Researchers found that of the “least-fit” versus the “slightly more fit” of the nearly 4,400 healthy U.S. adults in their recent study, roughly 20 percent with the lowest physical fitness levels were twice as likely to die over the next nine years as the 20 percent with the next-lowest fitness levels. (To put it another way, those 20 percent who were almost at the lowest fitness levels.) This is the familiar “bad news/good news” situation. It is obviously bad news if you are a resolute sofa spud. But, it is undoubtedly good news for those who haven’t completely embraced a sedentary lifestyle but are not, by any means, energetic. Apparently, those people who continue to be just moderately fit as they age may have a longer lifespan than those who are completely out-of-shape, the study suggests.

Between 1986 and 2006, researchers assessed the fitness levels of 4,384 middle-aged and senior adults during exercise treatmill tests. For an average of nine years thereafter, the researchers pursued the study groups progress. The study considered such factors like obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes. This, in and of itself, highlights the significants of being physically fit. In an email to Reuters Health, Dr. Sandra Mandic, of the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand, and lead researcher of the study wrote: “Our findings suggest that a sedentary lifestyle, rather than differences in cardiovascular risk factors or age, may explain the two-fold higher mortality rates in the least-fit versus slightly more fit individuals.”

Nearly two-thirds of the participants at the least-fit level failed to get at least 30 minutes of moderate activity, five or more days a week, which was the minimum recommended amount of exercise. “These results emphasize the importance of improving and maintaining high fitness levels by engaging in regular physical activity,” Mandic said, “particularly in poorly-fit individuals.”

Classifying the study group participants by fitness levels, the researchers found that 25 percent of the least-fit men and women had died during the study period, as opposed to 13 percent of those who were in slightly better shape. Only 6 percent of the most-fit group (i.e., the ones who “hit a bull’s eye,” so to speak) had died during the follow-up period.

The five fitness-level groups presented little difference, overall, in their reported exercise practices during most of their adult lives, but significantly, they varied in activity levels only in recent years. “Since it is recent physical activity that offers protection,” Mandic said, “it is important to maintain regular physical activity throughout life.”

In this particular study, irrespective of weight and other health problems such as those mentioned above, fitness is undeniably linked to longevity. Therefore, exercise is crucial to extending our lifespan. And, naturally, just think of the health advantages we could all obtain if we worked our way up into the higher levels of fitness.

SOURCE: Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, August 2009.

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A current survey by the NPD Group, a leading market research organization based in Rosemont, Ill., shows that around 62% of adults and 34% of adolescents are overweight or obese. The ubiquitousness of arthritis escalates with growing weight. Research implies that maintaining a healthy weight decreases the risk of developing arthritis in the first place and may decrease disease progression. A reduction of just 11 pounds can reduce the occurrence (incidence) of new knee osteoarthritis and would do quite a lot to decrease back pain as well.

A good diet and routine exercise is imperative for a person who desires to overcome their back pain, knee pain, and joint pain in other areas of the body.  Although this fact presumably doesn’t strike you as anything new, it genuinely is the only solution for you to get out of pain and regain your life.

First of all, we’ll address the dieting issue.  The majority diets (and there are a large number from which to choose) can be temporarily helpful.  It may sound cynical, but let’s face it, if you were to lose weight for keeps, the diet industry would lose a good customer!  Eating a balanced diet (as a lifestyle choice and not just a temporary fix) and reducing your calories so that you are using more calories than you are taking in is the only approach to losing weight in a healthy, permanent manner.  Losing a large amount of weight too quickly is not only unhealthy, but perilous. A healthy weight loss rate is about 2 pounds every week in order for it to work well.

As far as exercise is concerned, research has proved that physical activity decreases pain, augments function, and slows down disability. A minimum of one-half hour of moderate physical activity, at least 3 days a week, has been shown to be effective. Even at 10-minute intervals such movement is beneficial.

In addition to the benefits your joints will undergo from exercise, chiropractic manipulation is an excellent way to get mobility back in the joints of your spine and other places in your body. A spine in alignment makes exercise and physical activity a good deal easier and actually slows down arthritic degenerative changes. The Annals of Internal Medicine reported the results of a survey of 232 people who had arthritis and were under a rheumatologist’s care.  Of those people, 63% answered the survey by indicating they were using some type of “complementary care” as named by the study.  Of those people, 31% were using chiropractic. Likely the most impressive statistic was that 73% of those utilizing chiropractic found it effective.  Answering why they’d tried the non-medical chiropractic care, people provided a number of reasons: 1) to curb pain, 2) they’d been told that it helps, 3) they felt confident that it is safe, 4) it had aided someone they knew, and 5) because their prescription medication wasn’t doing the job.

Chiropractors, also called doctors of chiropractic, have been aiding men and women suffering from back pain due to arthritis as well as other arthritic afflictions for over a hundred years. Not only can arthritic pain and degenerative changes in the spine be created by the misaligned vertebra that your  chiropractor will adjust, if left unattended misalignments can reduce resistance and immunity, which can lead to new health challenges.

It is always wise to see a health care professional to talk about diet and exercise. Your chiropractor is an experienced resource for information on the type of lifestyle changes that you will need to aid you in managing your arthritis. Moreover, besides getting your spine in alignment through gentle adjustments, your chiropractor will diagnose any faulty gait patterns or posture irregularities that may be adding to the pain you are experiencing.

Technorati Tags: arthritis, chiropractic, chiropractor, exercise, weight loss