Health

The calorie principle →

Published July 9, 2015  ·  All posts on Jul 9  ·  

This entry is part 4 of 14 in the series John Briffa's "A Good Look at Good Health"

There are a number of potential mechanisms that explain why nuts may not be fattening which were explored in a recent review that appeared in the Journal of Nutrition recently. I’ve summarised them (along with one mechanism that is not discussed but I think is important) below:

Studies show that nuts tend to be effective at satisfying the appetite, which can mean that individuals just end up eating less of other foods. The percentage of calories that come from nuts that are compensated for by eating less of other foods varies from study to study, but comes in at around 70 per cent.

~ John Briffa from, «http://www.drbriffa.com/2008/10/06/why-the-evidence-on-nuts-and-weight-makes-a-mockery-of-the-calorie-principle/»

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Restricting your eating times →

Published July 4, 2015  ·  All posts on Jul 4  ·  ,

The reasons for these health benefits relate to the fact that the human body appears to be designed to thrive in a cycle of “feast and famine.” By imitating the ancestral conditions of cyclical nourishment, your body enters into a state of optimal functioning. Three major mechanisms by which fasting benefits your health include:

Increased insulin sensitivity and mitochondrial energy efficiency. […] Reduced oxidative stress. […] Increased capacity to resist stress, disease and aging.

~ Jeff Roberts from, «https://insights.collective-evolution.com/2015/02/05/why-restricting-your-eating-time-period-to-8-hours-will-transform-your-health-fitness/»

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Muscle loss during short-term fasting →

Published July 3, 2015  ·  All posts on Jul 3  ·  ,

This entry is part 2 of 3 in the series Ned Kock's "Health Correlator"

When the body is running short on glycogen, it becomes increasingly reliant on fat as a source of energy, sparing muscle tissue. That is, it burns fat, often in the form of ketone bodies, which are byproducts of fat metabolism. This state is known as ketosis. There is evidence that ketosis is a more efficient state from a metabolic perspective (Taubes, 2007, provides a good summary), which may be why many people feel an increase in energy when they fast.

~ Ned Kock from, Muscle loss during short-term fasting

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Exercise is the least important part of the equation →

Published July 2, 2015  ·  All posts on Jul 2  ·  

I looked at him and smiled and said, “Okay, then don’t exercise. Let’s deal with that a few months from now.” He replied with a face that looked something like this, and asked how I could possibly not recommend he start exercising if he wanted to lose weight.

My reply was simple: “I’m not interested in getting you to lose the most weight as quickly as possible. I’m interested in helping you get healthier, permanently.”

~ Steve Kamb from, Why Exercise is the Least Important Part of the Equation | Nerd Fitness

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Burnout →

Published June 30, 2015  ·  All posts on Jun 30  ·  ,

Karōjisatsu — Death from Overwork – IT Revolution

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Normally, I “pull quote” things and then include a link. But for this one I’m just going to say that this is a 5 minute read about burnout in the tech sector by John Willis.

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HIT improves… your body’s sugar handling? →

Published June 27, 2015  ·  All posts on Jun 27  ·  

This entry is part 3 of 14 in the series John Briffa's "A Good Look at Good Health"

In this particular study, individuals engaging in the ‘high intensity interval training’ (HIT) sprinted on a exercise bike with maximum effort for 30 seconds at a time with 4 mins of rest in between. 6 sessions were performed over a two-week period, with 4-6 ‘sprints’ in each session. I was interested to read a recently published study which used an identical exercise schedule. The focus here was not on fitness benefits, but on the impact HIT might have on individuals’ ability to handle sugar.

~ John Briffa from, «http://www.drbriffa.com/2009/01/30/short-bursts-of-high-intensity-activity-found-to-improve-bodys-ability-to-handle-sugar/»

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Bio →

Published June 23, 2015  ·  All posts on Jun 23  ·  , ,

Next up… start learning some bio.

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How to get rid of gallstones without surgery →

Published June 21, 2015  ·  All posts on Jun 21  ·  

This entry is part 25 of 25 in the series M. Eades' Blog

He replied that although the drug did dissolve gallstones, it didn’t treat whatever the underlying problem was causing the gallstones in the first place. Patients who took the drug, got rid of their stones, but as soon as they went off the drug, the stones redeveloped. He said the only effective permanent treatment of gallstones was to remove the gallbladder.

Over the next few years of my medical education, I learned this was the common wisdom on dissolving gallstones. It can be done, but what’s the point? The stones will simply come back.

Turns out, however, that there may well be a way to avoid surgery, get rid of gallstones and, most importantly, keep them gone.

~ Michael Eades from, «http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/low-carb-diets/get-rid-gallstones-without-surgery/»

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8,000 at 20 →

Published June 8, 2015  ·  All posts on Jun 8  ·  

This entry is part 2 of 14 in the series John Briffa's "A Good Look at Good Health"

Memorize this: “8,000 at 20”

That is: “8,000 steps at a 20-minute-mile walking pace.” I’ll explain below, but first…

The researchers involved in this study then looked at what levels of activity appeared to be associated with BENEFITS for PHYSICAL and MENTAL health. What they found was that improved physical health was seen in individuals taking 8,000 steps a day at [a certain] intensity.

The threshold above which there was an associated benefit for MENTAL health was lower: only 4,000 steps a day at [a certain] intensity.

~ John Briffa from, «http://www.drbriffa.com/2009/06/05/walking-may-be-ideal-exercise-as-we-age/»

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It’s not about how far you walk; Don’t worry about how long your legs are. It’s about how hard you are working when you walk. Basically, you need to do the steps at a level of exertion that is roughly 3 times you base metabolic rate; That is to say, the rate at which your body burns energy when you are sitting still doing nothing. The intensity this research points at is roughly a 20-minute-mile walking pace for average height/legs. This is faster than “I’m strolling” but well below “I’m late! speed walking”.

Just go walk for 45 minutes every day.

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What causes allergies and autoimmune disease? →

Published May 15, 2015  ·  All posts on May 15  ·  

The agent of our immunological misery is the disappearance of something we co-evolved with in a mutually beneficial relationships: microbes and parasites that have lived inside our bodies for millennia.

This new hypothesis is brilliantly summarized in a recent book by Moises Velasquez-Manoff: An Epidemic of Absence: A New Way of Understanding Allergies and Autoimmune Disease.

~ Todd Becker from, What causes allergies and autoimmune disease?

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