Health Tips Facts – Aerobic Exercises Benefits for Visceral Fat Reduction

Exercise prevents regain of harmful fat one year after weight loss. As little as 80 minutes a week of aerobic or resistance training helps not only to prevent weight gain, but also to inhibit a regain of harmful visceral fat one year after weight loss, according to a new study.

Unlike subcutaneous fat that lies just under the skin and is noticeable, visceral fat lies in the abdominal cavity under the abdominal muscle.

Visceral fat is more dangerous than subcutaneous fat because it often surrounds vital organs.

The more visceral fat one has, the greater is the chance of developing Type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

In the study, Gary Hunter, from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Department of Human Studies, and his team randomly assigned 45 European-American and 52 African-American women to three groups: aerobic training, resistance training or no exercise.

All of the participants were placed on an 800 calorie-a-day diet and lost an average 24 pounds.

Researchers then measured total fat, abdominal subcutaneous fat and visceral fat for each participant.

Afterward, participants in the two exercise groups were asked to continue exercising 40 minutes twice a week for one year.

After a year, the study’s participants were divided into five groups: those who maintained aerobic exercise training, those who stopped aerobic training, those who maintained their resistance training, those who stopped resistance training and those who were never placed on an exercise regimen.

“What we found was that those who continued exercising, despite modest weight regains, regained zero percent visceral fat a year after they lost the weight.

But those who stopped exercising, and those who weren’t put on any exercise regimen at all, averaged about a 33 percent increase in visceral fat,” Hunter said.

"Because other studies have reported that much longer training durations of 60 minutes a day are necessary to prevent weight regain, it’s not too surprising that weight regain was not totally prevented in this study.

It’s encouraging, however, that this relatively small amount of exercise was sufficient to prevent visceral fat gain,” Hunter added.

Oncology Massage Mesothelioma Cancer Treatment Cure Prevention Tips Facts

Mesothelioma and other cancer patients can Health benefits from oncology massage.

Complementary Therapies can improve quality of life for patients with mesothelioma and other forms of cancer. Cindy Doody of Mariposa Massage and Body Therapy in Cohasset, Massachusetts had her first experience with cancer when she was 17 and her grandmother was diagnosed with breast cancer. She saw what the chemotherapy and pain did to her. So when she became a massage therapist and was asked to come to a man’s mother’s house to give her a massage while she was going through chemotherapy, she didn’t hesitate. Doody gave the mother a relaxation massage and spoke with the woman, who found it to be very therapeutic. She continued to give her regular massages in her home for five months until she passed away.

Following that experience, Doody decided to become certified in oncology massage, which is now a supplement to her usual massage and body therapy business.

Oncology massage patients can come to her office, or she makes house calls for patients who find it difficult to travel.

With each new client, she spends time getting to know about their conditions, where they are in their treatment and how their general well-being is. Knowing where each client’s treatment is medically is very important for providing the most beneficial massage experience.

The American Cancer Society website lists information from studies that found that massage for cancer patients can help to decrease pain, fatigue, anxiety, stress and depression. Massage is considered to be a noninvasive addition to conventional cancer treatment.

Health Tips Facts – Sinusitis Treatment Cure with Massage Therapy

The following four bodywork techniques are known to help sinusitis by breaking up congestion, increasing circulation within the sinuses, aiding the lymph in removing sinusoidal debris and strengthening the immune system:

1. Sinus Massage:-To promote drainage and alleviate congestion, perform a sinus massage. You can use these directions as a guide - beginning from the midline, massage in small circles laterally on the forehead out to the temples, the base and sides of the nose out to the cheeks and ears and along the mandible from the chin out to the ears.

2. Acupressure:-Utilize the wisdom of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) by applying pressure to the following acupressure points - Urinary Bladder 2, Stomach 3, Stomach 8, Stomach 40, Gallbladder 20, Large Intestine 4, Large Intestine 20, Bi Tong, Yin Tang, Triple Warmer 17 and Governing Vessel 24.

3. Cranial Sacral Therapy:-

Because it moves stagnant cerebrospinal fluid within the bones of the skull, cranial sacral techniques create an influx of circulation, which consequently eases sinus pressure. This technique is especially useful for head, jaw, and eye and ear pain from chronic sinusitis.

4. Lymphatic Drainage Massage:-Because this manual technique stimulates the movement of lymphatic fluid, it helps the body thin out mucus. Especially when applied to lymph vessels in the head and neck, properly applied lymphatic drainage massage can reduce congestion and sinus pressure.

Whenever a massage therapist is working with clients who have sinusitis, there should be awareness of the following issues:

Since there is no way to be sure that a client's secretions are non-infectious, be extra vigilant about potential contagion by following universal precautions.

Affected clients are likely to have difficulty breathing in the prone position. If your session involves back work, make sure it is brief and take steps for your client's comfort.

Chronic Sinusitis sufferers may have inflammation that makes local massage painful.

Continually check in with your clients to make sure that sinus massage or acupressure is not causing them pain.

Bodywork will increase circulation and break up sinus congestion. To help move those toxins out of the body, advise your client to drink plenty of water following the session.

After repeatedly trying to get a handle on their congestion and pain, many sufferers have succumbed to the discomforts of chronic sinusitis. They may be in for a pleasant surprise when massage therapy brings them more relief than their primary physician ever could!

By customizing a session with sinus massage, acupressure, lymphatic drainage and cranial sacral therapy, massage therapists can be the most important practitioner a chronic sinusitis sufferer ever entrusts with his or her care.

Stress Stroke Relief Management

Study finds link between stress and stroke.

There’s a new reason to take measures to reduce the stress in your life. A study has found a correlation between prolonged stress and stroke.

Researchers in Sweden asked recent stroke victims to choose between six different alternatives to indicate how stressed they had felt before their stroke, from "never been stressed" to "constantly stressed over the past five years."

Their responses were compared with a healthy control group who were asked the same question.

They found that stroke caused by atherosclerosis or to blood clots that have developed locally in the smaller vessels of the brain were linked to severe prolonged stress. The link was also found for patients in whom it had not been possible to establish the cause of the stroke despite an extensive evaluation.

Managing stress is imperative for optimum overall health, according to health experts.

Identifying stressors, exercising, are getting plenty of sleep and healthy eating are all important to reducing stress. Relaxation techniques such as tai chi, breathing exercises, meditation, yoga and aromatherapy have also been found to be helpful.