What’s that? Speak up! Obesity makes you what?
In addition to the numerous other health problems associated
with obesity, it seems that hearing may also suffer when the waistline expands.
Data collected over a 20-year period from 68,000 female
participants in the Harvard Nurses' Health Study showed that one in six of the
women suffered hearing loss during that timeframe.
A higher degree of hearing problems was reported by those
with higher BMI (Body Mass Index) than in women in the lower weight range.
Obese women (BMIs between 30 and 39) were 17 to 22 per cent
more likely to have experienced hearing loss than those with BMIs less than 25.
Extremely obese individuals (BMI over 40) were found to be 25 per cent more
likely to suffer hearing loss than ‘normal-weight’ women.
A similar correlation was also found between larger waist
circumference and hearing loss. The findings still held after researchers took
into account other factors known to affect hearing such as smoking, medication
and diet.
The researchers found that exercise appeared to lower the
risk of hearing loss, with women who walked for four or more hours each week
exhibiting a 15 per cent lower risk for hearing loss than those study
participants who walked for less than an hour a week.
Although no cause and effect was found between obesity and
hearing loss, the researchers did voice their theories.
‘The ear is highly metabolically active, so that means it's
really dependent on having adequate blood supply. Obesity and factors that
obesity brings on may compromise blood flow to the cochlea (the hearing chamber
of the inner ear)’ said study author Dr Sharon Curhan.
Commenting on the findings, Dr Michael Weitzman, a professor
of environmental medicine and paediatrics at New York University who previously
reported a link between obese teenagers and hearing loss, said ‘This is
intriguing to me, and it is worrisome. [The new study] supports what we found.
I think there's a reason to begin to think that this is a problem that's
associated with obesity. You might want obese kids or adults who have ...
academic problems to have their hearing checked.’
Source: American Journal of Medicine
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This year I want to be injury free
Something as simple as the way you stand can make you more
prone to injury – yet many of us pay little attention to our feet, the
masterpieces that enable us to get up and move. With more than 200,000 nerve
endings and more than 25 per cent of your body’s bones, it’s a very complex
system, with 70 per cent of the information your brain receives being sent via
your feet.
Movement is a skill, and the foundation of skilled movement
is proprioceptive feedback. Information from your skin, muscles and joints
(mainly in your feet) is fed back to the brain to allow your body to adapt to
the biomechanical loads and environmental cues experienced while moving.
By learning to walk (or stand for that matter) before you
run, you can help to enable your body and brain to fulfill their evolutionary
role: to walk and run efficiently, on demand and without injury throughout your
lifetime. Sounds simple right? So why are up to 80 per cent of us injuring
ourselves every year? The short answer is that we’ve forgotten how to run.
Australian Fitness Network footwear partners VIVOBAREFOOT
offer specialised one-day technique courses through their barefoot technique
certified coaches. Regarded as some of the world’s top coaches and leading
medical professionals in their own right, Mark Green (The Body Mechanic) and
Pete Garbutt (Enhance Running) offer one-on-one and group training clinics,
respectively. In just one session you will undergo gait assessment and
technique training that will give you the tools to help reduce injury and
improve efficiency by re-training your body into a natural movement. Register
your interest now at www.vivobarefoot.com.au
And remember that as a Network Member you receive 30 per
cent off the entire range of VIVOBAREFOOT shoes by entering promo code OZFITNET
at the checkout when purchasing at www.soledshoes.com.au.
Source: VIVOBAREFOOT
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Free pelvic floor exercise App released
The Continence Foundation of Australia has released a new,
free, safe-exercise app which aims to both prevent incontinence and enable
people already experiencing problems to continue to exercise without further
straining their pelvic floor or suffering embarrassing accidents.
The Pelvic Floor First app has three customised workouts to
cater for people with a range of fitness levels and pelvic floor strength. The
wide range of exercises have been designed by physiotherapist and fitness
instructor Lisa Westlake to ensure people enjoy the benefits of a total-body
workout without straining their pelvic floor.
Given the large numbers of people affected by incontinence
and the close association between inappropriate exercise and incontinence,
fitness professionals play a vital role in maintaining and improving clients’
pelvic floor function. Unfortunately, most people are too embarrassed to
discuss bladder or bowel control problems with health and fitness
professionals, so the app is a great way for instructors to raise the issue
with individual clients or in group activities to ensure they are pelvic floor
aware.
Features of the app include:
• Pelvic floor anatomy
• Where to get help with pelvic floor issues
• Instructional videos and audio for all workouts
• Detailed pictures and instructions for each exercise
• Pelvic floor muscle exercise guide
• Ability to save favourite exercises for personalised
workouts
• Ability to exercise to your favourite songs
• Links to useful websites to learn more about your pelvic
floor.
The Pelvic Floor First app is completely free, without the
need for in-app purchases to access different levels.
The app, based on the Continence Foundation of Australia’s
Pelvic Floor First website www.pelvicfloorfirst.org.au is suitable for smart
phones and tablets and can be freely downloaded from iTunes and Google Play –
so download it today and encourage your clients to do the same!
Source: Continence Foundation Australia
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Do friends influence your food choices?
A recent study review from the UK has highlighted the
influence that peers can potentially exert on each other with regards both the
type and quantity of food they choose to eat.
Lead investigator Eric Robinson from the University of
Liverpool, said: ‘The evidence reviewed here is consistent with the idea that
eating behaviours can be transmitted socially. Taking these points into
consideration, the findings of the present review may have implications for the
development of more effective public-health campaigns to promote healthy
eating’.
Analysing findings from 15 studies, Robinson and his team
found that people who believed that others were making either high or
low-calorie food choices were considerably more likely to make the same choice.
Similarly, those who believed that others were eating larger amounts of food
were found to be more likely to follow suit and load up their plate.
Robinson said: ‘It appears that in some contexts, conforming
to informational eating norms may be a way of reinforcing identity to a social
group.’
Interestingly, the influence was noticeable even when people
were not aware of the association, and when they were eating alone.
‘Norms influence behaviour by altering the extent to which
an individual perceives the behaviour in question to be beneficial to them.
Human behaviour can be guided by a perceived group norm, even when people have
little or no motivation to please other people’ said Robinson.
Source: Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
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Nutrition Tip from The Healthy Chef
CHIA SEEDS
Chia seeds are a delicious source of omega 3 EFA’s
(essential fatty acids) which are essential for good health. Benefits of omega
3 include helping to lower cholesterol levels, reduce high blood pressure,
improve symptoms of arthritis and improve mental health (as the brain is 60 per
cent fat and needs omega 3 to function properly). Chia works by slowing down
the digestion and absorption of carbohydrates in the system, enabling you to
stay satisfied for longer, without peaks in blood sugar. To incorporate chia
seeds into your diet, mix one part chia seeds with nine parts water and leave
it for about fifteen minutes to make a mixture with a gel-like consistency. Add
¼ cup of this chia gel, or 1 tablespoon of whole chia seeds, to any green juice
or power smoothie, such as the one below.
SUMMER CHERRY SMOOTHIE
Serves 1
Time it takes: 5 minutes
Ingredients
1 cup (150g) pitted cherries, frozen
¼ cup (30g) frozen raspberries
1½ cups (375ml) coconut water (or your choice of almond
milk, cashew milk, macadamia milk, walnut milk, pumpkin seed milk, natural
yoghurt or kefir)
2 tablespoons (28g) Healthy Chef Pure Native WPI or Organic
Pea Protein
1 tablespoon goji berries
1 tablespoon chia seeds
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract or paste
Combine cherries, raspberries, coconut water, protein, goji
berry, chia and vanilla into a high performance blender, e.g. Vitamix. Blend
until smooth and creamy. Pour into a serving glass or jar and enjoy. Leftovers
can be stored in glass jars in the fridge for an afternoon snack.
Nutrition per serve
Protein: 32g
Total fat: 2.9g
Saturated: 0.9g
Carbs: 24.3g
Fibre: 6.2g
Calories: 253
Kilojoules: 1060
Potassium: 1350
Notes:
Add 1 probiotic capsule for digestive support.
Add LSA or ground flaxseed in place of chia seed if
preferred.
Add 1 tablespoon cacao powder for a magnesium boost.
To powercharge your omega 3 intake use walnut milk in place
of coconut water.
For healthy recipes and nutrition tips from The Healthy Chef
visit www.thehealthychef.com
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