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March 14, 2007

Health Matters: Going out on a limb, exercise can't hurt

By Jan Chait

TERRE HAUTE — It seems like just a couple of weeks ago I wrote that the diabetes drug rosiglitzone (Avandia), which is an insulin sensitizer, carried an increased risk of arm, hand and foot fractures in women who take the drug.

Wait a minute. It was just a couple of weeks ago.

Now comes the news that its sister drug, pioglitazone (Actos), also an insulin sensitizer, carries an increased risk of … arm, hand and foot fractures in women who take the drug. On the plus side, the risk of limb fractures with Actos is only 1.9 fractures per 100 patient years, while Avandia carries a risk of 2.74 fractures per 100 patient years.

I’m going to go out on a “limb” here and let you in on a little secret: exercise also increases the body’s sensitivity to insulin and, as far as I know, doesn’t contribute to fractures unless you trip over a crack in the sidewalk or something. However, I couldn’t find any research that compared taking Avandia or Actos and exercise, and I’m not a medical professional, so don’t stop taking your meds without talking to your doctor.

But it couldn’t hurt to take a walk. Dance. Dig in the garden. Climb the stairs instead of taking the elevator.

Play Frisbee with the children. Ride a bike. Anything to get moving. Do it often. It’s good for you.

I I I

If you thought there was just one kind of yoga, you’re in for an eye-opening experience on March 25 when instructors from Fun With Yoga and Joga Somatic Arts have a day-long “Free-for-all” Yoga Day.

Running from 9:30 a.m. until 6 p.m. at the World of Dance at 800 W. Johnson St. (behind Bogey’s, west of Honey Creek Mall), you can drop in for one session or get in as many as you can. There will be yoga for kids, yoga for couples, yoga for fibromyalgia and arthritis, gentle yoga, Vinyasa yoga, Bandhas and more, ranging from beginner to advanced. For a full schedule, log onto www.funwithyogashop.com. If you scroll down, the schedule is on the opening page. You can also call Tammy Jackson at (812) 243-3933.

Not only are the yoga sessions free, there’ll be complimentary food and beverages from a number of places, including the European Grill, Market Bella Rosa, the Saratoga, Taj Mahal, George’s Café, Roly Poly and the Crossroads Café.

Susan Rose, a yoga instructor and one of the organizers, said the day was planned “to let the public know there is a variety of different yogas.”

Mats will be available for you to use or you can buy your own. Be sure to wear comfy clothes.

I I I

Hopefully, most people know that having diabetes is a risk factor for heart disease. But researchers have recently found that fasting glucose levels at the high end of what is considered to be “normal” ramp up the risk of heart failure in people who are already at high risk.

The American Diabetes Association defines normal-or non-diabetic-fasting plasma glucose levels as less than 100 mg/dL. Pre-diabetes is defined as having a fasting level between 100 and 125 mg/dL and diabetes is present when fasting levels are 126 mg/dL and above.

Reporting in Circulation, Journal of the American Heart Association, Swedish researchers said that each increase of 18 mg/dL resulted in hospitalization for congestive heart failure and/or cardiovascular death in 9 percent of all of the subjects, 3 percent for those without diabetes and 5 percent for those with diabetes.

“This illustrates that blood glucose by itself is a continuous risk factor for developing heart failure because all of these patients were free of heart failure when they enrolled in the trial,” one of the researchers said.

Some 31,000 people with one or more cardiovascular-type diseases or who had diabetes with end-organ damage were studied.

I I I

African-American children exposed to secondhand cigarette smoke are more susceptible to tobacco-related complications than Caucasian children, Dr. Stephen Wilson of the University of Cincinnati reported in the March issue of CHEST. The year-long, biracial study involved 220 children aged 5-12, of which 55 percent were African-American.

Nicotine levels were measured in the homes of participating children, all of whom had asthma, had symptoms consistent with persistent asthma and were exposed to at least five cigarettes a day at home. Cotinine, a chemical made by the body from nicotine, was measured and found to be nearly twice as high in African-American children as in the Caucasian ones.

“African-American children suffer from higher rates of tobacco-related disorders, such as asthma, sudden-infant death syndrome, and low birth weight, and we need to know why,” Dr. Wilson said.



Jan Chait is a freelance writer. E-mail chaitjc@verizon.net.

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