A recent article in amednews has cited a report from the American Arthritis Foundation that emphasises the importance of physical exercise for arthritis patients. 

The report states that staying physically active is key to helping people with arthritis reduce painful symptoms but unfortunately not enough people are aware of the benefits.

Exercise and activity "is not part of the regular dialogue that occurs between a physician and their arthritic patient however doctors and other health professionals should talk with patients about their pain, fears of worsening symptoms and other physical problems they believe limit their physical activity, and help them find solutions" said Arthritis Foundation President and CEO John Klippel.

This report and article has certainly highlighted the contemporary approach around activity and arthritis and Fitness Plus will definitely adopt the recomendations and advice provided within the report.

With a recent study finding that those who sit for at least 11 hours a day had a 40% higher risk of dying within the next three years than people who sat for less than four hours a day the Bike Desk seems a fantastic addition to any office. 

Two added benefits of the Bike Desk for mine are the sleek designer look and, arguably most importantly, the fact that users are able to charge their laptops, cell phones and other devices by pedaling - awesome!
http://mashable.com/2012/05/21/webike-bicycle-desk/  
http://wewatt.be/smart_energy.html 

The American Journal of Cardiology recently published a study that examined vitamin D deficiency and vitamin D supplementation in relation to subject health indices.

The researchers profiled the vitamin D levels of 10,899 subjects over a 5 year period; the mean age of the study group was 58 +/-15 years, 71% were women, and the average BMI was 30.

The key results of interest were:

• 29.7% of subjects were in the normal vitamin D range.
  
•  70.3% of subjects were vitamin D deficient.
  
•  Several cardiovascular related diseases, including hypertension, coronary artery disease, cardiomyopathy, and diabetes were strongly corelated with the vitamin D deficient group.
  

The researchers concluded that vitamin D deficiency was associated with a significant risk of cardiovascular disease and premature death while vitamin D supplementation was significantly associated with better mortality, specifically in patients with documented deficiency.

The study results and conclusions certainly raise a valid case for everyone to be taking a vitamin D supplement or at the very least, particularly in the 40+ year age group, discussing supplementation with their doctor.

The Northern Express - all the latest rugby league news from the North.

A recent study published in the Journal of Hypertension examined whether conventional rectangular cuffs resulted in the same blood pressure (BP)readings as conical cuffs.

The study looked specifically at patients with large arms i.e. circumferences of 37.5-42.5cm.

Of the 220 subjects measured 15% were hypertensive or had clinically high BP when assessed with the rectangular cuff but were normotensive when assessed with the conical cuff.

The 'standard' issues regarding the general reliability of BP measures aside, the study conclusion that large rectangular cuffs may overestimate BP is interesting and worth keeping in mind if/when BP is being taken by different 'practitioners' in different settings e.g. doctor or GP vs. gym vs. staff health or wellness checks.

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you the skinny on what's been happening in the great game over March and April.