Mitch Gann’s

“Oily Fish Can Protect Against Rheumatoid Arthritis . . .” (Science Daily):

For the first time, the intake of oily fish has been demonstrated to have a protective effect against the development of RA, reducing an individual’s risk by 20-30%.

This is according to a large-scale study conducted in Sweden, where they know their oily fish. Apparently consuming one oily fish a week is enough to lower a person’s risk of developing Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA). The same study found that smoking and experiencing psychological stress at work increase the risk of developing RA.

I don’t think anyone would be surprised that smoking and stress are bad for you; this is just one more way they are bad. It’s the oily fish that I find interesting. I’m putting together the ideal anti-aging diet. So far, it consists of red wine and oily fish. The article does not mention a particular oily fish, but I’m thinking herring.

Here are some great herring recipes. Enjoy!

“Substance in Red Wine, Resveratrol, Found to Keep Hearts Young” (Science Daily):

How, scientists wonder, do the French get away with a clean bill of heart health despite a diet loaded with saturated fats?

The answer to the so-called “French paradox” may be found in red wine. More specifically, it may reside in small doses of resveratrol, a natural constituent of grapes, pomegranates, red wine and other foods, according to a new study by an international team of researchers.

What’s new here is the “small doses” finding. Previously, it was thought that you needed to down several buckets of red wine a day to see any heart benefits. The cost to your liver seemed to offset any heart gains. But now it looks like a glass or two of red wine each day will do the trick. As one scientist quoted in the article puts it, “This brings down the dose of resveratrol toward the consumption reality mode.”

And it looks like the benefits go beyond the heart. Low doses of resveratrol apparently give much the same general anti-aging benefits as a restricted calorie diet (a diet with 20-30% fewer calories than the norm).

Let’s see — reduce my food intake by one-fifth or drink a glass of wine every day . . . What to do, what to do . . .

"Canada’s Baby Boomers are Lacking in the Bedroom" CNW Group

Obviously the topic is sex, right? Wrong! Get your mind out of the gutter, would you? We’re talking middle-aged people here. Some are close to elderly status (Not me or you, of course, but those other people over there. Yeah, you guys!)

OK, I thought it was about sex, too. Why else would I be reading a Canadian press release?

However, the real topic is sleep.   According to a survey conducted by The Better Sleep Council Canada, Canadian Boomers aren’t getting enough sleep. One reason may be their moldy old mattress.

At least, the BSCC would like us to think so; it helps sell new mattresses.

The release recommends replacing your mattress every ten years. This seems reasonable to me.  My wife and I replaced our mattress last week, retiring one that we’d slept on for at least 12 years.  It was time. The new mattress is more comfortable. Nevertheless, new mattress or not, I find myself sleeping less on an average night than in years past.  This is apparently a common trend among Boomers. According to the release, some of the common causes are stress, lack of exercise, and a spouse who snores.

Check, check and check.

“How’s your health? Study says boomer health worse than previous generation at same age” Boomer Consumer:

Poorer health, more pain, and more trouble doing everyday physical tasks was reported by Americans in their early to mid-50s than what was reported by their older peers at the same age in years past, a recent study shows.

The overall, self-reported health of people in three age groups was studied by researchers from the Health and Retirement Study: those born in (1) 1936-41, (2) 1942-47, and (3) 1948-53. More pain, chronic health conditions, and drinking and psychiatric problems were reported by the youngest group than people who were the same age 12 years earlier.

Comment: On the other hand, I’m doing better than my dad was at my age. He drank more than I ever have, and he smoked three packs a day for much of his adult life. I avoided the smoking habit altogether (yes, including the alternatives to tobacco). But like Dad, I am prone to eating more and exercising less than I ought to. He checked out at 72. I’m 55 now, and soon to tick over another year.

Somehow I’m not feeling my normal wry, bouyant self.

Also see: Senior Journal story.

"Most people don’t give much thought to the grime that builds up on their PC but if you don’t clean your computer you might as well eat your lunch off the toilet," said Sarah Kidner, computing editor for the British consumer-advocacy group Which?, commenting on a report by the group that showed computer keyboards to be up to five times more germ infested than toilet seats. The report attributed the dirty keyboards to the habit of eating lunch at one’s desk and "poor personal hygiene, such as dodging the wash basin after going to the toilet . . . ."