Challenging the popular notion that we should drink eight glasses of water a day for good health, researchers have found that drinking too much water can put people in danger of water intoxication.
Researchers from Monash University in Victoria, Australia have found a mechanism that regulates fluid intake in the human body and stops us from over-drinking.
The findings showed that excess of water in the body can cause water intoxication or hyponatremia — a condition that occurs when vital levels of sodium in the blood become abnormally low.
The condition can potentially give rise to symptoms ranging from lethargy and nausea to convulsions and coma.
The study revealed that a ‘swallowing inhibition’ is activated by the brain after excess liquid is consumed, helping maintain tightly calibrated volumes of water in the body.
“If we just do what our body demands us to we’ll probably get it right — just drink according to thirst rather than an elaborate schedule,” said Michael Farrell, Associate Professor at Monash University.
For the study, the team asked participants to rate the amount of effort required to swallow water under two conditions: following exercise when they were thirsty and later after they were persuaded to drink an excess amount of water.
The results showed a three-fold increase in effort after over-drinking.
Further, the team used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and found that the right prefrontal areas of the brain were much more active when participants were trying to swallow with much effort.
“We found effort-full swallowing after drinking excess water which meant they were having to overcome some sort of resistance, as the swallowing reflex becomes inhibited once enough water has been drunk,” Farrell said.
The study was published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
In
a new study, researchers have revealed that eating too much good
cholesterol (HDL) can lead to premature death and it is not that good
for healthy as previously believed.
Cholesterol is of basically
two types — good cholesterol and bad cholesterol. The amount of good
cholesterol (HDL, high-density lipoprotein) should be high while it
should be less for bad cholesterol (LDL, Low-density lipoprotein).
HDL
“good” cholesterol enhances blood glucose levels by improving skeletal
muscle capacity and diminishing heftiness. Low levels of HDL leads
cardiovascular diseases. The specialists discovered that HDL cholesterol
levels must be enhanced for appropriate skeletal muscle capacity.
Previous
studies have suggested that HDL reduces the risk of stroke and other
cardiovascular diseases like heart attack and LDL causes cardiovascular
diseases in later stages of life. Good cholesterol is believed to clear
cholesterol from arteries which keep us healthy in the long run. Now,
study authors have conducted tests which show that good cholesterol is
not that good.
For the study, researchers observed decade-long
data (2003-13) from 1.7 million male in the U.S. It was found that like
bad cholesterol, good cholesterol too affects our health adversely and
increases the risk of early death.
“The findings surprised us,”
said the study’s senior author Ziyad Al-Aly, Assistant Professor at
Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis,
Missouri. “Previously it was thought that raised levels of the good
cholesterol were beneficial. The relationship between increased levels
of HDL cholesterol and early death is unexpected,” Al-Aly said.
Study
authors said that consuming too much of HDL can lead to kidney
dysfunction similar to LDL and VLDL. Al-Aly further added that consuming
too less and too much of HDL is bad for health. Just like people try
avoiding consuming too much LDL to protect their heart. Similarly,
people should also keep a check on HDL levels to reduce the risk of
early death.
It is the first study of its kind and a study on a larger scale is required to confirm the find.
Here are few tips to control levels of HDL
Workout daily
Join weight loss programs
Genetics play important role in maintaining HDL level
Promote good gut bacteria with probiotic-rich foods
Do not take stress
Follow the code — ‘Smoking is injurious to health’ and quit smoking
Reduce saturated fat intake
Reduce simple carbohydrates intake
Keep alcohol consumption to a minimum
By following these steps, you can curb your cholesterol level and stay healthy.
The study appeared in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.
Older men enjoying frequent sex have increased risk of heart problems
Good news for women, however: older women with robust sex lives show
no ill-effects, and those having enjoyable sex tend to have lower blood
pressure
Older men who indulged in sexual activity once a week or more had twice
the risk of heart attack, stroke or other cardiovascular conditions
compared with men who went without.
Photograph: Tim Macpherson/Getty Images
As if to demonstrate that every silver lining has a cloud,
researchers in the US have shown that older men who enjoy frequent sex
raise their chances of developing heart problems.
But the same was not seen for older women, who appeared to suffer no
ill-effects from a robust sex life, and tended to have lower blood
pressure when they found sex highly enjoyable.
Men in their late 50s to mid-80s who indulged in sexual activity once
a week or more had twice the risk of heart attack, stroke or other
cardiovascular conditions over the next five years, compared with men
who went without, the researchers found.
To make matters worse, the men who enjoyed sex the most were more
likely to suffer heart conditions than those who were not so bothered.
The findings emerge from one of the first large scale studies into
the impact of sex on the health of older people. More than 2,200 people
who enrolled in the US National Social Life, Health and Ageing project took part in the study at Michigan State University.
Hui Liu, a sociologist who led the study, said that older men may
come off badly because they exhaust themselves more than younger men in
an effort to reach an orgasm. She said that would “create more stress on
their cardiovascular system in order to achieve climax”.
Medicines designed to boost sexual function might contribute to the
damaging effects on men’s hearts, Liu added. High testosterone levels
may also play a role, by increasing men’s motivation to have sex while
predisposing them to hypertension.
In the study, the US team pored over medical records from 2,204
people who were aged 57 to 85 when the first wave of data was gathered
in 2005 and 2006. The records contained information on heart rate,
hypertension, and cases of heart attacks, heart failure and stroke.
Measurements were also taken of biomarkers that are used to predict a
person’s risk of stroke and heart attack.
“We found that having sex once a week or more puts older men at a
risk for experiencing cardiovascular events that is almost two times
greater than older men who are sexually inactive,” Liu said. Those who
found sex with their partners “extremely pleasurable” or even merely
“satisfying” had a higher risk than others.
While an active sex life appeared to harm the physical - if not
mental - health of older men, it had no such impact on women. Instead,
the study revealed the better news that enjoying sex in old age
protected women from developing high blood pressure and so likely
reduced their risk of future heart problems. “Good sexual quality may
protect older women from cardiovascular risk in later life,” Liu said.
The findings, Liu believes, challenge the conventional wisdom that
sex is good for health whatever a person’s age. In light of the latest
findings, reported in the Journal of Health and Social Behaviour,
Liu said GPs should talk with their older male patients about the
potential risks that come with an active sex life. Those who have sex
once a week or more might even do well to be screened for heart problems
later in life, she said.
Older women who enjoy an active sex life may fare better than older
men because of the beneficial effects of the female sex hormone released
during orgasm, and the stress-busting effects of a close relationship,
the researchers say. Liu believes that men in all relationships, even
bad ones, are more likely to receive support from their partners than
women are. “Only women in good quality relationships may acquire such
benefits from their partner,” she said.
“Although some studies suggest that women’s health is especially
vulnerable to poor relationships, our results reveal an optimistic
finding: women’s cardiovascular health can benefit from a rewarding
sexual relationship,” the researchers add.
comment:- this report by Liu ;better flush it down theLOO
