Can Exercise Destroy Your Teeth?

Tons of articles have been going around lately about how working out is bad for your teeth. Research studies have cited the comparison of healthy adults, both athletic and nonathletic, and have concluded that there are significant differences in the oral health of those who spend a good amount of time endurance training–even the Olympic athletes in London in 2012 showed signs of poor oral health as an entire group.

While most dental-health professionals aren’t surprised at these findings, the state of one’s teeth is typically not a primary concern when in the midst of endurance or strength training, but it definitely should be.

How Saliva Is Involved?

During an intense workout, saliva production decreases. This is significant because saliva production is our bodies’ protective mechanism, bathing the teeth with antibodies and keeping our pH levels neutral. Remember, low pH is acid and this demineralizes teeth and creates an environment for the bad bacteria that cause gum inflammation to thrive. 

You might remember from high school chemistry that pH is a measure of acidity or alkalinity, ranging from 1 (acidic) to 14 (alkaline, or basic). We also remember that the pH of water is neutral is 7. The pH of the mouth is important because a low or acid pH demineralizes teeth and creates an environment for the bad bacteria that cause gum inflammation to thrive. Pregnant women and people on prescription medications both have changes in mouth pH and need to be even more proactive about their oral health to prevent cavities and periodontal disease.

Acids and carbohydrates in the food you eat can directly and indirectly lead to breakdown of the minerals in your teeth. Your body needs to constantly rebuild your teeth to keep them strong and healthy. The natural pH of saliva hovers around neutral in the range of 6.75 to 7.25, which is the perfect range for this process of remineralization. If the pH drops below 5.5, cavity-causing bacteria flourish and demineralization of the teeth accelerates. The body is no longer able to effectively repair the damage, opening up your teeth to occupation by bacteria that cause dental disease.

When you exercise, your mouth dries out and saliva can’t prevent the pH from dropping. The damaging consumption of sugary, acidic sports drinks (the pH of Gatorade is 2.95, in case you were wondering) during your workout pushes your pH way down into the acidic level. To make matters worse, athletes tend to clench their teeth when exercising, further damaging the surface of their teeth and creating a recipe for disaster.

Here is a simple equation:

Working out = less saliva + force on teeth from exertion = tooth and gum problems.

Solution.

Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. Rather than cutting out exercise, focus on nutrition. Eating tooth-healthy foods like cheese, meat, nuts, milk and crunchy veggies like carrots and celery that raise the pH help fortify your teeth against damage. Maintain a good oral hygiene regimen by brushing twice a day and flossing nightly.

It’s also a good idea to wear an athletic mouth guard while lifting weights and in competition. If you spend a lot of time training, it’s worth discussing your lifestyle with your dental hygienist, who you should already be seeing regularly. As experts, they can work with you to ensure the best dental care possible. Last but not least, drink water during your workouts, and if you must drink sports drinks, rinse with water during and after exertion.

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Movember: How to Keep the Reluctant Man in Your Life Healthy

It’s finally November, the time of year when I start thinking about turkey and spending Thanksgiving with my extended family. It’s also a time when we start to see mustaches on friends and family who normally don’t grow one, participating in the latest health-awareness trend: Movember. While you might not be a fan of your husband’s newest facial feature, the hair growth provides us with a reminder that all men are at risk for a variety of devastating illnesses, including prostate cancer, testicular cancer and mental illness.

I want to take some time to talk about this because men often downplay the importance of their health. Many studies have shown that women visit the doctor more often than men and, as a result, undergo needed screening for potentially deadly diseases more often. They get the added benefit of understanding their health and knowing their body better.

There are many reasons men go to the doctor less often, but a big reason is that we’ve been taught to “man up” our entire lives. Girls who fall down and start crying often get a little TLC until they feel better, whereas boys are told to suck it up and stop crying. That teaches us to do the same when it comes to all of our health problems. If I’ve got a new pain somewhere, my bowel movements have changed recently, or I’ve been feeling sad for a while, most men tell themselves to suck it up and keep it to themselves.

Unfortunately, that’s the worst way to deal with your health. Cancer is a great example of why this is the case. The sooner we can find and attack cancer, the easier it is to destroy it once and for all. That means the strange lump that just appeared on your testicle should be mentioned to your doctor right away, rather than saying “it’s probably nothing” and giving it a few weeks to go away. By the time you’re forced to see someone, it might be too late.

Mental illness in particular can be a difficult problem to tackle. I’ve talked many times before about how important mental health is. I’ve also talked about the stigma associated with mental illness that keeps those who suffer from it from speaking up. That stigma is multiplied in the male population, who tend to see mental illness as a weakness to be battled through alone rather than something they need help with.

It’s easy for me to say that the men in your life should probably be going to the doctor more, but it’s another thing to get them to do it. In the spirit of Movember, here are a few tips for getting even the most stalwart in for a checkup:



Express your concern. This might seem too easy, but sometimes just letting someone know you’re concerned about their health can give them a reason to go to the doctor. Letting someone know you’re worried about their prostate cancer risk might get them thinking they should be too.Give them different reasons. Sometimes it can be tough to get someone to see the light, especially when the person you’re worried about might not think there’s a problem. Don’t be deterred. Try a different tack if others haven’t worked. For example, if doing it “for your health” isn’t enough, try suggesting they see someone just to confirm they really do know what’s going on with their body. You could even mention a bonus excuse to get a little bit of time away from work to pop out for an annual visit.Tell them to do some research. If a guy is adamant there’s nothing wrong, ask him to do some searching around on the Web first. This is especially useful for mental illness, which can be very isolating. Finding out other people are getting help for going through something similar normalizes seeking medical Remind them they’re taking control of their health. Make sure they know that regular checkups often mean fewer visits (eventually). While you might feel healthy, everyone eventually ends up at the doctor. Going once or twice a year could save you many more visits and a possible hospital stay once you’re forced to see someone.

Hoping you aren’t sick isn’t a great way to hold the reins of your health. A doctor can give you tools to put you behind the steering wheel instead. Take testicular cancer as an example. When done properly, regular testicular exams are an excellent way to detect cancer early. Once you learn how to do the exam, you shouldn’t need to see the doctor about testicular cancer unless you find something. With a single visit, you’ve gained the power to monitor your health

attention.

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Antioxidants Explained in Human Terms

Antioxidants are frequently mentioned in everyday conversations.

This applies to both scholars and laymen alike.

You can find antioxidant supplements in store shelves, and their health benefits are beloved by both marketers and media.

However, very few people actually know what they are and how they work.

The concept of antioxidants is fairly complex, but this article explains it in plain, human terms that anyone can understand.

In order to understand how antioxidants work, we must start at the molecular level…

As you may know, all matter in the universe is made of atoms.

Atoms are composed of a core with protons and neutrons, and a bunch of electrons that revolve around the core.

The blue balls are electrons, which carry a negative (-) charge, while the protons (red balls) in the core carry a positive (+) charge.

When two or more atoms are linked together, they become what we know as molecules.

The human body is made up of substances like proteins, fats and DNA, which are basically just large molecules with dozens, hundreds or thousands of atoms joined together.

This is an image of a fatty acid molecule. Each ball represents an atom:

Humans and other organisms maintain their structure and function by chemical reactions. All the chemical reactions needed to sustain life are collectively known as metabolism.

In these chemical reactions, bigger molecules are broken down into smaller molecules, and smaller molecules are organized into bigger molecules.

In order for a molecule to be stable, it must contain the right amount of electrons. If the molecule loses an electron when it isn’t supposed to, it can turn into a free radical.

Free radicals are unstable, electrically charged molecules in the cells, that can react with other molecules (like DNA) and damage them.


They can even form chain reactions, where the molecules they damage also turn into free radicals.

This is where antioxidants come in… if a molecule loses an electron and turns into a free radical, the antioxidant molecule steps in and “gives” the free radical an electron, effectively neutralizing it.

This is how it happens:

This is the mechanism behind antioxidants. They donate electrons to free radicals, which neutralizes them and prevents them from causing harm.

Antioxidants are molecules that fight damage by free radicals, unstable molecules that can harm cellular structures. Antioxidants do this by giving electrons to the free radicals and neutralizing them.

Free radicals are constantly being formed during metabolism.

Without antioxidants, they would destroy our bodies very quickly.

However, it’s important to keep in mind that free radicals also serve important functions that are essential for our survival (1).

For example, the body’s immune cells use free radicals to kill bacteria that try to infect us (2).

As with so many things in the body, we need a certain balance… we need the right amount of free radicals, and the right amount of antioxidants to keep them in check.

When this balance gets disrupted, things can start to go wrong.

When the free radicals (pro

-oxidants) outnumber the antioxidants, this can lead to a state called oxidative stress.
During oxidative stress, important molecules in the body can become severely damaged… sometimes even leading to cell death.

Several stress factors and lifestyle habits are known to promote excessive free radical formation and oxidative stress:
Air pollution.Cigarette smoke.Alcohol intake.Toxins.High blood sugar levels (3, 4).Consuming large amounts of polyunsaturated fatty acids (5).Radiation, including excessive sunbathing.Infections by bacteria, fungi or viruses.Excessive intake of iron, magnesium, copper, or zinc (1).Too little oxygen in the body (6).Too much oxygen in the body.Intense and prolonged exercise, which causes tissue damage (7).Excessive intake of antioxidants, such as vitamins C and E (1).Antioxidant deficiency (8).
Prolonged oxidative stress leads to increased risk of negative health outcomes, such as cardiovascular disease and certain types of cancer. It is also thought to contribute to the aging process.

The body needs a certain balance between free radicals and antioxidants. When this balance is disrupted, it can lead to oxidative stress, which can cause all sorts of negative effects.

Antioxidants are essential for the survival of all living things.

The human body even generates its own antioxidants, such as the cellular antioxidant glutathione.

Plants and animals, and all other forms of life, have their own defenses against free radicals and the oxidative damage caused by them.

Therefore, antioxidants are found in pretty much all foods of plant and animal origin.

Getting antioxidants from foods is important. In fact, our life depends on the intake of certain antioxidants – namely, vitamin C and vitamin E.

The health benefits associated with a diet rich in plants is, at least partially, due to the wide diversity of antioxidants they provide (9).

Meat products and fish also contain antioxidants (10, 11), but in smaller amounts compared to fruits and vegetables. Berries are a particularly good source (12).

Then there are plenty of other good sources of antioxidants… including green tea, coffee and dark chocolate.

According to some studies, coffee is actually the single biggest source of antioxidants in the Western diet (13, 14), but this is partly because the “average” individual doesn’t eat that many antioxidant-rich foods.

Antioxidants can increase the shelf life of both natural and processed food products. Therefore, they are frequently used as food additives (15). For instance, vitamin C is often added to processed foods to act as a preservative.

There is a huge variety of different antioxidants found in foods.

They can be broadly categorized into two groups, water-soluble and fat-soluble antioxidants.

Water-soluble antioxidants perform their actions in the fluid inside and outside cells, whereas fat-soluble antioxidants act primarily in cell membranes.

Here is a list of a few important dietary antioxidants:

Many substances that happen to be antioxidants can also have other important functions.

Notable examples include curcuminoids in turmeric and oleocanthal in extra virgin olive oil. These substances function as antioxidants, but they also have potent anti-inflammatory activity (17, 18).

There are many different types of antioxidants in the diet, including vitamins C and E, as well as flavonoids. These substances can serve various other functions that are not related to the antioxidant activity.

Dietary intake of antioxidants is essential for optimal health.

However, more is not always better.

Excessive intake of isolated antioxidants can have toxic effects and may even promote rather than prevent oxidative damage.

In fact, some studies have shown that high doses of antioxidants increase the risk of death (19, 20).

Therefore, you should avoid high-dose antioxidant supplementation.

In addition, studies show that foods reduce oxidative damage more than supplements.

For example, a study using blood orange juice showed that it had significantly greater antioxidant power than a drink with sugar water that contained the same amount of Vitamin C (21).

The truth is… real foods have hundreds (if not thousands
) of different nutrients that work synergistically. Taking just one or two isolated nutrients won’t have the same beneficial effects.
The best (and healthiest) strategy to ensure adequate intake of antioxidants, is a diet rich in various vegetables and fruit (22), along with other healthy dietary habits.

However, low-dose supplementation, such as in multivitamin tablets, may be beneficial if you are deficient in certain nutrients or unable to follow a healthy diet.

Adequate intake of antioxidants is an essential part of a healthy diet… but getting too much of isolated antioxidants (via supplements) can in some cases be harmful.

At the end of the day, the best way to ensure that you get the right amount of antioxidants, is to eat a real food based diet that includes plenty of healthy fruits and vegetables.

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Fiber Can Help You Lose Weight, But Only A Specific Type

Fiber is a well known nutrient, but not well understood. Put simply, fiber refers to carbohydrates that cannot be digested by humans.
They are classified as either soluble or insoluble, depending on whether they dissolve in liquids.
Insoluble fibers function mostly as “bulking” agents and are not very interesting.
However… soluble fiber can have powerful
effects on health and metabolism (1).
Several studies show that soluble fiber can help you lose fat… but this fiber must have certain properties. Let me explain…

It is estimated that around 100 trillion bacteria live in the human gut, primarily in the large intestine (2).

These bacteria are known as the gut flora.

Having bacteria
in the gut may sound undesirable, but this is actually a good thing.
Different types (species) of bacteria play important roles in various aspects of health, including weight management, blood sugar control, immunity and even brain function (3, 4, 5, 6, 7).

Just like other organisms, bacteria need to eat well to stay healthy.

This is where fiber (mostly soluble) steps in… it passes through the digestive system mostly unchanged, eventually reaching the friendly bacteria in the intestine who end up digesting the fiber and turning it into usable energy.

Nourishing the friendly bacteria in the intestine is known as a prebiotic effect, and is believed to be very beneficial for health and body weight (8, 9). Another type of fiber called resistant starch behaves in a similar manner.

Fiber does not get digested and tends to reach the large intestine relatively unchanged. There, certain soluble fibers can help feed the friendly bacteria that are absolutely essential for good health.

Gut bacteria have long been known to have an effect on inflammatory pathways (10). They produce nutrients for the body, including short-chain fatty acids that feed the cells in the colon. This leads to reduced gut inflammation and improvements in related inflammatory disorders (11, 12, 13).
Just to clarify, acute (short-term) inflammation is beneficial as it helps the body fight foreign invaders and repair damaged cells.

However, chronic (long-term) inflammation becomes a major problem when it is inappropriately deployed against the body’s own tissues.

We now know that chronic, low-level inflammation plays a major role in almost every
chronic Western disease, including heart disease, Alzheimer’s and metabolic syndrome, to name a few (14, 15, 16).
There is also mounting evidence that inflammation is a strong driver of weight gain and obesity, possibly mediated via its effects on the hormone leptin (17, 18, 10).

Several observational studies have shown that a high fiber intake is linked to lower levels of inflammatory markers in the bloodstream (19, 20).

Inflammation is a strong driver of disease, including obesity. Fiber consumption has been linked to reduced inflammation..

While I don’t believe that counting calories is necessary, it is a simple fact that we need to be in calorie deficit to lose weight. That is, more calories (energy) need to be leaving the body than entering it. Anything that reduces our appetite can make us take in fewer calories without having to think about it. Fiber is often believed to have this effect… that is, making us feel more satiated so that we eat less.

However, according to the evidence, only a specific
type of fiber does this.

A recent review of 44 studies found that while 39% of fiber treatments increased satiety, only 22% actually reduced food intake (21). If we break it down further, it seems that the more viscous a fiber is, the better it is at reducing appetite and food intake. Put simply, the viscosity of a substance refers to its resistance to stress – as in, the “thickness” of a liquid. For example, honey is much more viscous than water. Viscous soluble fibers such as pectins, ß-glucans, psyllium, glucomannan and guar gum all thicken in water, forming a gel-like substance that “sits” in the gut (22). This gel slows down the emptying of the stomach and increases the time it takes to digest and absorb nutrients. The end result is a prolonged feeling of fullness and a significantly reduced appetite (23, 24).

There is some evidence that the weight loss effects of fiber target the belly fat specifically, which is the harmful fat in the abdominal cavity that is strongly associated with metabolic disease (25).

Fibers with a high viscosity have been shown to increase satiety, reduce appetite and cause automatic weight loss. Fibers with low viscosity appear to have no influence.

Fiber supplements are typically made by isolating the fiber from plants. While these isolated fibers may have some health benefits, the evidence for weight control is mixed and pretty unconvincing.
A very large review study found that psyllium and guar gum (both soluble, viscous fibers) are ineffective as weight loss supplements (26). One notable exception is glucomannan, a fiber extracted from the konjac root.

This is one of the most viscous dietary fibers known, and has been shown to cause modest weight loss when used as a supplement (27, 28, 29).

But in the real world, it’s the synergy
of all the nutrients in foods that provides the most benefits, consuming isolated nutrients will never have the same effects.
For this reason, getting your fiber from whole
plant foods is best.

Fiber supplements are mostly ineffective for weight loss, with the exception of a powerful type of fiber called glucomannan. Getting your fiber from whole plant foods     is the best and healthiest approach.

Viscous fibers are found exclusively in plant foods. Rich sources include beans (legumes), flax seeds, asparagus, brussels sprouts and oats, to name a few.

If you’re planning to switch to a high-fiber diet, remember to do it gradually to give your body time to adjust.

Abdominal discomfort, cramps and even diarrhea are common side effects if you ramp up your fiber intake too quickly.

Adding more foods rich in fiber (especially viscous fiber) can be an effective way to lose weight.

But, same as with any other weight loss method, it won’t lead to long term results unless it comes with a lasting lifestyle change.

Also, let’s not forget that health is about way more than just weight. Eating plenty of fiber from real foods can have numerous other health benefits.

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You Ran a Marathon, Now What? Getting Past the Post-Race Blues

Forty-eight hours after Tracey Mayling finished her first marathon in New York City on Sunday, the high from the cheering crowds and exercise-fueled endorphins had worn off. It was replaced by irritation as she reflected on her performance. “There are all these things I wish I would have done differently,” says Mayling, a 34-year-old financial services consultant from Manhattan. She wishes she hadn’t gotten stuck in a long bathroom line and missed her running wave. And she regrets not running alongside the pacer who might have helped her reach her goal time of 4:15. Instead, she finished 11 minutes slower. 

The self-criticism was paired with another unexpected emotion: Sadness at the thought of losing the close friendships she’d developed with her running buddies during training. “I have this sense of, ‘Now what?’ Are we still going to hang out on Sundays and run?” she says. 

Experts call the discombobulated feelings many athletes wrestle with after a big competition the “post-race blues.” They can range in severity from a short-term funk to more serious clinical depression. “It’s similar to the feeling people have after a wedding or finishing a big project or finals in college,” explains Jim Afremow, PhD, author of The Champion’s Mind: How Great Athletes Think, Train and Thrive. “When we accomplish a goal, it’s easy to lose your focus and feel adrift.” He once had a client who suffered from the syndrome after pitching his first Major League Baseball game. “He said, ‘I’ve been spending my whole life working toward this. I did it. Now what am I supposed to do?’” says Afremow.

The initial challenge for many athletes lies in flipping the switch from focusing on a big goal to transitioning back to a normal routine. This can require everything from re-jiggering your exercise schedule, to catching up with work, to family or social obligations you put on the back burner during intense training. The psychological adjustment can also be difficult. “Training gives us self-esteem and an identity and a physical release. It’s also exciting to say, ‘I’m training for a marathon!’” says Afremow. “Sometimes there’s disappointment because we had expected a marathon to transform us.” And it’s not always rewarding to return to our regular lives, which are often filled with family demands and a backlog of deadlines.

After Mindy Bobe, 36, finished her first marathon in New Orleans in 2012, she savored the chance to sleep in the following week, instead of getting up in the pre-dawn hours to fit in runs before her two young boys woke. “I was on such a high afterward. Crossing that finish line was a really big deal. You have such strong emotions because you’ve worked so hard for so long, and then it’s over so quickly,” says Bobe, a pre-school teacher from Daphne, Alabama who writes the blog Road Runner Girl. “But the next week I was depressed. I thought, ‘What can I do next? Is there anything bigger than this?’”

She signed up for a half-marathon right away and now makes sure she has another race on the books before each competition. “That way I go right back into training mode,” she says.

Even if you can quickly get back into the swing of things, athletes are susceptible to ruminating about what they could have done better for weeks after a race. “We all tend to be extra critical of ourselves, and for perfectionist athletes, a performance is never good enough,” says Afremow.  

Weeks after Carlos Londono completed a half-Ironman in Princeton, New Jersey in late September, he chastised himself for not sticking to a strict training schedule. He had high hopes of finishing the punishing 70.3-mile triathlon in under six hours. Instead, he shaved just 10 minutes from his 7:14 finish at his first half-Ironman in Maryland earlier in the summer. “I said to myself, ‘You’re such a slacker,’” says Londono, 47, a management consultant from Berkeley Heights, New Jersey. He told himself he should have gotten up earlier on the weekends to fit in longer bike rides and run more frequently on the treadmill when he was on the road for work. “It was a constant mental fatigue. If I wasn’t telling anyone, I was thinking about it a lot.”

It took Londono nearly a month to appreciate what he had accomplished. Most notably, he took nine minutes off his swim time. During his first half-Ironman swim, he had panicked and struggled to finish. The second time, “I mentally overcame my fear of open water, and that’s big,” he says. “When I feel a tendency to be critical, I go back to that thought and remind myself of my progress.”

Got a case of the post-race blues? It’s normal to feel adrift for a while, or experience a range of emotions once that bib finally comes off. Here are some tips to help get you back to your old self again.

1. Have some fun. It’s easy to forget what life was like before all-things-running overran your life. Ward off the blahs by planning something fun for yourself in the weeks after your race. “This is the time to let your hair down and indulge your carefree side,” says Afremow. Have a couple beers. Go on a trip. Plan a great date night. Take a week off from running. It might seem scary — but a short hiatus could spark a new appreciation for the sport. 

2. Set a new goal. “Even if it’s just a 5K, you want something to look forward to,” Afremow says. If you’re disappointed about your last performance, you’ll have a fresh opportunity to focus on a new goal. Try something different like a mud run, or inspire a newbie runner to lace up for their first fun run with you. You’ll find it’s rewarding to invest your efforts into something other than calculating your splits.

3. Redefine your definition of success. Disappointed you didn’t finish the marathon in four hours? With so many factors out of your control, it’s important to acknowledge that meeting your goal sometimes just isn’t in the cards. Instead, how about looking at your 4:15 finish as your own silver medal?  Or, think of finishing as your bronze accomplishment. “Establish multiple goals and create your own personal podium,” says Afremow. “It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Think about the many ways you were awesome.”

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