Seven ways sex is good for your health

A Valentine's day guide

© Yuri Arcurs - Fotolia.com

Don’t worry about the calories in those Valentine's Day chocolates – a proper celebration in the bedroom can help keep you in shape.

In fact, sex can benefit your health in many ways. Here are seven reasons to give and get a little love – not just this special day, but any time.

Good for the heart

Sex is good for your heart. Like any physical exertion, sex is a form of cardio-exercise, which gets your heart pumping faster and helps it stay in shape. What's more, studies have shown that men who have sex two or more times per week cut their risk of a fatal heart attack by half.

Helps you lose weight 

Like any form of exercise, sex helps you lose weight. Having sex for 30 minutes can burn off 85 calories. To put that in perspective: 15 minutes on the treadmill could burn up to 200 calories; 42 of these half-hour sessions, then, could shave a pound off your weight.

Boosts your immune system

While it's possible to contract a wide range of diseases, both from sex and from simple contact with others, safe sex between healthy partners can make you better equipped to fight illness.

Those who have sex once or twice a week have been shown to have higher levels of immunoglobulin A or IgA, an antibody which helps protect you from respiratory diseases like the cold and flu.

Don’t go overboard, though – in studies, those who had sex three or more times a week had the lowest levels of antibodies.

Reduces the risk of prostate cancer

For younger men, sex reduces the risk of prostate cancer. Researchers have found that men in their 20s who had five or more ejaculations per week were one third less likely to develop the cancer in later life. Although they found no such correlation for older men, you could try to prove them wrong.

Relieves stress

There's a medical explanation for the mood boost sex gives you. The brain releases endorphins during and after sex, and these neurotransmitters create a feeling of euphoria while masking the negative effects of stress.

Researchers have also found that sex lowers your blood pressure, which is good for your health and allows you to better keep your cool in stressful situations.

It relieves pain

Endorphins and lower blood pressure also mean that sex relieves pain. Endorphins are released during sex because of the heightened levels of the hormone oxytocin in your body. This has been known to alleviate arthritic and menstrual pain, among other things. Lower blood pressure can also help relieve migraines.

It helps you sleep

In addition to relieving stress and pain, the oxytocin generated during sex helps you sleep better. Sex relaxes you, promoting deeper, more restful sleep. What more do you need?

Article from Yahoo Lifestyle


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Articles of interest:

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Healthy food obsession sparks rise in new eating disorder

Fixation with healthy eating can be sign of serious psychological disorder.

Orthorexia nervosa sufferers like to focus on 'righteous' eating and have rigid rules about avoiding certain foods. Photograph: Getty

Eating disorder charities are reporting a rise in the number of people suffering from a serious psychological condition characterised by an obsession with healthy eating.

The condition, orthorexia nervosa, affects equal numbers of men and women, but sufferers tend to be aged over 30, middle-class and well-educated.

The condition was named by a Californian doctor, Steven Bratman, in 1997, and is described as a "fixation on righteous eating". Until a few years ago, there were so few sufferers that doctors usually included them under the catch-all label of "Ednos" – eating disorders not otherwise recognised. Now, experts say, orthorexics take up such a significant proportion of the Ednos group that they should be treated separately.

"I am definitely seeing significantly more orthorexics than just a few years ago," said Ursula Philpot, chair of the British Dietetic Association's mental health group. "Other eating disorders focus on quantity of food but orthorexics can be overweight or look normal. They are solely concerned with the quality of the food they put in their bodies, refining and restricting their diets according to their personal understanding of which foods are truly 'pure'."

Orthorexics commonly have rigid rules around eating. Refusing to touch sugar, salt, caffeine, alcohol, wheat, gluten, yeast, soya, corn and dairy foods is just the start of their diet restrictions. Any foods that have come into contact with pesticides, herbicides or contain artificial additives are also out.

The obsession about which foods are "good" and which are "bad" means orthorexics can end up malnourished. Their dietary restrictions commonly cause sufferers to feel proud of their "virtuous" behaviour even if it means that eating becomes so stressful their personal relationships can come under pressure and they become socially isolated.

"The issues underlying orthorexia are often the same as anorexia and the two conditions can overlap but orthorexia is very definitely a distinct disorder," said Philpot. "Those most susceptible are middle-class, well-educated people who read about food scares in the papers, research them on the internet, and have the time and money to source what they believe to be purer alternatives."

Deanne Jade, founder of the National Centre for Eating Disorders, said: "There is a fine line between people who think they are taking care of themselves by manipulating their diet and those who have orthorexia. I see people around me who have no idea they have this disorder. I see it in my practice and I see it among my friends and colleagues."

Jade believes the condition is on the increase because "modern society has lost its way with food". She said: "It's everywhere, from the people who think it's normal if their friends stop eating entire food groups, to the trainers in the gym who [promote] certain foods to enhance performance, to the proliferation of nutritionists, dieticians and naturopaths [who believe in curing problems through entirely natural methods such as sunlight and massage].

"And just look in the bookshops – all the diets that advise eating according to your blood type or metabolic rate. This is all grist for the mill to those looking for proof to confirm or encourage their anxieties around food."

Article by Amelia Hill

For The Observer

Green tea found to reduce levels of “bad” cholesterol

Green tea, both the beverage and the supplement form, can reduce levels of ‘bad’ cholesterol, according to a recent US study (1).

The meta-analysis, published last month in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, analysed 20 randomised controlled trials.

Each of the 20 trials measured the effects of either green tea itself, or capsules containing green tea compounds called catechins. Each participant was given either a daily green tea supplement or drink, or else a placebo capsule or drink.

In total, the trails involved a total of 1,415 adults with raised cholesterol levels. Each of the trials lasted between three and six months. Green tea was found to reduce the trial participants’ total cholesterol and ‘bad’ LDL cholesterol by 5-6 more points than placebo drinks or capsules.

It is thought that the catechin compounds in green tea work to lower cholesterol levels by reducing its absorption in the gut.

Further research is needed in order to determine the optimal dose of green tea compounds. Senior researcher Olivia Phung also added that green tea is not a substitute for prescribed medication, but suggests that “adding green tea to your diet could be one way to further improve cholesterol numbers”.

It is also important to note that green tea and its extracts contain caffeine, which some people may need to avoid.

Overall, the study indicates that the use of herbal supplements such as green tea is one strategy to lower cholesterol, alongside medication and lifestyle changes.

Other strategies include reducing levels of saturated fat in your diet, such as fatty meats, and baked goods such as biscuits, pastries and cakes. Saturated fats should be replaced by healthy fats such as those present in nuts, seeds, avocado and oily fish.

Taking regular exercise can also reduce levels of LDL cholesterol, and reducing alcohol intake can lower both LDL cholesterol and triglycerides.

To learn more about the causes, treatment and prevention of high cholesterol, visit the British Heart Foundation website.

Written by Nadia Mason, BSc MBANT NTCC CNHC

For Body Kind blog

References

(1.) Phung OJ, et al. Green Tea Catechins Decrease Total and Low-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, November 2011. 111(11): 1720-1729.

(2.) Image courtesy of dem10

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