Alcohol and You

The amount of alcohol consumed in New Zealand is large in comparison with other countries and it is growing each year. One day you must make a decision. Will you drink alcoholic drinks?

A wise decision can only be made if you know the facts. Few people understand what happens when they drink alcoholic drinks. What effect does it have on:
behaviour
the body
other people?

What is alcohol?

Alcohol, technically known as ethanol, is a type of drug which can affect behaviour, the health of your body, and ultimately other people.

What happens to alcohol in the body?

Alcohol takes priority over other nutrients in digestion. It gets into the bloodstream fast and travels to all the organs of the body.

After a person drinks an alcoholic beverage, his or her blood concentration of alcohol rises rapidly. Alcohol is rapidly absorbed into the blood from all parts of the gastrointestinal tract. You have probably been warned, with good reason, not to drink on an empty stomach. Alcohol absorption depends partly on the rate of stomach emptying. Food slows the stomach's emptying rate and stimulates secretions, such as gastric acid, which dilute the alcohol and slow its absorption into the blood stream.

A social drinker who weighs 150 pounds and has normal liver function metabolites about 7 to 14 g of alcohol per hour (100 to 200 mg//kg of body weight per hour). This is about 8 to 12 ounces of beer or half an ordinary-sized drink. When the rate of alcohol consumption exceeds the liver's metabolic capacity, blood alcohol rises and symptoms of intoxication appear.

When a man and a woman of similar size drink the same amount of alcohol, the woman retains more alcohol in her blood stream. Women cannot metabolize as much alcohol in her stomach cell. They have lower amount of alcohol dehydrogenase. Women are also much quicker to develop alcohol-related ailment, such as cirrhosis of the liver, than men with the same drinking history.

The liver is the only organ which can process alcohol. It breaks down alcohol into energy components. This can only be done slowly, a little at a time. The rest must continue to circulate in the blood waiting its turn. Energy organ in the body is now 'at risk'.

Alcohol then goes on to affect the brain and nervous system more than any other organs. Acting as a sedative, alcohol tends to relieve the drinker's anxiety, caused slurred speech, reduce coordination in walking, impair judgement, and encourage inhibited behaviour. The mechanism of these effects is thought to be linked to changes in neurotransmitter synthesis and altered cell membrane fluidity in the brain. Because alcohol lowers inhibition, it appears to act as a stimulant, but in fact it is a powerful depressant. As William Shakespear wrote, "It stirs up desire, but takes away the performance." Because it reduces secretion of the body's antidiuretic hormone, alcohol increases urination. It also causes the blood vessels to dilate, releasing body heat.

Alcohol has an anaesthetic effect which causes a change in behaviour. Some will vaporise as the blood passes through the lungs. The 'breath' test relates to the amount of alcohol circulating in the blood.

Due to changes in hormone activity, more water is release into the urine, causing dehydration and thirst. This may prompt people to have yet another drink.

The effects of consistent heavy drinking may be:
Higher blood fat levels as alcohol is changed into energy components
Damage to some of these organs of the body-liver, oesophagus , stomach, intestines, pancreas, brain, heart.

How does alcohol affect behaviour?

Alcohol is a depressant, not a stimulant. Self confidence is increased only because judgement and sense of responsibility are decreased. The speed at which this happens depends on:
The strength of the drink.
The amount consumed.
Individual makeup, including size and weight.

Age-young people react more quickly than mature adults.
The sex of the drinker-women are affected more quickly than men.

This is what happens. Effects are listed in the order in which they occur.

1. The control centre in the brain is slowdown. Judgement is impaired. Instead of being 'pepped up', you are in fact being slowdown.
2. Speech and vision become blurred.
3. Muscle reflexes are slowed. They may be staggering, vomiting, and loud behaviour.
4. Breathing rate is slowed. Feeling of drowsiness increases.
5. Heart beat becomes slower. At this stage you may 'pass out'.
6. In extreme cases, body functions are completely paralysed, resulting in extreme body shock and death.

When intoxication happen?

As soon as alcohol is taken into the body faster than the body can handle it, alcohol circulating in the blood affects the brain, causing intoxication.
Alcohol and other drugs are a dangerous mix. If alcohol is taken with other drugs, the effects are multiplied many times. They are completely unpredictable and dangerous.

Alcohol and nutrition

Good nutrients can help the body handle alcohol. It cannot protect you against dangers arising from heavy drinking.

B group vitamins needed to release energy from fuel nutrients are used by the liver in the breakdown of alcohol. They are taken from food. They may not be available to process glucose to supply vital energy for the brain and nervous system. This supply may be depleted for several hours after drinking.

Excess energy components from the breakdown of alcohol are changed to fat and sent to the fatty tissue for storage. The alcohol you drink may put you on weight.
Many people who drink too much suffer from malnutrition. Essential nutrients are not absorbed as readily, and some are wasted in processing the alcohol.
Drinking a lot, especially before meals, means that appetite may be reduced for the nutritious foods.

Any one of us can become addicted if we drink long enough and hard enough.

Importance of Body Healthy pH

A food judges people by the presents they give him!!!

With today's busy lifestyle, it has become quintessential to protect your body's health. Pollution is also eating us away bit by bit. Sickness and disease connected with stress, depression and pressure connected with work and making money has become a trend nowadays. But working and making money is not an activity that we can just walk away from for the sake of our health.

Precarious eating habits are also not helpful to our body. What we put into our mouths can either help us get healthy or contribute to our body's demise. There are other things we should also watch on aside from sugar levels, blood pressure and cholesterol. It's about our bloods pH level.

Our bloods pH level is perhaps the single most important measurement we should watch on. Healthy blood pH is around 7.4, which is slightly alkaline; this level must be maintained in order for our body to function well. The maintenance of our bloods healthy pH level is essential to our body's functions. Functions which are affected with your pH level are blood flow, cell function, fat accumulation, and bone density.

The smoothness of our body's blood flow is determined by the electrical charge that is coated on each individual red blood cell. Each red blood cell is assigned a negative charge so that they will not attract each other, similar to what two magnets with similar poles do when you put them together. When your bloods pH level goes down, it means your blood has become acidic. What acidity does to your red blood cells is that it strips off that charge in each red blood cell; making the individual red blood cell stick together, forming clumps that make blood flow slower. Slower blood flow means lesser oxygen going to your body, dropping your performance.

If your blood is acidic its pH level is low, but if it is more alkaline, your pH level is high, if your blood has a higher pH level, that means you have a higher threshold of hydrogen ions. The presence of hydrogen ions halts muscle function, and the more that you have in your body, the more your muscle is bound to work slowly. Having a higher blood pH level means that your blood can accommodate more hydrogen ions before it begins to spread into the muscles and make it stop working. This means, that you can burn more energy while requiring less oxygen, allowing your body to tolerate the production of lactic acid more and enabling your body to perform things longer.

Hence, if you want youre an athlete who needs a boost or just a normal individual longing to increase your bodys performance, it is important that you watch for your bodys pH level. You can do this by taking a simple saliva test that can be done with some acid paper strips which can be bought at local drugstores.

Acidity in our body also destroys cells and makes us fat. Our body reacts very defensively at the presence of acids since it affects how our body functions. Rising acidity is harmful to the vital information storage centers in our cells, the RNA, which if occurs makes it possible for mutations, toxicity or even cancer to develop. When this threat is apparent, what our body does is to coat our cells with fatty tissues just to shield it from rising blood acidity, making us need more fat. So the more your blood becomes acidic, the more you become fat.

Rising blood acidity also lowers your bone density. The body tries so hard to regulate the body's pH level that it releases buffers to counter that acidity. Releasing buffers into the body is a good thing, but, how the body does it is not good for the bones. Each and every time your pH level drops, which means rising acidity levels, the body uses the calcium in your bones as buffers to maintain that crucial level of pH 7.4. This eventually lowers your bone density making you prone to osteoporosis and weak bone structure.

It's very hard to replenish calcium levels you have lost through supplying buffers, that is why you need a good source of alkaline to help make your blood more alkaline and supply buffers for your body. Green vegetables and fruits are a good source of alkaline, while meat and processed foods are acidic. A healthy diet will consist of 80% alkaline foods and around 20% acidic foods.

It's about time that you take good care of your body. Now that you know that what you eat can contribute a lot to how your body works and how it performs, isn't it about time that you give our utmost attention on your diet. Think about it, you will gain a lot if youbalance your lifestyle and diet, but you will certainly lose a lot if you do not start being conscious. So eat healthy and be wealthy.

Simple Steps toward Better Nutrition

Are You What You Eat?

When you decide which foods to eat and how to prepare them, your choices do much more than please your taste buds - they also affect your health.

Simple Steps toward Better Nutrition

Your nutrition determines the quality of your health and well-being. In straightforward terms, nutrition is the way you choose to nourish your body. Many people have poor nutrition for a variety of reasons, but fortunately, there are many simple methods to improve your nutrition quickly and easily.

Many of us lead busy lives, thus making it difficult to incorporate nutritious meals and activities in our lifestyles. While many people think this, it's entirely possible to painlessly make healthier and more nutritious choices every day. The following are three simple steps to better nutrition that can be achieved with no trouble.

The first simple step to better nutrition is to make healthier choices concerning your diet. This should come as no surprise, we've known for countless years the positive effects that a healthy diet can have on your body. It's important to change up your diet and include a variety of food groups. As always, it's important to eat an adequate amount of vegetables and fruits, they are natural and good for you.

You should avoid foods with trans fats and saturated fats and do your best to limit the sugar intake. When you're consuming carbohydrates and grains, always choose wheat over white. While it's obvious that you shouldn't eat fast food and drink soda, perhaps these little tips will put you on a road to a healthier diet.

Another important component of good nutrition is staying hydrated. Water is the purest and most natural liquid that we can drink without worrying about any harmful effects. Drinking water plays a huge part in a healthy diet plans as it helps clean our system of toxins and waste products that have built up especially in the kidneys and bladder.

Water also helps with body temperature regulation, the digestion process and the elimination of waste from the body. The advantages of drinking water are endless and it's one of the easiest things you can do to better your health and nutrition. (If you want to learn more about the benefits of water on health, please visit: http://foodnhealth09.blogspot.com/)

The last, but not least important tip for better nutrition is the daily intake of multivitamins. If it is necessary a couple of pills can be taken each day; however, bear in mind that vitamin nutrition can be found in many fruits and vegetables. They are full of vitamins and fiber, low in fat and contain little to no cholesterol. (If you want to learn how vitamins are important on health, please visit: http://foodnhealth09.blogspot.com/)

Health Benefits of Exercise

13 Scientifically Proven Health Benefits of Exercise

We've all heard it before, "Exercise is good for you because...." Having some exercise is better than none, more exercise is generally better than less, and no exercise can be disastrous. No one is asking for you to start a rigorous daily regimen, just do something.

How much exercise should I take?

To gain health benefits you should do at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise, on most days (at least 5 days per week). 30 minutes in a day is the minimum to gain health benefits. You can do all 30 minutes at once or break it up into 10- or 15-minute periods. Several short bursts of activity are thought to be just as good - and easier to fit into a busy schedule. Try to increase the overall amount to 40-60 minutes per day if you can.

Moderate exercise means that you get warm, mildly out of breath, and mildly sweaty. It doesn't have to be intense. Brisk walking is an ideal moderate-intensity activity. For the average person, a brisk walk means walking 3-4 miles an hour. However, a study published in 2003 suggests that the more vigorous the exercise, the better for health - particularly for preventing heart disease. Unfortunately, you can't 'store up' the benefits of exercise - you need to do it regularly.

What sort of exercise is best?
Anything that makes your heart rate increase, and makes you at least mildly out of breath. For example: brisk walking, jogging, swimming, cycling or dancing.

You can even use normal activities as part of your exercise routine - fairly heavy housework or gardening can make you out of breath and sweaty. Or how about a brisk walk to work, or to the shops, instead of using the car or bus.

What are the health benefits of exercise?

If you need motivation, here is a list of scientifically proven health benefits that regular exercise brings.

1. Longevity. People who are physically active live longer. According to a 20 year follow-up study, regular exercise reduces the risk of dying prematurely.
2. New brain cell development, improved cognition and memory. Exercise stimulates the formation of new brain cells. Researchers found that the areas of the brain that are stimulated through exercise are responsible for memory and learning. For instance, older adults who engage in regular physical activity have better performances in tests implying decision-making process, memory and problem solving. Exercise may leave you feeling happier and more relaxed than you were before you worked out. You'll also look better and feel better when you exercise.
3. Improved sexual function and better sex life. Regular exercise maintains or improves sex life. Physical improvements in muscle strength and tone, endurance, body composition and cardiovascular function can all enhance sexual functioning in both men and women. Researchers revealed that Exercise improves your circulation, which can lead to more satisfying sex. And men who exercise regularly are less likely to have problems with erectile dysfunction than are men who don't exercise, especially as they get older.
4. Exercise is a powerful antidepressant. Study after study has shown that exercise promotes mental health and reduces symptoms of depression. The antidepressant effect of regular physical exercise is comparable to the potent antidepressants like Zoloft. It may take at least 30 minutes of exercise a day for at least three to five days a week to significantly improve symptoms of depression.
5. Cardiovascular health. Lack of physical activity is one of the major risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. Regular exercising makes your heart, like any other muscle, stronger. A stronger heart can pump more blood with less effort. In other word, Exercise delivers oxygen and nutrients to your tissues. In fact, regular exercise helps your entire cardiovascular system — the circulation of blood through your heart and blood vessels — work more efficiently. Big deal? You bet! When your heart and lungs work more efficiently, you'll have more energy to do the things you enjoy.
6. Cholesterol lowering effect. Exercise itself does not burn off cholesterol like it does with fat; however, Regular exercise can help you prevent — or manage — high blood pressure. Your cholesterol will benefit, too. Regular exercise boosts high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or "good," cholesterol while decreasing low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or "bad," cholesterol. This one-two punch keeps your blood flowing smoothly by lowering the buildup of plaques in your arteries.
7. Prevention and control of diabetes. There is strong evidence from high quality studies that moderate physical activity combined with weight loss and balanced diet can confer a 50-60% reduction in risk of developing diabetes.
8. Blood pressure lowering. The way in which exercise can cause a reduction in blood pressure is unclear, but all forms of exercise seem to be effective in reducing blood pressure. Aerobic exercise appears to have a slightly greater effect on blood pressure in hypertensive individuals than in individuals without hypertension.
9. Reduced risk of stroke. Research data indicates that moderate and high levels of physical activity may reduce the risk of total, ischemic, and hemorrhagic strokes.
10. Weight control. Regular exercise helps to reach and maintain a healthy weight. If you take in more calories than needed in a day, exercise offsets a caloric overload and controls body weight. When you exercise, you burn calories. The more intensely you exercise, the more calories you burn — and the easier it is to keep your weight under control. So, take the stairs instead of the elevator. Better yet, turn off the TV and take a brisk walk. Dedicated workouts are great, but activity you accumulate throughout the day helps you burn calories, too.
11. Muscle strength. Health studies repeatedly show that strength training increases muscle strength and mass and decreases fat tissue.
12. Bone strength. An active lifestyle benefits bone density. Regular weight-bearing exercise promotes bone formation, delays bone loss and may protect against osteoporosis - form of bone loss associated with aging.
13. Better night sleep. If you suffer from poor sleep, daily exercise can make the difference. A good night's sleep can improve your concentration, productivity and mood. And, you guessed it, exercise is sometimes the key to better sleep. Regular exercise can help you fall asleep faster and deepen your sleep. The natural dip in body temperature five to six hours after you exercise might help you fall asleep.

Finally, 30 minutes of moderate-intensity activity a day is an excellent way to start, exercising longer, harder, or both can result in even greater health benefits.

How Much Sleep Do We Need?

How Much Sleep Do We Need?

We need sleep to live a healthy life. On average, we need around seven to eight hours of sleep a night. Most teens need about 8½ to more than 9 hours of sleep each night. The right amount of sleep is essential for anyone who wants to do well on a test or play sports without tripping over their feet. Excessive sleeping can cause illness.

Why Is Sleep Important?

This sleep deficit impacts everything from a person's ability to pay attention in class to his or her mood. Research shows that more than 20% of high school students fall asleep in class, and experts have been able to tie lost sleep to poorer grades. Lack of sleep also damages teens' ability to do their best in athletics.

Slowed responses and concentration from lack of sleep don't just affect school or sports performance, though. The fact that sleep deprivation slows reaction times can be life threatening for people who drive.

Lack of sleep has also been linked to emotional troubles, such as feelings of sadness and depression. Sleep helps keep us physically healthy, too, by slowing our body's systems enough to re-energize us after everyday activities.

Sleep benefits to our immune system, nervous system and development

Immune system. Sleep is essential to the immune system. Without adequate sleep, the immune system becomes weak, and the body becomes more vulnerable to infection and disease.

Nervous system. Sleep is also a time of rest and repair to neurons. Neurons are the freeways of the nervous system that carry out both voluntary commands, like moving your arm, and involuntary commands, like breathing and digestive processes.

Brain cellular repair, replenishment and growth. Recent studies have suggested that sleep downtime of the brain, so active during the day, may replenish dwindling energy stores that cells need to function, repair cellular damage caused by our busy metabolism, and even grow new nerve cells in the brain.

Hormone release. Many hormones, substances produced to trigger or regulate particular body functions, are timed to release during sleep or right before sleep. Growth hormones, for example, are released during sleep, vital to growing children but also for restorative processes like muscle repair.

Sleep deprivation and how it affects your life

How do you know if you’re getting the sleep you need? Sleep deprivation occurs when you are not sleeping the right amount for your individual needs. Signs you may be suffering from sleep deprivation include:

1. difficulty waking up in the morning
2. poor performance in school, on the job, or in sports
3. increased clumsiness
4. difficulty making decisions
5. falling asleep during work or class
6. feeling especially moody or irritated

Sleep deprivation can be dangerous not only to you but others, since it affects motor skills like driving. Chronic sleep deprivation is also thought to cause long term changes to the body, which contribute to increased risk for obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

Find out how much sleep you need

So how much sleep do you need? A rule of thumb is to consider how you normally feel after sleep. Do you feel refreshed and alert, or groggy and exhausted? If you don’t feel refreshed, chances are you’re not sleeping enough. Sleep requirements are highly individual and depend on many factors:

1. your age and genetic makeup
2. what you do during your waking hours, including exercise
3. the quality of your sleep
4. Typical Sleep Needs
5. Group

Amount of Sleep Need

Infants: About 16 hours per day of sleep

Babies and toddlers: From 6 months to 3 years: between 10 and 14 hours per day. Infants and young children generally get their sleep from a combination of nighttime sleep and naps.

Children:
Ages 3 to 6: between 10 and 12 hours of sleep
Ages 6 to 9: about 10 hours of sleep
Ages 9 to 12: about 9 hours of sleep

Teenagers: About 9 hours of sleep per night. Teens have trouble getting enough sleep not only because of their busy schedules, but also because they are biologically programmed to want to stay up later and sleep later in the morning, which usually doesn’t mesh with school schedules.

Adults: For most adults, 7 to 8 hours a night appears to be the best amount of sleep.

Older adults: Older adults are also thought to need 7-8 hours of sleep. However, this sleep may be for shorter time spans, is lighter than a younger adult’s, and may include a nap during the day.

Pregnant women: During pregnancy, women may need a few more hours of sleep per night, or find that they need small catnaps during the day.

Getting the sleep you need

How can you make sure you get the sleep you need? A few extra hours here and there if you are sleep deprived might make you feel better for a short time. But it won’t get you the quality sleep you need for the best health. To consistently meet sleep requirements for both deep sleep and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, you need to set the stage for good sleep on a daily basis. This involves:

1. improving your daytime habits
2. creating a better sleep environment
3. avoiding food and drink that might interfere with sleep
4. developing a good bedtime routine
   

Food and Health Advice

1. Start with exercise. A healthy diet is built on a base of regular exercise, which keeps calories in balance and weight in check.
2. Focus on food, not grams. The Healthy Eating Pyramid doesn’t worry about specific servings or grams of food, so neither should you. It’s a simple, general guide to how you should eat when you eat.
3. Go with plants. Eating a plant-based diet is healthiest. Choose plenty of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and healthy fats, like olive and canola oil.
4. Cut way back on American staples. Red meat, refined grains, potatoes, sugary drinks, and salty snacks are part of American culture, but they’re also really unhealthy. Go for a plant-based diet rich in non-starchy vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. And if you eat meat, fish and poultry are the best choices.
5. Take a multivitamin, and maybe have a drink. Taking a multivitamin can be a good nutrition insurance policy. Moderate drinking for many people can have real health benefits, but it's not for everyone. Those who don’t drink shouldn’t feel that they need to start.

In general, if you want to eat a healthy diet, the following 8 tips can help you. They focus on practical steps you can take to make healthier choices, whether you're planning a meal, or picking up a snack.

1. Base your meals on starchy foods

2. Eat lots of fruit and veg

3. Eat more fish

4. Cut down on saturated fat and sugar

5. Try to eat less salt - no more than 6g a day

6. Get active and try to be a healthy weight

7. Drink plenty of water

8. Don't skip breakfast

Nutritional Advice

All fruits and vegetables offer outstanding health benefits. Nutritional research shows that each one contains its own set of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and other important nutrients. To get the maximum health benefits, experts recommend eating a variety of fruits and vegetables along with other natural foods.

How Much Water to Drink per Day

There are a variety of reasons to drink plenty of water each day. Adequate water intake prevents dehydration, cleans out the body, and promotes healing processes. Substituting water for beverages high in calories can also help control weight.

There is no clear-cut answer as to how much water to drink per day, because it depends upon a number of factors like your health condition, your activity status etc. On an average daily basis, we tend to lose quite a lot of water through sweating, exhaling and urinating. It is here that it becomes necessary to consume more water, so as to make up for the loss.

Your water intake also depends on the place where you are living and the climatic conditions over there. In hot humid weather, there arises a need to consume extra quantities of water, because there is a major loss of water through sweating that puts you at a risk of getting dehydrated. In cold season or at higher altitudes, you tend to urine more often, thus leading to a greater amount of fluid loss in the body.

Health conditions also determine your water intake. In case you are suffering from health problems like fever, vomiting and diarrhea, then it leads to excessive body fluid loss. Pregnant women also need to drink more water, as they are at a higher risk of getting dehydrated. So, drink loads of water throughout the day to keep fit and healthy.

You've probably heard the "8 by 8" rule - drink eight 8-ounce glasses of water per day (2 quarts, 1.8 liters) - but the amount of water a person needs varies depending on his or her weight and activity level. Another way to determine your specific recommended water intake is to divide your weight (in pounds) by two. The resulting number is the number of ounces of water you need each day. For example, if you weigh 150 lbs., strive to drink 75 ounces of water daily. For those who use the Metric system, divide your weight (in kilograms) by 30 (ex. somebody weighing 70 kg is going to need 2.3 liters per day). Keep in mind that these recommended intake numbers are controversial and some experts believe they are a gross exaggeration.

It has been emphasized that large intakes of fluid, equal to and greater than 8 x 8, are advisable for the treatment or prevention of some diseases, such as kidney stones, as well as under special circumstances, such as strenuous physical activity, long airplane flights or hot weather.

Despite the dearth of compelling evidence, then, what's the harm? The fact is that, potentially, there is harm even in water. Even modest increases in fluid intake can result in "water intoxication" if one's kidneys are unable to excrete enough water (urine). Such instances are not unheard of, and they have led to mental confusion and even death in athletes, in teenagers after ingesting the recreational drug Ecstasy, and in ordinary patients.

If you want to learn more how important the water is, please click the link below.
http://www.rfa.org/khmer/search?search_text%3Autf8%3Austring=water+cure