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IntegrativeHealth

Artichoke For a Healthy Heart

by Elizabeth Barker

Artichoke For a Healthy Heart

An extract of artichoke leaf—typically used to soothe indigestion or irritable bowel syndrome—may help keep your cholesterol in check, recent research from the University of Reading indicates. For the study, 75 otherwise healthy adults with slightly high cholesterol levels took either a placebo or 1,280 mg of artichoke leaf extract (ALE) each day. After 12 weeks, those taking ALE had significantly lower total cholesterol.
It’s possible that regular intake of antioxidant-packed ALE could help reduce risk of developing heart disease without the need for cholesterol-lowering drugs such as statins, according to the study’s authors.

Sweat and Sleep

Searching for sounder sleep? Try adding some moderate aerobic exercise—such as walking or leisurely cycling—to your daily routine. In a study recently presented at the Associated Professional Sleep Societies’ annual meeting, a group of insomnia-wracked adults increased their total sleep time by more than a third after engaging in a modest workout. Moderate exercise also helped ease anxiety in study members, but more vigorous aerobic activity failed to have a calming—or sleep-promoting—effect on the insomniacs.

For truly restful slumber, try not to exercise before hitting the sack. Since working out raises body temperature— and thus discourages sleep—the National Sleep Foundation recommends wrapping up your fitness sessions at least three hours before bedtime.

Breakfast of Champions
Feasting at breakfast but eating a light lunch and dinner could go a long way in helping you slim down, finds a new study presented at the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting. Among a group of 94 obese women, those on a “big-breakfast diet” lost 21 per cent of their body weight after eight months. Women on a low-carb diet, meanwhile, shed just 4.5 per cent of their pounds after eight months of eating a 290-calorie breakfast (and 1,085 total calories) each day.

The big-breakfast dieters took in 1,240 calories daily, with 610 coming from their carb-rich breakfast. Although the low-carb dieters had a greater weight loss at the study’s four-month mark (lightening up by an average of 28 pounds, compared to 23 pounds in the big-breakfast group), they ended up gaining back 18 pounds on average by the study’s end.

It’s likely that a low-carb diet “exacerbates the craving for carbohydrates and slows
metabolism,” explains lead study author Daniela Jakubowicz, MD. “As a result, after a short period of weight loss, there is a quick return to obesity.” The big-breakfast diet, on the other hand, may help control appetite and prevent those cravings for sweets and starches, Jakubowicz adds.

Cut Calories to Slow Aging
Cutting back on calories by about 300 to 500 calories per day might help slow the aging process, reports a new study from Rejuvenation Research. Results suggest that calorie restriction may decrease levels of a thyroid hormone called triiodothyronine, which could in turn thwart age-related tissue deterioration.