Fatty Acids, Essential to Your Good Health, Part I

Omega-3 fatty acids are the focus of a lot of attention in the world of nutrition these days.  They belong to a group of other types of fatty acids (omega-6 and omega-9) that are called “essential” because our bodies need them but cannot produce them.  Hence we have to look to food to fulfill our requirements. 

Why are omega-3 fatty acids important?

As with a lot of nutritional building blocks, there’s no universal agreement on what benefit adequate omega-3 fatty acids provide.  There’s evidence that they reduce the risk of death from heart disease.  Adequate intake may also be as effective as prescription medication at easing arthritis-related joint pain and fibromyalgia.  Prevention of Alzheimer’s disease, strokes and cancer are linked to a proper diet of omega-3s.  Other possible benefits includes lower cholesterol and blood pressure, stabilization of moods and reduction of the symptoms of menopause. 

For the athlete, perhaps the most tangible benefits of eating enough foods with omega-3 fatty acids are a reduction of inflammation and muscle soreness with a concurrent speed of recovery.  Research has also shown that omega-3s may help prevent exercise-induced asthma.

What food are rich in omega-3 fatty acids?

Omega-3 fatty acids are found in leafy green vegetables; cold-water, fatty fish such as salmon, albacore tuna, lake trout, herring, mackerel, and sardines because these fish feed on algae that contains omega-3 fatty acids and stores them; and flaxseed.

When talking about omega-3 fatty acids in the diet, it’s also important to highlight the role of omega-6 fatty acids, which are closely associate34d.  Most Americans get a 10 to 1 ratio of 6’s to 3’s in their diet while the opt8imal ratio is closer to 2-6 to 1.  Omega-6 fatty acids are found in meat, poultry, cereal, whole-grain breads, and vegetables oils (such as olive, canola or corn), seeds, and nuts.  Omega-3 fatty acids counteract the negative health consequences of omega-6 fatty acids (promotion of inflammation and blood clotting).

What are the recommended allowances of omega-3 fatty acids?

It’s important to realize that all not all foods that contain omega-3 fatty acids are alike.  Foods rich in DHA and EPA, the omega-3 fatty acid components most strongly linked to heart and other benefits, are best.  Many researchers recommend eating fish at least twice a week since it’s the richest dietary source of DHA and EPA.  Currently there are no recommended daily allowances for omega-3 fatty acids. 

The Institute of Medicine, a research group that supplies information upon which dietary guidelines are established, suggests you consume 1.1 to 1l.6 grams of omega-3 fatty acids per day.  If you are wary of fish because of its levels of mercury and PCBs, you can take fish oil supplements.  Look for a supplement with 400 milligrams of EPA and 200 milligrams of DHA.  Plant sources of omega-3 fatty acids such as seeds, nuts and oil contain a less-effective ingredient, ALA, which the body much convert to DHA or EPA.

What You Might Not Know About Breast Cancer

“If you live long enough, sooner or later everybody you know has cancer.”  George Carlin

 In the hope of erasing that notion, here is some useful information about the possible risk factors for breast cancer, some of which you’ve probably never considered! 

Antiperspirants and Breast Cancer

British scientists from the Birchall Centre for Inorganic Chemistry and Materials at Keele University measured the aluminum content of breast tissue from 17 breast cancer patients.  They found that aluminum content of breast tissue and breast tissue fat was significantly higher in the outer breast area, near where one would expect to find the greatest density of antiperspirant. 

Antiperspirants are mostly comprised of aluminum salts which are known carcinogens.  Breast cancer is widely believed to be caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors although no one is sure what those environmental factors may be.

Recent research has re-visited the debate on the breast cancer-antiperspirant link.  There is an unaccountable higher incidence of tumors in the upper outer quadrant of the breast.  The British study found no direct evidence that the aluminum measured in the breast biopsies originated from antiperspirant.  An alternate explanation for increased aluminum deposits might be that tumorous tissue acts as a “sink” for systemic aluminum. 

The FDA, American Cancer Society, and the National Cancer Institute all report that no studies have conclusively shown a link between antiperspirant usage and breast cancer.  Certainly the above study is not large enough to provide a link, but it’s worth your while to do your own research and decide for yourself! 

Alcohol consumption and breast cancer

This is a topic about which there is little debate.  Alcohol consumption increases your risk of getting breast cancer.  How much?  According to a study by Dr. Arthur Klatsky, adjunct investigator in the Division of Research at the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program, women who drank between one and two alcoholic drinks per day increased their risk of breast cancer by 10% compared to light drinkers who drank less than one drink a day.  For women who drank more than three drinks a day, the risk of breast cancer jumped to 30%, similar to the risk from smoking a pack or more of cigarettes per day!  This proved true across age and ethnicity strata.

Perhaps the most significant finding from Dr. Klatsky’s study is that it doesn’t matter what type of liquor a woman consumes.  It is the alcohol itself and the quantity consumed that will trigger the onset of breast cancer.  Thus wine, beer and spirits are equal when it comes to the risk of disease. 

Stress and Breast Cancer

Recurrence of cancer for women diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer is twice as likely for those who have led a stressful life, according to a small, retrospective study conducted by Oxana Palesh, PhD, at the University of Rochester Medical Center. 

Dr. Palesh’s study showed that women who faced physical or sexual abuse or life-threatening situations see metastatic tumors return after about 2 ½ years while women leading more peaceful lives see recurrence at about five years. 

Studies have shown that physical and emotional stress can alter the immune system’s function and that the activity of natural killer cells is related to breast cancer progression.  What’s not clear is linking stress with the development of breast cancer though it’s been widely studied. 

In the University of Rochester study, Dr. Palesh analyzed cortisol levels, a substance produced by the body during stressful periods and possibly an inhibitor of the body’s immune response.  Elevated cortisol levels may make the body more susceptible to the recurrence of cancer. 

According to Dr. Palesh, “when there is a consistent, long-term stress in the body, the elevated cortisol level can change the body’s normal rhythms and potentially reduce resistance to tumor growth.” 

Light and Breast Cancer

Cancer researcher, Richard G. Stevens, at the University of Connecticut Health Center, theorizes that the increase in breast cancer in the industrialized world is linked to the disruption of hormone cycles, triggered by melatonin levels. 

Light suppresses production of melatonin, a hormone which helps regulate sleep.  It also allows levels of estrogen to rise and when a woman is exposed to light too long, it confuses her circadian clock, the 24-hour internal rhythm that keeps hormones and the body on their daily schedule.  Thus Stevens hypothesizes, some cancers may get their start when the body is exposed to too many hours of artificial light and not enough sleep because “cell don’t know when not to divide.” 

His theory is based on two studies.  One was a 1991 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report showing that blind women are about half as likely as sighted women to get breast cancer.  In an October 2005 study in which Stevens was an author, researchers analyzed the sleep patterns of more than 12,000 women.  While risk for breast cancer was not significantly higher for short sleepers, risk estimates for long sleepers was consistently lower.  The message for women is to get plenty of sleep (and more for athletic women) and invest in dark curtains.

Dial D for Density…Bone Density That Is

Vitamin D is crucial for calcium absorption.  Dietary sources are mainly fortified foods such as milk, other dairy products, and some orange juices as well as oily fish and cod liver oil.  Vitamin D is also manufactured by the body when skin is exposed to sunlight.  People who get little or no sun exposure tend to have higher rates of breast, colon and prostate cancer plus MS.  Sunscreens reduce the body’s absorption of vitamin D.  Many scientists believe if you get 10-15 minutes of sun exposure on your face and arms at least twice a week, you may not need to consume any dietary vitamin D or supplements. 

The Women’s Health Initiative contained a study of the effect of higher dosages of calcium and vitamin D on bone density, fractures and colorectal cancer.  Some of the data is conflicting.  For example, the WHI showed no clear benefit from calcium supplements even when combined with vitamin D (1000 mcg of calcium and 400 IU of vitamin D daily).  In those women taking the supplements, bone density slightly improved, risk of fracture did not improve, and risk of colon cancer was no lower.

More recently, a study led by the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health determined that women with low levels of vitamin D have an increased risk of hip fracture.  The authors of this study, a professor of epidemiology and her colleagues, reviewed patient data from 400 women who had been enrolled in the WHI for seven years and had experienced hip fractures.  Comparing their levels of 25 hydroxyvitamin D, an indicator of vitamin D status, to a control group, the authors noted that as vitamin D concentrations decreased, risk of hip fractures climbed. 

Says the lead scientist, Dr. Jane Cauley:  “The risk of hip fractures was 77 percent higher among women whose 125 hydroxyvitamin D levels were at the lowest concentrations.  This effect persisted even when we adjusted for other risk factors such as body mass index, family history or hip fractures, smoking, alcohol use, and calcium and vitamin D intake.”

Find the full article at www.upmc.com.

How can one study conclude low levels of vitamin D increase the risk of hip fractures and another conclude that increased vitamin D does not lower the risk of hip fractures?

There are some problems with the WHI study.  Namely:

• The placebo group took calcium and vitamin D on their own
• Most patients got adequate calcium and vitamin D from food
• There were relatively few fractures in the group as a whole
• It may take more than 400 IU of vitamin D to reduce fracture risk or influence cancer
• Not all participants took the prescribed amount of supplements for the duration of the study (seven years)

Perhaps the recent study is more reliable since the authors targeted a smaller, well-defined group of patients. 

If you believe that higher amounts of vitamin D will protect your bones, you may not be able to get enough from food or sunlight.  This is partly because the ability to manufacture vitamin D from sunlight and utilize it declines with age.  It’s nearly impossible to get enough without supplementation. 

Current recommended intake is 200 IU for people aged 50 and under, 400 IU for those 51-70, and 600 IU for those over 71.  Growing numbers of scientists and health authorities believe that more is better—up to a point (since vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin and thus can be stored in the body).  Those aged 70 and over should take 800-1000 IU daily, especially those people with dark skin or African Americans.

 There are two main forms of vitamin D:  vitamin D3 or cholecalciferol and vitamin D2 or ergocalciferol.  Once consumed, both are converted in the body to the active form.  D2 has been found to be less than one-third as potent as D3 and shorter-acting. 

Many supplements (including One-A-Day and Centrum) contain D3.  Quite a few health food store brands contain D2 (Solgar, Nature’s Plus, Rainbow Light, KAL).  At least one Vitamin Shoppe supplement (Mega-Vites) contains D2.  Look for D3 or cholecalciferol on your supplement bottles.

Eat Smart, Stay Healthy

The zen masters say we should view our bodies as temples, meaning that we must pay as much attention to our physical as our spiritual well-being. Why? Unlike the friendly tennis game where you may be allowed “do overs,” we only have one shot with our body. What we do it with and what we put into it may have far-reaching effects. It may be the difference between whether we die of cancer or old age, whether we spend our golden years in pleasure or pain. Eating intelligently can keep us far ahead of our unhealthy tennis partner.

How much should we eat?

It’s important to know how many calories you need to keep yourself well fueled. Even if you’re eating smart, you may be eating too much and thus gaining weight. In a 2006 survey of 1,000 US adults, 88 percent of respondents could not accurately estimate their calorie needs. The average American adult gains one to two pounds a year even though the American Institute for Cancer Research has recommended a weight gain of no more than eleven pounds in adulthood.

Middle-age weight gain has been attributed to many chronic illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer and arthritis. For an accurate estimate of your recommended calorie needs based on height and weight, go to www.mypyramid.com and click on MyPyramid Plan. Other websites such as www.nutristrategey.com/activitylist.htm calculate the number of calories you burn while exercising. With this information, you’re ready to start eating smart.

How can I be a smarter eater?

Liz Applegate, PhD, who writes for Runner’s World, makes the following recommendations for smarter eating. It’s a matter of choosing your foods more intelligently and with an eye for health.

In: omega-3 eggs Out: standard eggs

Why: the omega-3 fats in these enhanced eggs boost immunity, protect against Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease, and cancer, and may lessen symptoms of depression

In: dark beer Out: light beer

Why: darker brews may have a few more calories per bottle than lighter versions, but in general they have far more antioxidants from the wheat and other grains used to make them

In: olive oil dressing Out: creamy dressing

Why: you’ll save about 90 calories per two tablespoons

In: mustard, low-sodium soy sauce, salsa Out: ketchup and mayonnaise

Why: condiments like mayonnaise and ketchup add unwanted calories and sodium while mustard and salsa contain antioxidants

In: organic fat-free milk Out: 2% milk

Why: 8 ounces of fat-free milk saves you more than 30 calories and 4 grams of fat over 2% milk and organic milk can help you avoid trace amounts of chemicals and hormones

In: Kefir Out: yogurt

Why: yogurt is a great source of calcium but often comes with lots of sugar and without healthy live bacteria while Kefir is a low-fat liquid yogurt with extra live cultures to boost immunity

In: pomegranate or cranberry juice and club soda Out: sugary fruit drinks

Why: real juices such as pomegranate and cranberry are loaded with the powerful cancer fighters anthocyanidins, and combined with club soda, can save you 50 calories per serving

In: natural peanut butter and fruit spread Out: standard peanut butter and jelly

Why: natural peanut butter contains peanuts, salt and nothing more and paired with real fruit spread, there’s no added sugar such as corn syrup or high-fructose corn syrup

In: roasted chicken Out: deli meats

Why: many deli meats are high in fat and if you remove the skin from the chicken, you reduce your fat intake

In: part-skim mozzarella or feta cheese Out: brie or cheddar

Why: brie and cheddar are loaded with saturated fat and calories and switching to feta or part-skim mozzarella saves about 30 calories and 5 grams of fat per ounce

In: trans fat-free spread Out: butter

Why: butter has 7 grams of saturated fat per tablespoon while margarine contains trans fats, so it’s a trade-off

In: sweet potatoes or red-skin potatoes Out: white potatoes

Why: potatoes with colorful flesh and skins contain more antioxidants than their pale counterparts

In: berries, kiwi, melon Out: green grapes

Why: all fruit is good but it pays to eat fruit that is higher in fiber and lower in calories

In: Canadian bacon Out: bacon

Why: Canadian bacon has twice the protein and half the fat per serving when compared to regular bacon

In: ground turkey Out: ground beef

Why: cut 10 to 20 grams of fat per 3-oz serving by substituting ground white meat turkey for ground beef

In: baby romaine lettuce and spinach Out: iceberg lettuce

Why: iceberg lettuce offers little nutrition while young romaine and spinach leaves are rich in carotenes and other phytochemicals

In: snow peas, peppers, radishes Out: carrots and celery

Why: carrots and celery are good but add peppers for vitamin C, snow peas for the electrolyte potassium and radishes, which contain compounds that protect muscles

In: whole-grain bread Out: white bread

Why: whole-grain has more antioxidants and fiber (3 to 4 grams per 1-oz slice) than its white counterpart

In: low-carb tortillas Out: white-flour tortillas

Why: white-flour tortillas pack 150 calories and 0 fiber while low-carb versions offer 8 grams of fiber for just 90 calories

What’s left?

Choosing the most nutrient dense foods we can will lead to healthier eating. Below is a chart compiled from the USDA and National Institutes of Health and broadcast on the CNN website that shows the best sources for various nutrients our bodies need. Keep it handy and take it to the grocery store with you!

Calcium Milk, other dairy products Cornmeal Wheat flour Collards Rhubarb Sardines Spinach Soybeans Turnip greens Salmon, canned with bone Kale   Fiber Barley Bulgur Beans Peas Wheat flour, whole-grain Oat bran Dates Tomato products Raspberries Cornmeal Artichokes   Folic Acid Turkey/chicken giblets Lentils Cowpeas/black-eyed peas Orange juice Beans (specifically kidney, pinto, navy) Chickpeas Okra Spinach Asparagus Beef liver

Vitamin C Oranges, orange juice Peppers (sweet and chili) Grapefruit juice Papayas Strawberries Broccoli Brussels sprouts Peas Kiwi fruit Sweet potato     Antioxidants Beans Blueberries Cranberries Artichokes Blackberries Prunes Russet potatoes Pecans Apples Cinnamon     Iron Mollusks, clams Turkey or chicken giblets Enriched whole wheat flour Enriched rice Soybeans Tomato products Spinach Liver Beef Jerusalem artichokes, raw Baking chocolate, unsweetened squares

 

Antioxidants, Free Radicals, Exercise, and YOU

Given the abundance of vitamin and mineral supplements on the market today, it’s no wonder we swallow pills, gulp energy drinks, and chew protein bars at an alarming rate chasing the cure for cancer, turning back the hands of time or transforming our bodies into robust, lean-muscled machines. My pantry sports an arsenal of supplements recommended to correct nutritional imbalances as outlined in two tests I have taken over the past few years. Despite the testing, I wanted to know more about why I should take these supplements, particularly the antioxidants.

My quest started when I read an article in August’s News-Medical.Net about a new study at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School which concluded that middle-aged women at risk for heart disease don’t benefit from taking the antioxidant supplement combo of vitamins C, E and beta carotene. Why then, am I taking all three? Before rushing to the kitchen and tossing pill bottles in the trash, I thought I should dig a little deeper. I’m glad I did.

Studies by their nature have a narrow scope. It would be foolish to add more variables than are necessary because your research couldn’t conclude whether it was A, B or C that produced the results. Or maybe it was some combination of all three.

In the previously-mentioned study, researchers were only concerned with 1. heart disease, 2. antioxidant supplements and 3. middle-aged women at risk for heart disease. While I am not a risk for heart disease, I am a woman and I take antioxidant supplements. This study doesn’t consider two other factors that are important to me: can antioxidants be helpful to the body for other reasons and does an athlete have special needs?

What are antioxidants and what do they do?

Antioxidants are substances found in some vitamins and minerals which neutralize the oxidative effect of free radicals. Under normal circumstances, free radicals are essential for good health because they help fight infection and assist in the contraction of smooth muscles in the blood vessels. Left unchecked or when the body is under stress, free radicals can cause damage resulting in chronic disease, cancer, and cardiovascular disease. Free radicals can also damage cellular enzymes leading to cell damage and death which accelerates the aging process. Free radicals may also lead to eye diseases such as cataracts and macular degeneration. Antioxidants work by themselves and in concert with one another to fight any imbalance in the body.

Where do antioxidants come from?

Antioxidants are found in vitamins C and E and the beta carotene form of vitamin A. Fruits and vegetables are good sources of these vitamins.

Vitamin E is fat soluble and can be found in high-fat foods such as vegetable oils, avocados, nuts, seeds, wheat germ, and whole grains.

Vitamin C is water soluble and interacts with vitamin E to protect each other. Foods high in vitamin C are broccoli, oranges, strawberries, grapefruit juice, and red bell peppers and eating them raw is better.

Beta carotene, a form of the fat-soluble vitamin A, is found in fruits and vegetables with dark, rich colors such as carrots, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, winter squashes, cantaloupe, pink grapefruit, apricots, broccoli, spinach and other dark-green leafy vegetables.

What causes excessive production of free radicals?

A number of body “stressors” can cause free radicals to run amok, such as excessive or strenuous exercise, pollution, pesticides, cigarette smoke, and other environmental pollutants.

Endurance exercise can increase oxygen utilization from ten to twenty times over the resting state. The longer or more intense the workout, the greater the production of free radicals. Fortunately, our bodies adapt. Studies show that regular physical exercise enhances the antioxidant defense system and protects against exercise-induced free radical damage.

Those athletes most at risk for free radical damage are the “weekend warriors” because their sporadic activity level overwhelms the defenses. They are the ones who benefit the most from antioxidant supplementation.

Do well-trained athletes need supplementation?

While antioxidants don’t improve performance, they may counteract the side effects of high activity levels such as muscle soreness or respiratory infection.

Even if your diet is rich in antioxidants by consuming 8-9 servings of fruits and vegetables daily, you may still lack enough antioxidants to combat free radical damage. There is no definitive answer regarding supplementation, and the risks of long-term use of high doses of some antioxidants are unknown, but many sports nutrition experts such as Chris Carmichael and Joe Friel highly recommend supplementation.

The following are some guidelines for daily supplementation:

Vitamin C 500-1000 mg

Vitamin E 200-400 IU

Beta carotene 10 mg

 

Sources:
Carmichael, Chris. Food for Fitness. New York, NY: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2004.

Cordain, Loren, PhD and Joe Friel, MS. The Paleo Diet for Athletes. Rodale, Inc., 2005.

George Mateljan Foundation website, “World’s Healthiest Foods” at www.whf.org, September 3, 2007.

News-Medical.Net at www.news-medical.net. Vitamin supplements no benefit to women’s heart health. August 14, 2007.
Reavley, Nicola. The New Encyclopedia of Vitamins, Minerals, Supplements and Herbs. New York, NY: M. Evans & Co., Inc., 1998.
Website at www.rice.edu/~jenky/sports/antiox.html.

The Bicycling Paradox: Fit Doesn’t Have to Mean Thin

Here’s an article by a New York Times writer which should make all of us less-than-svelte cyclists happy!

---

July 17, 2007

Fitness

By GINA KOLATA

Andy Hampsten, the former pro cyclist, the only American ever to win the Tour of Italy, the first American ever to win the grueling Alpe d’Huez stage of the Tour de France, does his best to discourage casual riders from signing up for the cycling trips he leads in Tuscany.

“All of our trips are designed to satisfy experienced riders,” Mr. Hampsten writes on his Web site. To train, he suggests, “you should ride at least 100 miles a week for at least 6 to 10 weeks” on routes with “as many hills as you can find.”

So I had an image of what our fellow cyclists would look like when my husband, son and I arrived in Castagneto Carducci for a cycling vacation. They would look like Mr. Hampsten, who at age 45 remains boyishly thin and agile, bouncing with energy.

I was wrong. For the most part, our group consisted of ordinary-looking, mostly middle-age men and a few middle-age women.

These were serious cyclists. One of them was Bob Eastaugh, a 63-year-old justice on the Alaska Supreme Court who said he rode mostly to stay in shape for his true passion, downhill ski racing.

And our trip was challenging. The longest hill was 15 miles, the steepest had a 15 percent grade, the longest one-day ride was 90 miles, and the terrain was never, ever flat. It is hard to imagine that a group of middle-age adults could have handled an equivalently difficult 10 days of running. What, I wondered, made bicycling different?

It turns out that others, too, have been struck by the paradox of bicycling fitness.

“When I first got into cycling, I would see cyclists and say, ‘O.K., that’s not what I perceive a cyclist to be,’ ” said Michael Berry, an exercise physiologist at Wake Forest University. Dr. Berry had been a competitive runner, and he thought good cyclists would look like good runners — rail-thin and young.

But, Dr. Berry added, “I quickly learned that when I was riding with someone with a 36-inch waist, I could be looking at the back of their waist when they rode away from me.”

He came to realize, he said, that cycling is a lot more forgiving of body type and age than running. The best cyclists going up hills are those with the best weight-to-strength ratio, which generally means being thin and strong. But heavier cyclists go faster downhill. And being light does not help much on flat roads.

James Hagberg, a kinesiology professor at the University of Maryland, explains that the difference between running on a flat road and cycling on a flat road has to do with the movement of the athlete’s center of gravity.

“In running, when you see someone who is obviously overweight, they will be in trouble,” Dr. Hagberg said. “The more you weigh, the more the center of gravity moves and the more energy it costs. But in cycling, there are different aerodynamics — your center of gravity is not moving up and down.”

The difference between cycling and running is like the difference between moving forward on a pogo stick and rolling along on wheels. And that is why Robert Fitts, an exercise physiologist at Marquette University who was a competitive runner, once said good runners run so smoothly they can almost balance an apple on their heads.

Even Mr. Hampsten has been surprised by the cycling paradox. He recalls a woman from San Diego who went on one of his trips. “She was quite overweight,” he said, and even though she claimed to be an experienced cyclist, he worried that she would have trouble keeping up with the group. He was wrong.

“She rode so well,” Mr. Hampsten said. “Her cadence was very efficient. I was just amazed and delighted.”

As for the effects of aging, serious recreational cyclists do slow down, but they are not penalized as much as runners by the passing of years, Dr. Hagberg said. It’s because cycling, while grueling, is not as demanding as running.

“The best example of that, in a bizarre way, is the Tour de France,” Dr. Hagberg said. “What runner could go out six hours a day for three weeks and not be totally trashed after a day or two? That’s a microcosm of the aging issue.”

Still, even the best serious recreational cyclist is almost a different species from a professional rider. How much faster, our touring group asked Mr. Hampsten, would a professional rider go up that 15 percent grade during a race? About twice as fast as the fastest in our group, he replied.

And how about recovery after racing? Mr. Hampsten used to compete in 100 races a year, including the Tour de France, and he would recover by going for a long, relaxed ride. It sometimes took him three hours of cycling to warm up after a hard race. Then he’d continue for another two hours.

But recovery does become a limiting factor for professional cyclists, Mr. Hampsten said. It’s why most professional riders can no longer win long, multiday races after age 32.

“It’s almost eerie that at 32 years, you stop winning,” Mr. Hampsten said. “The endurance seems to stay, but recuperation doesn’t come around.”

When Mr. Hampsten retired, he was 34, “and I hadn’t won a race in two years.”

Now, he estimates, he is 80 percent as fit as he used to be.

But 80 percent for Andy Hampsten is still impressive. As soon as our cycling tour ended, he headed out on a fast ride that included a long hill to the town of Suvereto, taking a road with 187 switchback turns.

“It is my favorite road to ride,” he said.

Pumping Iron

Being a female athlete has its positives and negatives (mostly positives).  With regard to iron deficiency, it can be a double whammy since, as a pre-menopausal woman, you lose blood (and thus iron) every month, and as an athlete, you may have an increased need for iron.  Hard training speeds up red blood cell production and thus the need for iron in those cells.  You also lose iron through sweat.  Those who don’t eat red meat are even more at risk for iron deficiency which is the most common nutritional deficiency in the US particularly among children and women up to age 50. 

What does iron do for your body?  It helps get oxygen to your muscles.  Without it, the red blood cells can’t grab onto oxygen and distribute it throughout your body.  With less oxygen going to your muscles and brain, your performance suffers.  Your brain will be deprived as well so you find it hard to concentrate and feel tired.  Cells which fight infection are also dependent upon iron.  In addition iron is also used in chemical reactions that help fuel your body.

Sports anemia is often used to describe a low-iron state.  Symptoms include a reduced desire to train, increased heart rate, decreased oxygen consumption, fatigue and increased blood lactic acid (so recovery slows).  You may also have a poor appetite and be more susceptible to colds and infections.  You may get injured more often.  Fingernails may become thin, brittle, and white. 

What else does this sounds like?  Overtraining!  How do you know the difference?  You don’t.  Your doctor will, however, through a blood test.  How do you treat the problem?  Increasing your dietary iron intake will suffice unless your deficiency is severe.  Again, only your doctor will be able to tell you whether you need iron supplements.  Just as too little of something is bad, too much can be just as bad if not worse.  You may put yourself at a higher risk of cancer and heart disease.  And, unless an athlete is iron deficient, supplementation will not improve performance.

RDA recommendations for women and teens is 15 mg per day.  Endurance athletes should shoot for a little more at about 18 mg per day. 

What foods are rich in iron?  Foods from animals such as red meat, liver, and poultry and fish are better absorbed than foods from plants such as fruits, vegetables, dried beans, nuts and grains.  Most grain foods such as cereals, pasta, rice and bread are fortified with heme iron, the type of iron from animals, and make a good alternative to meats and fish. 

Cooking in a cast iron skillet or pot can increase the level of iron in food by as much as 20 times, although this type of iron may not be well absorbed.  Acidic foods such as chili and spaghetti sauce are especially good at leaching out the iron from cooking pots.  The longer the food cooks in the pot, the more iron is absorbed. 

Pairing food consumption with Vitamin C-rich foods also increases absorption.   Skip the caffeine with your next meal, however, as it reduces iron absorption. 

For more ideas about where to get iron in your diet, check out the following websites: 

http://sandiegobloodbank.org/donating_blood/iron_rich_foods.php

http://www.weightlossforall.com/iron-rich-food.htm

http://gotblood.ucla.edu/Documents/Iron_Source_PF.pdf

How to Keep Your Cycling Spirit Alive or Mojo Magic for the Bike

You got that shiny new bike a couple of months ago when the bike store had a sale. Your neighbor sold you his hand-me-down bike when he left town taking only a suitcase with him. Your husband bought you a bike so you could ride with him, but he and all his hammerhead friends drop you like a bad habit every ride.

What’s a girl to do?

Usually, when the going gets tough, the tough get a pedicure. In this case, however, the tough start thinking smart and taking action.

Here’s how to keep your cycling spirit alive by getting you off your duff, in your saddle, and out the door.

Socialize

If some of your friends cycle, get them to commit to riding with you once or twice a week. Promise them chocolate as a reward until the habit sticks. Your friends don’t ride? Find new ones! There are a zillion ride choices in the greater Orlando area. Check the BOBbies discussion board for ride opportunities. Visit bike shops and ask them for information about rides. Join Hal’s ride email list and receive weekly updates about almost every single ride in town. Become a BOBbie, a Freewheeler, a Seminole Cyclist, a Windermere Roadie or all of the above!

Improvise

Is your schedule crazy and you don’t have much time to ride outdoors? Mix spinning with cycling to get a similar workout. Buy a high-quality headlight for the front of your bike if you need to ride in the dark, either early in the morning or in the evening. Don’t forget the red light for the back too. Find looping routes close to home and ride them for time and distance, not scenery.

Prioritize

Make cycling as important as almost anything else you do during your busy day. If it’s the first thing you do out of bed or what you look forward to after work, include it in your daily plans. Set aside an hour for you and your bike every day or every other day. Pretty soon, you’ll look forward to your ride and feel bad about missing it.

Glamorize

Buy yourself some cool cycling jerseys and good-quality shorts. Get some matching socks. Make a fashion statement so you’ll be steppin’ out in style when you get on the bike. Remember, it doesn’t matter how you ride as long as you look good doing it!

Strategize

Find specific goals to strive for. Charity rides are a terrific way to motivate yourself, meet other like-minded cyclists, and promote a worthy cause. Celebrate your health. How about a century ride? Find one in your area and start training to finish it. Maybe you want to become a triathlete. Check out the course of an upcoming race and ride it until you’ve conquered it. For a real challenge, sign up for a multi-day bike tour such as RAGBRAI or BRAG.

Finalize

Nothing keeps you committed like telling others you’ll meet them for a ride. Make sure others know you’ll arrive (on time) and be ready to ride. Then fill your water bottles and stick ‘em in the fridge ahead of time so you just have to pull them out and put them on your bike when it’s time to go. Lay out your clothes the night before a morning ride or pack your bag the night before so you can grab and go if you’ll need to change before riding after work. It’s harder to say no to yourself if everything is ready.

Now tell us what you do to stay motivated!

Crucial Advice About Knees

This article appeared in the July 2007 issue of the UC Berkeley Wellness Letter

About one out of every four sports injuries involves the knee, and female athletes have a much higher rate of knee injuries than men.  Women are, for instance, more likely to develop “runner’s knee,” the degeneration of the shock-absorbing cartilage under the kneecap that can occur in many kinds of sports and activities.  Women are especially susceptible to a debilitating rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), which helps stabilize the knee joint.  Recent estimates are that women are two to eight times more likely to have an ACL injury than men in the same sports.  Such injuries are a special concern in downhill skiing, and female skiers face a three-fold higher risk.

Your knees are put under a lot of stress, whether you’re running, skiing, dancing, or cleaning house.  Just climbing stairs can put pressure on each knee equal to three to four times your body weight.  Functioning simultaneously as a hinge, lever, and shock absorber, the knee is the key to your ability to stand up, walk, climb, and kick.  It depends almost entirely on soft tissue–ligaments, tendons, and muscles–for stability.  Because of its complexity and the great forces to which it is routinely subjected, the knee is susceptible to a host of injuries, which can take weeks or months to heal.

A combination of many factors may help explain the higher risk of knee injuries, particularly to the ACL, among women.  Women’s knees, on average, are supported by smaller, weaker muscles.   Women have a wider pelvis than men, and their thigh bones angle inward more sharply from hip to knee, making their knees less stable.  They also tend to have stronger quadricepts and weaker hamstrings, and such an imbalance in thigh muscles can contribute to knee injuries.  Moreover, studies have found that women are more prone to ACL injuries during the first half (pre-ovulatory) phase of their menstrual cycle, suggesting that hormones may affect ligaments and other connective tissue.  Finally, a recent study from the Cleveland Clinic Foundation found that when women jump, they tend to land with their ankles more flexed, feet rolling outward, and knees rotated inward–a scenario that can make knees less stable.

Tips for women (and men)

While you can’t do anything about anatomical factors that increase the chance of knee injury, you can protect your knees when exercising or playing a sport and at other times.  Here are steps that can help reduce the risk, especially if you’re a women who plays a sport:

• Strengthen your leg muscles, notably the hamstrings (located at the back of the thigh), which, along with the quadriceps (the four-part muscle group on the front of the thigh), power knee movements.  In particular, focus on the hamstrings and the inner quadriceps muscle, called the vastus medialis, which helps stabilize the knee and align the kneecap when the leg moves.
• Try to move in a balanced crouched position when exercising or playing a sport.  Women tend to move and land in a more upright position, partly because their quads are usually more dominant.  The more you bend your knees and hips, the more your hamstrings take over, and this better balance between quadriceps and hamstrings helps protect the ACL.
• Do plyometric exercises, which involve first stretching a muscle (as when you squat before shooting a basketball) and then contracting it suddenly or “explosively” (as you jump to shoot).  The idea behind plyometrics is to train muscles and ligaments to respond quickly to force.  Studies show that such training can reduce the risk of serious knee injuries.  Consult an experienced trainer or physical therapist.
• Don’t suddenly intensify or lengthen your workouts.
• Make sure your shoes, particularly exercise shoes, fit well and are not worn out.
• Check your feet and legs.  The knee sometimes pays the price for foot abnormalities (such as flat feet), overpronation (the feet roll inward too much), or poor leg alignment (such as knock-knees), which can put greater stress on the joint.  You’ll need professional advice about this.  An orthotic device–a custom-made arch support–may help correct some foot or alignment problems.
• Avoid the following, especially if you have knee problems:  leg extension with heavy weights and locked knees; deep lunges or full squats; running downhill; cycling with the seat low and in high gear; or taking large steps when on stairs or stair-climbing machines.  Don’t exercise on very hard surfaces.  Don’t wear high heels, except for special occasions.
• If you are overweight, lose weight.  Excess weight puts increased stress on the knee joint.
• If you have been suffering from knee injuries from exercise or sports, consult a physical therapist specializing in sports medicine, who can evaluate how you move when performing different activities and suggest treatments as well as way to prevent further problems.