Month: February 2012

Health

Poll Watch: Obese Americans Report Higher Rates of Daily Pain

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According to the latest Gallup Poll.

U.S. adults who are obese report higher rates of daily pain than those who are not, according to Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index surveys of more than 1 million Americans. In fact, the higher an individual’s Body Mass Index (BMI) score, the more likely he or she is to report experiencing pain, with 44.1% of those with BMIs of 40 or higher saying so.

Gallup and Healthways calculate BMI scores based on respondents’ self-reports of their height and weight collected as part of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index. Respondents answered questions about pain between 2008 and 2010, including if they experienced pain yesterday and if they had pain conditions in the last year.

Sixty-three percent of the 1,010,762 people who responded to the survey were classified as overweight (38%) or obese (25%). Obese respondents were further classified into one of three obesity levels as defined by the World Health Organization.

And, the link is stronger among women and older Americans.

Additionally, as Americans age, excess weight is associated with even more pain — especially for people aged 40 and older. This finding suggests a developmental process in which individuals who have chronic pain conditions, such as arthritis or other rheumatic diseases, may reduce their physical activity levels, which in turn leads to elevated BMIs. Alternately, older, normal-weight Americans were only slightly more likely than younger Americans to report daily pain.

I am adverse to pain and am happily reducing my BMI.

Now, I weigh 228 and with my height of 5’11” will have to reach 214 pounds to shed myself of the obese category. I will then be overweight until I reduce to 185 or so.

It will probably be another year before I have reduced to a normal weight.

But, it is well worth it.

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Health

Updated: Baseball Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn Blames Smokeless Tobacco for Oral Cancer

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+++++ Update +++++

Good news!

Tony Gwynn is recovering after surgery and hopes to resume his coaching duties at San Diego State soon.

Surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from Tony Gwynn’s cheek was declared a success on Wednesday and the question for Thursday, especially with his San Diego State team set to open its season without its coach, is when will that signature smile return to the Aztecs’ dugout?

Gwynn, 51, underwent the surgery at the University of California-San Diego’s Thornton Hospital and his doctors released a statement that they believed the cancer had not spread. The tumor represented a recurrence of a cancer that was initially operated on in August 2010. This time, doctors said that to go deep enough, they would have to remove Gwynn’s facial nerve and replace it with another from his body, which meant it could take up to 18 months for Gwynn’s face to regain full function. He is hopeful, however, of returning to work in about a month.

After his surgery, Gwynn told Tom Friend of ESPN.com that he is ahead of schedule already. “Last time, I couldn’t lift my eye or close my mouth,” he said. “This time, my eye can close, my mouth can close. I feel good. I’m talking better than I did last time.”

San Diego Padres’ Tony Gwynn
Tony Gwynn had 3,141 base hits and a .338 career batting average over his 20-year career with the Padres.

What a shame, but a word to the wise.

Tony Gwynn, the Hall of Fame outfielder who 18 months ago blamed smokeless tobacco for a malignant growth inside his right cheek, was in his 13th hour of surgery Tuesday evening to remove a new cancerous tumor in the same spot.

According to Gwynn’s wife, Alicia, doctors do not believe the cancer has spread outside of Gwynn’s salivary gland. But she expects to know more after Tuesday’s intricate surgery, in which she said five doctors would likely perform a nerve graft to preserve Gwynn’s facial functions. The operation began at approximately 9:15 a.m. PT, and, as of 11 p.m. PT, the 51-year-old Gwynn was still in the operating room.

Tony told them to take [the malignant tumor] all out,” Alicia Gwynn said Tuesday morning. “They said they may need to remove the facial nerve — they might have to go a lot deeper. But he just told them to take it out. And if they do remove the facial nerve, they’ll replace it with a nerve from his shoulder or his leg.

Please don’t use smokeless tobacco and if you do QUIT.

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Health

Baseball Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn Blames Smokeless Tobacco for Oral Cancer

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San Diego Padres’ Tony Gwynn
Tony Gwynn had 3,141 base hits and a .338 career batting average over his 20-year career with the Padres.

What a shame, but a word to the wise.

Tony Gwynn, the Hall of Fame outfielder who 18 months ago blamed smokeless tobacco for a malignant growth inside his right cheek, was in his 13th hour of surgery Tuesday evening to remove a new cancerous tumor in the same spot.

According to Gwynn’s wife, Alicia, doctors do not believe the cancer has spread outside of Gwynn’s salivary gland. But she expects to know more after Tuesday’s intricate surgery, in which she said five doctors would likely perform a nerve graft to preserve Gwynn’s facial functions. The operation began at approximately 9:15 a.m. PT, and, as of 11 p.m. PT, the 51-year-old Gwynn was still in the operating room.

Tony told them to take [the malignant tumor] all out,” Alicia Gwynn said Tuesday morning. “They said they may need to remove the facial nerve — they might have to go a lot deeper. But he just told them to take it out. And if they do remove the facial nerve, they’ll replace it with a nerve from his shoulder or his leg.

Please don’t use smokeless tobacco and if you do QUIT.

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Diet

Will Overeating Contribute to Memory Loss?

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Yes, actually doubling the risk of memory loss, according to a new study.

New research suggests that consuming between 2,100 and 6,000 calories per day may double the risk of memory loss, or mild cognitive impairment (MCI), among people age 70 and older.

The study was just released and will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 64th Annual Meeting in New Orleans April 21 to April 28, 2012. MCI is the stage between normal memory loss that comes with aging and early Alzheimer’s disease.

“We observed a dose-response pattern which simply means; the higher the amount of calories consumed each day, the higher the risk of MCI,” said study author Yonas E. Geda, MD, MSc, with the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona and a member of the American Academy of Neurology.

At my current weight of 230 pounds, I am eating around 1900 net calories. Of course, this will decrease, with my reduction in body weight.

But, at least I am under the threshold of daily calories at present.

The odds of having MCI more than doubled for those in the highest calorie-consuming group compared to those in the lowest calorie-consuming group. The results were the same after adjusting for history of stroke, diabetes, amount of education, and other factors that can affect risk of memory loss. There was no significant difference in risk for the middle group.

“Cutting calories and eating foods that make up a healthy diet may be a simpler way to prevent memory loss as we age,” said Geda.

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Los Angeles Marathon

Los Angeles Marathon 2012: Support Your Marathoner

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Never run a marathon alone, thanks to the Asics ‘support your marathoner’ program

This is a neat endeavor by ASICS who are the new sponsors of the Los Angeles Marathon. Watch the video above and you will get an idea about the program which was started last Fall at the New York City Marathon.

So, how can you support me at the Los Angeles Marathon?

  • Go here to the ASICS Support Your Marathoner Website.
  • Search for me under Friends Find runners: Gregory Cole, Los Angeles Marathon Bib Number 12852.
  • Upload your text, Photo, or Video onto their website.
  • Your submission will be displayed on the large video screens throughout the race on ASICS’ large video displays.

And, thank you!

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