movements for the changes my muscles need. A huge guy was working out his chest with a reverse-grip hand position. I asked him about the grip. He said that it hit his inner-pectorals in such a way that it’s made the difference in his chest gains. Is this true? (Lenny, Bellmore) Answer

Send your fitness question to: fitness@turnonyourinnerlight.com

Debbie Eisenstadt Mandel, MA is the author of Turn On Your Inner Light: Fitness for Body, Mind and Soul, a stress-reduction specialist, motivational speaker, a personal trainer and mind/body lecturer. She is the host of the weekly Turn On Your Inner Light Show on WHLI 1100 AM in Long Island and has been featured on radio/ TV and print media.

To learn more: www.turnonyourinnerlight.com