The Ten Most Effective Ab Exercises: #2 The Captain’s Chair

  If you want washboard abs this summer, you might want to try the ten exercises most likely to give them to you. Dr. Peter Francis from the Biomechanics Lab at San Diego State University measured abdominal muscle activity with electromyography (EMG) devices, and put some of the most commonly performed exercises to the test, ranking them from most effective to least effective. The study was sanctioned by the American Council on Exercise (ACE).

#2 The Captain’s Chair

  Dr. Francis found the most effective abdominal exercises combined continuous abdominal contraction and rotation of the torso. Overall the Bicycle Maneuver ranked #1 (see below), but the ‘Captain’s Chair’ finished a close second and it strengthened both the abdominal and oblique muscles the best. Here’s how to perform the exercise properly according to the ACE.

     1. Stabilize your upper body by gripping hand holds.

     2. Lightly press your back against the back pad.

     3. Slowly lift your knees to your chest, then return legs to starting.

     4. The motion should be controlled and deliberate, not fast or jerking.

Check the Healthapalooza.com Special Reports section tomorrow when we will reveal the exercise that ranked #3 in the study. -Sean Kenniff, MD

Researchers Link Arab-American Dress, Diet to Vitamin-D Deficiency

(Press Release)

Arab-American women need supplement to boost dangerously low vitamin D levels

   Arab-American women living in southeast Detroit whose conservative dress limits their exposure to sun should be taking a vitamin D supplement to boost their dangerously low serum levels, according to a study published by Henry Ford Hospital researchers.

   Researchers found that all 87 women involved in a small study showed vitamin D levels averaging 8.5 ng/mL (nanograms per milliliter) for those who wore western dress to 4 ng/mL for those who wore the hijab, modest dress with a headscarf. A healthy vitamin D level is 30 ng/mL or higher.

   Also, the women consumed little dietary sources of vitamin D. Forty-seven women reported drinking any milk on a weekly basis, but the amount they consume isn’t significant enough to boost their vitamin D levels, researchers say.

   The study is published in the January/February issue of Endocrine Practice. It is believed to be the largest study on the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in one of the largest concentrations of Arab Americans in southeast Michigan.

   Raymond Hobbs, M.D., a Henry Ford Internal Medicine physician and lead author of the study, described the vitamin D deficiency in the women as “much greater than we would have thought.”

“When people live where the weather is colder and they are more covered with clothing, they depend on their diet for their vitamin D,” Dr. Hobbs says. “Unfortunately, most food with the exception of oily fish and vitamin D fortified milk has very little vitamin D. The women in our study drank very little milk, fortified orange juice and had decreased sun exposure because of their dress.”

   Low levels of vitamin D are linked to increased risk of cancer, diabetes and Crohn’s disease, Dr. Hobbs says. Vitamin D is needed to maintain normal blood levels of calcium and phosphorus. It also helps in the absorption of calcium, helping to form and maintain strong bones.

“Our findings are consistent with those of similar studies in other parts of the world and underscore the point that there are pockets of individuals who are at risk for culturally mediated health problems,” Dr. Hobbs says. “We need to raise their awareness of this deficiency and to offer them options for increasing their vitamin D levels. A vitamin D supplement is a start.”

  More than 490,000 Arab Americans reside in southeast Michigan, the largest population anywhere outside the Middle East. For the study, researchers looked at Arab-American women in the city of Dearborn, a southeast Detroit suburb in which Arab Americans comprise one third of the 100,000 population.

   Sunlight exposure is the single most important factor in producing vitamin D in the body. For example, sun bathing for a period of time will produce 10,000- 20,000 international units, a measure of vitamin potency, or the equivalent of 100 glasses of fortified milk.

   For the study, researchers recruited women who attended an ethnic supermarket in Dearborn during the course of two Saturdays in April 2007 to search for correlations with dress, diet, use of vitamin D-fortified foods and vitamin supplements. They were interviewed to assess dress, medical history, medication use, clinical symptoms associated with vitamin D deficiency, consumption of fortified milk or fortified orange juice and vitamin supplements. Blood samples also were taken onsite and analyzed for levels of vitamin D and parathyroid hormone and other minerals.

  Dr. Hobbs says Henry Ford is launching an awareness campaign to educate the Arab American community in Dearborn about the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and offer options for addressing the problem.

   Researchers theorize that Arab American women avoid milk because of reported higher incidence of lactose intolerance in their population.

“Our goal is to help them understand that by taking these preventive measures now, they can avoid serious health problems in the future,” Dr. Hobbs says.

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The study was funded by Henry Ford Hospital and the DiaSorin Co.

The Good Manners Diet

From the caviar to the crème brulée those high-society dinner parties have a slimming secret; good manners are good for your waistline. Experts say by simply polishing up on your politeness you might gain friends and lose unwanted pounds.

Sheah Rarback, director of nutrition at the University of Miami’s School of Medicine says it takes roughly twenty minutes for the brain to realize the stomach is full so the first trimming tip is to slow down.

“Eating slowly gives your stomach time to communicate with your brain and send the signal that you are full,” Rarback says, “Eat quickly and you might miss feeling satisfied and go from hungry to stuffed.”

High-society dinners are often served in several small courses. A recent study in the British Journal of Medicine found gulping down food doubled the risk of being overweight. Putting your fork down after each bite, keeping your elbows off the table, and chewing your food thoroughly will also help slow the pace. Listen and contribute to the table conversation; if you are using your mouth to talk, you can’t be using it to eat, and never talk with your mouth full.

Don’t drink too much, alcoholic drinks are often loaded with calories, and avoid snacking. Eat only what you are served, and be careful not to overeat. People often won’t overeat at elegant functions because they don’t want to appear unrefined or undisciplined in front of the other guests.

“Eating a delicious meal is an experience to enjoy with friends and with all of your senses-sight, aroma, taste and mouth feel,” Rarback says, “Take the time to talk to dinner companions, savor the food and slowly feel the satisfaction.”

Good posture might help optimize digestion, and when the meal is over don’t forget to pitch in with the clean-up. Washing dishes can burn about 2 calories per-minute. -Sean Kenniff, MD

Dr. Sean Kenniff is a neurologist and health journalist in Miami, Florida.

Having a Mid-Life Crisis in Your Thirties? It’s a ‘Thrisis’

  Men in a mid-life crisis are easy to spot. They’re Botox-blasting, cash-flashing, tanning, toning, wig-wearing late-forty-somethings driving sporty cars and cruising for sporty younger women. But today psychologists are seeing a new phenomenon; an early mid-life crisis that strikes both men and women equally, and in their thirties–It’s called a ‘thrisis’.

   Dr. Mitchell Spero, a licensed psychologist and director of Child and Family Psychologists, says people in the throes of a full-blown thrisis usually fall into two main camps.

“There are those who have had a prolonged adolescence by going to school and entering the workforce later in life,” Dr. Spero says, “and then there are those who had children earlier in life, maybe even too young, and now they are dealing with marital stress or divorce.”

   Spero says combine years spent in college, grad school, with the current economic downturn and adolescence has extended into the early twenties. That leaves many thirty-somethings struggling for independence while they’re still entangled in the parental safety net.

   “They want to be independent, but they are actually pseudo-independent. Their parents still must help them out in some way,” he says. For many that is a source of great internal frustration and it is easy to come unbalanced.

   “People in their thirties are often trying to balance child rearing, career advancement, all the financial pressures, leaving your parents, and in some cases losing a parent — at the same time,” Dr. Spero says.

   Unlike a mid-life crisis, where the angst is driven by the ghost of glory-days past, those in a thrisis worry about an uncertain future and unsatisfied expectations.      

   “Adjust expectations for yourself and for others, and don’t forget to adjust the time frame,” Dr. Spero says, “It’s OK to accomplish some of these things in your forties. Live in the present without blaming those of the past.” -Sean Kenniff, MD

-Dr. Sean Kenniff is a neurologist and health journalist in Miami.

-Dr. Mitchell Spero can be reached at Child + Family Psychologists at 954-587-7520, or 954-349-2777, or visit his website www.childandfamilypsychologists.org

Popular Heart Test May Expose Patients to High-Dose Radiation

“Not only do you have the heart of an eighteen year-old, you have the heart of an eighteen year-old athlete.”

That is what the cardiologist told me after analyzing a 64-Slice CT scan of my heart. I was doing a story on the new lifesaving technology for CBS News. This so-called cardiac computed tomography angiography, or CCTA, provides quick and exquisite pictures of the heart muscle and its arteries. My arteries were wide-open, and that was good news indeed.

Now some bad news…A new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association finds the popular diagnostic test may expose patients to high doses of radiation. How high? The average CCTA exposed patients to the equivalent of 600 chest x-rays.

Cardiac CT Angiography (CCTA) provides detailed pictures of the heart anatomy.

For the study German researchers measured the radiation exposure level of nearly 2000 patients who underwent CCTA at fifty international hospitals. While they found some centers protected patients well from excess radiation, other centers performed very poorly. In many cases the physicians and staff were unaware of the exposure level or measures to reduce it.

“The study demonstrates that radiation exposure can be reduced substantially by uniformly applying the currently available strategies for dose reduction, but these strategies are used infrequently,” the authors write.

The dose of radiation during CCTA is high enough to slightly raise the lifetime risk of cancer. Studies performed on abdominal CT scans find they increase the lifetime risk of cancer death by about 0.02%.

There is really no reliable way for patients to know how much radiation they are being exposed to during CCTA. But having a frank conversation with your cardiologist about the necessity of the test is a logical first step. -Sean Kenniff, MD 

Dr. Sean Kenniff is a neurologist and health journalist in Miami, Florida. 

***If you are a physician, health journalist, or other healthcare professional and would like to contribute you own original journalism to Healthapalooza Special Reports, please email for submission guidelines. drseankenniff@gmail.com

Headed to the Hospital? Go to the Best Say Experts

   If you need to go to the hospital you might want to head to one of the best hospitals in the country-the trip might save your life.

   According to a new study published by Healthgrades, an independent healthcare ratings organization, the quality of treatment between the ‘best’ and the ‘rest’ of hospitals is so significant it may have resulted in more than 150-thousand patient deaths in the U.S. between 2005 and 2007. It’s possible the deaths could have been prevented with better care.

   For the study researchers examined death and complication rates for 26 of the most common Medicare diagnoses and compared the performance of the top 5% of U.S. hospitals, so-called Distinguished Hospitals for Clinical Excellence, to performance at all other hospitals. Patients treated at the best hospitals were 27% less likely to die and were 8% less likely to suffer surgical complications.

“This study echoes others that have found distinct quality gaps between top-performing hospitals and others,” Dr. Rick May said.

   The best hospitals also improved more in their quality of care during the three year study period; on average the best hospitals reduced complication rates by nearly 4%, compared to 2.5% at all other hospitals.

   “Distinguished Hospitals for Clinical Excellence comprise a group of hospitals that excel across the board, not just in one or two areas,” Dr. May said.

   People can see how their local hospitals are rated by Healthgrades, and find the nearest Distinguished Hospital for Clinical Excellence by visiting www.healthgrades.com and the information is free.

Sean Kenniff, MD

Dr. Sean Kenniff is a neurologist and health journalist in Miami, Florida.

***If you are a doctor, health professional, or health journalist and would like to have your original journalism featured in Healthapalooza’s Special Reports section. Email for submission guidelines. drseankenniff@gmail.com