- Does the Shake Weight Dumbbell work?
- Can vegetarians be athletic and build muscle?

Thought I’d do some people a favor and publicly answer some great questions that received a lot of attention this week.

Let’s talk about the new commercial that’s setting the airwaves a blaze with a new product called the Shake Weight Dumbbell. By using the “new technology called Dynamic Inertia” you can create firm, tone, muscular arms in “just six minutes a day” or there’s a “100% money back refund.”

Read the full post on Answers to Two Cutting Edge Questions.

Did you know?
Fat-free and reduced fat foods are not calorie free. Some of these products may have as many calories as their regular counterparts.

Steps to take
Read food labels. Find out the number of calories the food item has per serving.

Artificial sweeteners are sugar substitutes. As sugar consumption in the United States has increased, so has the consumption of artificial sweeteners. Commonly used sweeteners include:

• Aspartame (Equal, Nutrasweet) is about 200 times sweeter than sugar. After consuming this product people have reported experiencing everything from headaches to brain and mood disorders, depression, anxiety, hyperactivity, and memory loss among many other symptoms.
• Cyclamate (Sucaryl) is 30 to 50 times sweeter than sugar. Banned in the US since 1969, it is still used in some non-US markets.
• Saccharin (Sweet ‘n Low) is 350 times sweeter than sugar and is used in many dietetic foods and as a sugar substitute.
• Acesulfame Potassium (Ace K, Sunnett, Sweet One) is 200 times sweeter than sugar and is widely used around the world. Two rat studies suggest that this sweetener causes cancer.
• Sucralose (Splenda) is 600 times sweeter than sugar.

Read the full post on Artificial Sweeteners.

Did you know?
Soda and pop, also called soft drinks, are the number 1 source of added sugars in the U.S. Having just two 12 ounce regular soft drinks a day could add 30 pounds of weight in one year.

Steps to take
Limit regular soda. Drink water instead.

What happens when you dream? A new study suggests that your dreams may be a way of telling you that your brain is hard at work consolidating recent memories, which in turn helps us to perform better on performance-related tasks. Researchers from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School showed that your sleeping brain is working on memories at multiple levels, including ways that directly improve performance. The study was reported in a recent issue of Current Biology.

Read the full post on Boost Your Memory By Dreaming.

When was your last adrenaline rush?
As the moments tick by, we tend to get swept up in our consistent, daily activities and before we know it, tomorrow is here. You end by saying things like, “Wow, this day flew by!” Or “Is it Friday (or Monday) already?” Worst of all is when you can’t wait till the “bad” day is done so you can start over with a “new day.” What if all you had to do to change your mood was to experience something exhilarating?

Read the full post on Are You Living Life to the Max?.

Did you know?
Mosquito bites can cause West Nile virus if the mosquito was infected with it.

Steps to take
To prevent West Nile virus and other mosquito-borne diseases, use mosquito repellent as directed on the label, get rid of items around the house that hold standing water, and install or repair screens. Find out more from cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile.

A study published in SLEEP found that sleep-deprived women are at greater risk for developing cardiovascular disease than men. The study consisted of 4,300 participants, and women who slept five hours or less displayed an increase in proteins associated with cardiovascular disease.

The lead author of the study stated that, “Short sleep is associated with an increase in cardiovascular risk and that association between sleep duration and cardiovascular risk factors is markedly different in men and women.” So, it’s important to get your sleep, especially if you’re a woman.

For more information on health and sleep, find us on facebook at: facebook.com/mattresstogo.

Added Sugars. They are hiding in our favorite beverages, muffins, breads, cereals and yogurts. We often believe we are choosing the right “healthy, all natural” foods, when grocery shopping, unaware that our yogurt has more sugar than our chocolate chip cookies.

We can no longer rely on food manufacturers to direct us to nutritious food options. I encourage you to take a moment the next time you shop to recognize the amount of added sugars in your food.

The American Heart Association says most women should consume no more than 100 calories, or 6½ teaspoons, a day from added sugars. Most men should consume no more than 150 calories or 9½ teaspoons a day from added sugars.

Read the full post on Sugar, Sugar Everywhere!.

A recent study from Boston University’s school of medicine found that obstructive sleep apnea is linked to an increased risk of heart failure and coronary heart disease in middle-aged and older men. 1,927 men and 2,495 women over 40 were monitored for the study.

“Men with obstructive sleep apnea were 58% more likely to develop new congestive heart failure over eight years of follow up compared to men without sleep apnea,” stated Daniel Gottlieb, the study’s author. He continued, “There is a lot of undiagnosed sleep apnea, and that, at least in men; it is associated with the development of coronary heart disease and heart failure. Only about 10% of sleep apnea cases are diagnosed”

Read the full post on Sleep Apnea and Heart Disease Linked in Older Men.