Dr. Tedd Mitchell, president of Cooper Clinic, discusses stretching. In 2004, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported its review of studies evaluating whether or not stretching is beneficial. The studies looked at the effect stretching had on athletic performance and injury prevention.

Gina Kolata, reporting for The New York Times, recently wrote an article about stretching. It's easy to assess aerobic or strength conditioning, but much more difficult to assess flexibility. 

There are lots of questions about stretching. Does it help or harm? Should we stretch before or after exercise? Should we stretch before or after a warm-up? These questions are difficult to answer.

Dr. Mitchell gives his recommendation for the average person exercising.

Dr. Tedd Mitchell, president of Cooper Clinic, discusses a study (also, see this) reported in the March/April 2008 issue of Health Affairs reporting better education translates into longer life expectancy.

Researchers reported that individuals with more than 12 years of education have a predicted life expectancy of 82 years, while those with 12 years of education or less have a life expectancy of 75 years. Researchers are also seeing life expectancy lengthen for the group with more than 12 years of education. Dr. Mitchell comments on how the biggest difference between the two groups seems to be tobacco use. 

Dr. Mitchell also discusses a report in the March 15, 2008, edition of British Medical Journal reviewing the effect telling patients their “lung age� has on smoking quit rates. This study contained 561 current smokers older than 35, and is part of the Step2quit randomized controlled trial. Researchers found that telling smokers their “lung age� significantly improves their likelihood of quitting the habit.

Dr. Tedd Mitchell, president of Cooper Clinic, discusses the study reported in the American Journal of Medicine March 2008 issue, “Adopting Moderate Alcohol Consumption in Middle Age: Subsequent Cardiovascular Events.� This study tries to answer the question of whether or not a non-drinker should consider moderate drinking as part of their health habits.

Historically, Cooper Clinic has counseled patients who drink to limit their drinking to one to two drinks per day (one for women, two for men), with the recommendation that “if you don't drink, don't start.�

The study examined individuals 45 to 64 years of age who started drinking. The study found that after four years of follow-up, new moderate drinkers (less than one drink per day, per woman, or less than two drinks per day, per man) had a 38 percent lower chance of developing cardiovascular disease than their non-drinking counterparts.. One drink was defined as 12 ounces beer, 5 ounces wine, or 1 1/2 ounces liquor.

The study also found that very few of the new drinkers had any issues related to alcohol consumption.

Dr. Mitchell discusses how the therapeutic window for alcohol is small - a little bit is beneficial while a lot can be harmful. It's important to remember that the problem is the amount of alcohol that gets us in trouble isn't much more than the amount that's shown to provide health benefits. Dr. Mitchell advises, "If you'll think of alcohol like any other drug, there's a certain dose that might be helpful."

Dr. Cooper and Todd Whitthorne discuss a study conducted at Yale University School of Medicine that reviewed vitamin E levels and their ability to ward off physical decline. Almost 700 patients 65 years and older participated in the study. The article, published in the Jan. 22, 2008, edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), suggests a link between vitamin E and subsequent decline in physical function for older adults.

If the level of vitamin E was less than 1.1 on the scale used, there was a marked increase (almost 60 percent) of cognitive impairments that occurred over a three-year period. The study used subjects living in Italy.

Dr. Cooper is interested in measuring plasma levels of vitamin E as a stand-alone test, like the test Cooper Clinic currently does with vitamin D.

There’s another article in JAMA that reviews testosterone supplementation in older men. During the study, lean body mass increased and fat mass decreased in the testosterone group compared with the placebo group, but cognitive function and bone mineral density did not change. Dr. Cooper discusses the findings, and advises on what circumstances prompt him to prescribe testosterone supplementation for a patient.

Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States. Dr. Tedd Mitchell, president of Cooper Clinic, discusses a paper presented at the 2007 American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology meeting, which found that quality of life has a significant impact on lung cancer survival rates.

The study looked at the overall health of the patients, their mobility, emotional stability, and both social and financial support to predict mortality. The study's findings include:

Patients who received the necessary emotional and physical support had better survival rates than those who didn't.

Lung cancer patients with a below average quality of life before their treatment, in poor health, or those with inadequate support networks had nearly 70 percent higher death rates than patients with stronger support networks.

Dr. Cooper is interviewed on ReachMD.com about the invention of Aerobics.

Dr. Cooper and Todd Whitthorne discuss the latest data on cholesterol. The discussion includes a brief review of how the body uses LDL cholesterol, and an explanation of why it's a bit of a misnomer that LDL cholesterol is the "bad� cholesterol.

Raising HDL cholesterol, the “good� cholesterol through aerobic/cardiovascular conditioning is suggested.

The question of whether lowering the LDL cholesterol with statin medications is an effective way to reduce death from cardiovascular disease is raised. Dr. Cooper recommends steps to reduce cholesterol naturally first, with statin medication as an option if natural methods don"t move the score enough.

The cost and side effects of taking a statin are discussed. In a large study, 3 percent of the subjects taking the placebo (sugar pill) had heart attacks, while 2 percent had heart attacks while taking the statin. In terms of real numbers, the difference between the two groups was very small.

Dr. Cooper talks about an article published in the September issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, “HDL Cholesterol, Very Low Levels of LDL Cholesterol, and Cardiovascular Events.�

There is disagreement in the medical community about whether statin medications are beneficial. “Do Cholesterol Drugs Do Any Good?� BusinessWeek cover story, Jan. 17, 2008, is discussed.

Dr. Cooper’s book Controlling Cholesterol the Natural Way  is a resource for people who want to control their cholesterol without drugs.

The SPARCL (Stroke Prevention by Aggressive Reduction in Cholesterol Levels) findings are reviewed.

Dr. Beatrice A. Golomb’s statin effects study is reviewed .  Dr. Golomb has been actively researching statin medications and their risk-benefit balance, including possible side effects.
 

Dr. Cooper and Todd Whitthorne discuss recent data coming from the National Center for Health Statistics as it relates to heart disease. Researchers believe medical advancements (early detection and treatment) and lifestyle changes (not smoking, blood pressure control, exercise, and stress control) have all helped to reduce the incidence of and deaths from heart disease.
 
There's a bill pending before Congress that Medicare will not cover CT scans. Dr. Cooper discusses why he believes passing of this bill would be a tragedy.

Dr. Cooper discusses the EPIC Study (and how four healthy habits extended life by an average of 14 years), and the Framingham Heart Study is discussed.

National Center for Health Statistics

EPIC Study and see PODCAST titled EPIC Study

Framingham Study

Medicare Showdown

Dr. Tedd Mitchell, president of Cooper Clinic, discusses the recent study reported in American Journal of Preventive Medicine (http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSFLE27756320071212) that obese children who watched two to four hours of TV each day were 2.5 times more likely to have high blood pressure than their peers who watched less TV. 

Dr. Mitchell explains the role of NEAT, Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (the energy expended for everything we do that is not sleeping, eating, or sports-like exercise), and how it impacts overall weight. Sitting still burns few calories, standing burns more calories than sitting, and walking burns more calories than standing. Healthy children need to keep moving.

Children have access to TV, computers, electronic games, and other gadgets that keep them sitting and inactive. Dr. Mitchell suggests removal of the TV and computer from the bedroom (so time can be monitored), and urges parents to enforce a household rule of "no eating in front of the TV.â€?