Month: August 2020

I saw an article¹ recently that suggested that boosting the immune system could be a potential “treatment strategy” in the battle against the 2019-nCoV (COVID-19). While it is true that managing the immune system is essential in treating the patient once infected (and this must be considered with caution as it is the ‘cytokine storm’ that often leads to major organ failure and/or death in the most severe cases), boosting the immune system should first be considered as a “preventative strategy”.

There is much talk about vaccines and treatment drugs with regards to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sadly, there is still little focus on what is keeping people well—why are so many people asymptomatic or showing minimal sign of infection? I realize that pharmacological therapies are necessary when lives are at stake. This is life-or-death for some. Unfortunately, as a society, we tend to focus on treating symptoms rather than preventing disease.

Perhaps, if the medical profession had greater training in nutrition and exercise….

I am happy to see that more discussion is surfacing on the role of inactivity and obesity in this pandemic. The conditions that put the patient at greater risk for severe symptoms (e.g., organ failure and death) are those already known to fall under the category of “hypokinetic disease”—diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, etc. Obesity, itself, is known to negatively impact the immune system, as well as to be the central factor in “metabolic syndrome” (the coexistence of dyslipidemia, insulin resistance, and hypertension).

No drug can be considered “preventative medicine”. At best, the mitigate the risks of greater complications. What is “preventative medicine”? Those daily habits that boost the immune system and mitigate health risk—namely a healthy diet, exercise, and not smoking. This includes maintaining a healthy body composition (i.e., reducing excess fat and maintaining a functional lean body mass—increased muscle and bone) and a moderate amount of regular physical exercise, as well as daily physical activity. It also involves adequate sleep and the management of stress. Above all, preventative medicine is healthy communities—creating environments that promote health.

Be your best today; be better tomorrow.

Carpe momento!

¹https://www.ksdk.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/coronavirus-boosting-immune-system-treatment-strategy/63-0e889f1b-3ba5-4ec4-b4f4-dd39fc7c4256?fbclid=IwAR3syxc3Vpwf4zQOPeb0sq_xYVB7ErmbU8aktzshRoOg-yPc2MbCleV06Vo

Some of my friend’s kids are already starting back to school. Some will be returning soon. Many are still trying to figure out what school will be like amidst concerns over the corona virus. My own kids will be opting for a hybrid approach—2-3 days a week at school in alternating cohorts and the remaining days instructed online. (Sports still linger in uncertainty.) For most schools there is still some (albeit, in my humble opinion, too limited) requirement for Wellness (formerly known as “Physical Education”). As most kids certainly don’t get the recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity, even with PE/Wellness, the likelihood of achieving this goal in the Fall will be further challenged. So, in support of our children’s Wellness teachers, parents are going to have to take up some of the slack. I hope that, in my children’s situations, the in-school days will be activity days and that the Wellness (i.e., Health) components of the curriculum will be what is delivered online. At best, though, this is probably only two days a week for most kids. So, parents, I challenge you to be involved and encourage—dare I say, “require”—you children to be physically active, i.e., exercise, on the remaining day.

Hopefully, teachers will include age-appropriate activities for them to do (and I challenge physical education teachers to stress the necessity for more rigorous physical activities), but parents can supplement. Make daily exercise a part of your child’s school day—as well as a part of your own. Schedule it! As a parent, set the example by participating. Work collectively with your neighbors. Take turns being PE teacher for the day.

If we haven’t settled into our own personal home-exercise routine during quarantine, now is a good time. Ask your child(ren) to join you. Walk the family dog as a family. Go on bike rides. Take up jogging. Lead the kids in some high-intensity interval resistance training. (This might be easier with the younger kids, but the older kids might appreciate the challenge of trying to show up Mom/Dad.) If you have a home gym, use this opportunity to introduce your child(ren) to progressive overload.

Kids are likely to follow the example of the parents. If you are making excuses not to exercise, don’t expect them be willingly exercise on their own. However, if you are exercising they will be more willing (than you might think) to join in.

When planning physical activities for your home PE class, remember to keep it fun. We are trying to build lifelong exercise habits in our children (as well as ourselves). Consider both the health-related (cardiorespiratory endurance, muscle endurance, muscle strength, flexibility, and body composition) and neuromotor skill-related (speed, power, agility, balance, coordination, and reaction time) components of physical fitness in your planning. Remember for a body system to adapt, it must be challenged to a level greater than that to which it is accustomed. So, progress the challenges through the term. Communicate with the child’s PE/Wellness teacher and ask what you can do at home to supplement what they are doing in school.

Be creative! Some of us might remember playing outside as kids. (If you don’t, ask your parents.) Relive some of this fun with your kids. Play the games that will get you and your kids moving. Create daily obstacle courses. (Let the kids create the challenges.) Set up cones or markers for agility training. Go to the playground. For older kids, help them to develop an exercise plan for the term (as you set the example with creating your own).

Sports are in a flux for the Fall. States are taking different approaches with regards to starting dates and what sports may be scheduled. Hopefully, we will get back to rather normal sport seasons very soon. Encourage sports performance. If calendars change, adjust. Follow the rules! The worse thing we can do as parents is not follow guidelines and cause the spread of the virus. Don’t ruin things for other athletes and sports!!

With fall seasons likely being delayed, look for qualified sports performance/strength and conditioning coaching for your athlete. Focus on overall athleticism that will carry over from sport to sport. Set goals for the athlete accordingly. Use the extended preseason to your athlete’s advantage.

I considered making specific suggestions, but every child and every circumstance is going to be different. You know your child. Work with them to improve on their physical abilities during these less than ideal circumstances. Be creative (and do a little Google searching). I would be interested to hear the approaches my readers are taking.

Let’s remember that obesity is a major health concern in the U.S. Habits built in childhood carry over into adulthood. Most of us need to get in better shape ourselves. Let’s use this as an opportunity to do it as a family! Let’s do it as a community!

Be your best today; be better tomorrow.

Carpe momento!

Consider what one small change in your daily life might mean for your health. Overfat/Obesity is a major health issue in the United States of America and the one health issue we should be making a concerted effort to combat. As a rule, 3500 kcal is equivalent to a pound of fat. Fat weight is lost when the body is in a caloric deficit (hypocaloric; calories in are less than calories out). One can create this deficit by consuming fewer calories, expending greater calories, or a combination of both. What can one do on a small scale to have a big—lasting—effect?

Walk an extra mile a day. The 100-kcal rule states that one will expend approximately 100 kcal walking, jogging, or running a mile. This is cumulative, so every step counts. In a year, that is 36,500 kcal (10.4 lb).

Drink water instead of sugared pop/soda. One 20-ounce pop contains approximately 140 kcal. In a year, that is 51,100 kcal (14.6 lb).

Switch to a sugar substitute. The average American consumes 17 teaspoons (71.14 g) of sugar per day. That is about 285 kcal! Limit sugar to the American Heart Association recommended 6 tsp (25 g) for women and 9 tsp (38 g) for men, and that is a savings of 185 kcal and 133 kcal, respectively. Over a year, that is the equivalent of 19.2 lb of fat for women and 13.8 lb of fat for men. This change would go virtually unnoticed with a change to a natural sugar substitute (a sugar alcohol, e.g., erythritol).

Eat less fat. We should eat healthy fats, e.g., olive oil, avocado, etc., and some butter is fine; but we can eliminate a small amount of fat and have a tremendous effect on our caloric intake. One tablespoon of butter is about 120 kcal. Eliminate this small amount on a daily basis and that is 43,800 kcal or 12.5 pounds annually!

Consume less alcohol. Craft brewers are starting to make more low-carb beers that taste great. A 12-ounce beer that is 4% ABV is approximately 120 kcal. New brewing processes are allowing brewers to maintain much of the taste and alcohol while reducing the calories to less than 100 kcal. Twenty kcal per day is 7300 kcal/year or about a pound of body fat! Opt for lower alcohol content (i.e., %ABV) beers and similar calories can be saved. Similarly cutting consumption by one daily drink (and, really, one should consider doing so if weekly consumption in greater than 5-7 drinks) will result in a reduction of body fat by 10 to 15 lbs.

Strengthen your weaknesses. Snack food. Candies. Coffee creamers. Chocolate. Etc. We all have our weakness. Target these. Make a concerted effort to consume less and make better choices. We don’t have to omit these entirely. We don’t have to feel deprived. We just have to be wise in our indulgence.

Be your best today; be better tomorrow.

Carpe momento!!