Health Tips - More on Tea

Scientists can't stop finding health benefits for tea. Tests at the University of Newcatle upon Tyne suggest that tea, and particularly green tea, may improve your memory and slow the onset of Alzheimer's.

A previous study in Chicago of people prone to tension headaches found that Caffeine along gave as much pain relief as Ibaprofen. And a team in Illinois found that polyphenols in black tea stop plaque forming on your teeth and reduce the level of cavity forming acids.

Flight Health

A university of California, San Franciseo, study reports we're at increased risk of catching cold and flu viruses during flights, due to the close quarters. Wash hands often, and if you are really worried, wear a protective mask that's labelled N95. It screens out 95 per cent of airborne particle. Researchers also found that bacteria such as E.Coli Known to cause diarrhoea and nausia, in the water from galleys and sinks in one of every seven planes.

Changes in air pressure in the cabin can such the eardrum inward, and that hurts. A decongestant clears nasul passeges so pressure does not build up.

When you sit for too long, blood pools in the legs and may lead to potentially deadly clots. Wear loose fitting clothes and walk around the cabin twice an hour.

Some fitness Myths

To lose weight I must eat less - False : If you eat more than you burn off you will get fat, but increasing your activity level is actually a better way to balance the equation than eating less. On a very low kilogoule diet your body goes into survival mode, slowing your metabolism and resorting to burning lean muscle.

Muscle turns to fat when you stop exercising -

False : Muscle and fat are different types of tissue and one cannot turn into the other.

But muscle consumes more kilogoules even when you are not exercising; so if you allowed your muscle mass to drop but ate the same amount you would store the excess kilojoules as fat.

Weight training builds unsightly bulk on women.

False : Women do not have enough testos-terone to develop popeye sized bulges. Only serious body-builders can get serious bulk.

Men cannot get cellulite, True : Because there is no such thing. "Cellulite is just ordinary body fat plus granity," says Catherine Geissler, professor of Human Nutrition at Kings College, London. It is more obvious in women because they carry extra fat in areas where skin says."

I am too busy to exercise, False : If you can't make time for the gym, try using the stairs instead of the lift. At home gardening or playing foot ball with the children will burn more kilojoules than a brisk walk for the same duration. If it is leaving you warmer and breathing more heavily, it is working. Lots of sit-ups will give me a 'six-pack", - Not necessarily". You won't get muscle definition unless you reduce over all body fat." says Nick Morgan of Lilleshall Human Performance centre.

You can sweat weight off in the sauna, not fat, you cannot : Any weight you lose is just water through seating and this must be replaced quickly.

Helping Bowels

Your digestive system seems to be out of control. Either you frequent the toilet or your stomach is tied in Knots. Your bowel movements are loose and runny or unusually hard.

If the above description seem familiar, you, probably, are suffering from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), the most common digestive disorder.

Upto 11 per cent of Asians experience symptoms of IBS. Unfortunately, most people are too embarrassed to seek help." Only 10 to 20 per cent of people with IBS seek medical care." says Phillippine gastro-enterologist Dr. Alenodoro R. Ruiz, Jr. Symptoms include constipation or diarrhoea after meals, over a period of several months, usually accompanied by abnormal cramps or bloating and increased intestinal gas.

The good news is that IBS is not life threatening. Ruiz offers the following tips to ease discomfort : Avoid foods that gas like potatoes, beans, legumes, broccoli, lentils an cabbage.

Eat a high fibre diet : Fibres increase stool production and reduce pressure in the intestine. Eliminate dairy products to see if your condition improves.

Have small, frequent meals and cut out fatty food like hamburgers, fries, ice cream and chocolate.

Drink lots of fluid to keep your bowels moving smoothly.

Avoid coffee : Caffeine, even in small amounts, stimules the bowel.