System Check
Natural news for every part of you.
By Mary Ellen Strote
Reproductive
If you're looking to get pregnant, ask your mate to take his Apple off his lap. A study in Human Reproduction found that men who use a laptop computer on their laps raise the temperature of their testes by almost 6 degrees, which may lower sperm counts. (The position counts: Balancing the laptop with the thighs pressed together raised scrotal temperature by 4 degrees.) Earlier research determined that a 2-degree boost reduced sperm concentration by 40 percent.
Cardiovascular
A vegetarian diet may be a drug-free way of lowering hypertension, a risk factor for heart attack and stroke, according to a Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine report in Nutrition Reviews. After analyzing dietary studies, researchers found that a plant-based diet reduces blood pressure in people with normal or elevated levels. Vegetarian diets include more potassium and magnesium, which have been linked to lower blood pressure. Fruits and vegetables facilitate weight loss and make blood less "sticky," both of which reduce hypertension.
Metabolic
Olive oil, famous for controlling cholesterol, is making news as a possible protector against breast cancer. A cell study reported in Annals of Oncology found that oleic acid, the main fatty acid in olive oil, suppressed levels of a gene found in more than a fifth of breast cancers and associated with an aggressive form of the disease. It also boosted the effect of the breast-cancer treatment Herceptin. This is the first study to show molecular evidence of the anti-cancer potential of oleic acid, a key component of the Mediterranean diet. More studies are needed for confirmation, but you're probably wise to replace your diet's saturated fats with olive oil.
If you're looking to get pregnant, ask your mate to take his Apple off his lap. A study in Human Reproduction found that men who use a laptop computer on their laps raise the temperature of their testes by almost 6 degrees, which may lower sperm counts. (The position counts: Balancing the laptop with the thighs pressed together raised scrotal temperature by 4 degrees.) Earlier research determined that a 2-degree boost reduced sperm concentration by 40 percent.
Cardiovascular
A vegetarian diet may be a drug-free way of lowering hypertension, a risk factor for heart attack and stroke, according to a Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine report in Nutrition Reviews. After analyzing dietary studies, researchers found that a plant-based diet reduces blood pressure in people with normal or elevated levels. Vegetarian diets include more potassium and magnesium, which have been linked to lower blood pressure. Fruits and vegetables facilitate weight loss and make blood less "sticky," both of which reduce hypertension.
Metabolic
Olive oil, famous for controlling cholesterol, is making news as a possible protector against breast cancer. A cell study reported in Annals of Oncology found that oleic acid, the main fatty acid in olive oil, suppressed levels of a gene found in more than a fifth of breast cancers and associated with an aggressive form of the disease. It also boosted the effect of the breast-cancer treatment Herceptin. This is the first study to show molecular evidence of the anti-cancer potential of oleic acid, a key component of the Mediterranean diet. More studies are needed for confirmation, but you're probably wise to replace your diet's saturated fats with olive oil.
