Entries by Chet Zelasko

Cancer: Do Your Best

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We’ve spent this week looking at whether many forms of cancer are just due to bad luck or whether other factors come into play. Based on the statistics derived from comparing the lifetime rate of getting a specific cancer and the cell division rate of the tissues, about two-thirds of cancer cases are due to chance. That leaves genetics and lifestyle choices to make up the rest—and remember, breast and prostate cancers were not included in the analysis.

Some cancers, lung cancer for example, are influenced by habits such as smoking. Colon cancer is influenced by genetics . . .

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Cancer: Timing is Everything

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We’re continuing our look at whether the development of cancer is simply bad luck or if there could be more to it (1); most of all, we need to look at why we’re at risk for cancer when cells divide. Let’s start there.

The reason we’re most at risk when cells divide is that’s when they’re vulnerable to mutations—mistakes in copying the cell’s DNA. Cancer cells are typical tissue cells that multiply faster than they should; their DNA is damaged and they aren’t “behaving” normally. The damage to the DNA most . . .

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Cancer: Just Bad Luck?

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There’s nothing like starting the New Year with a bang, and I don’t mean firecrackers. A couple of scientists found a different way to shake up health news with a recently published paper in the journal Science (1). While the title of the article, “Variation in Cancer Risk Among Tissues Can Be Explained By The Number Of Stem Cell Divisions,” didn’t seem too exciting, the interpretation of their statistical analysis was. The headlines from every news service and newspaper were similar to the Message headline: Is getting cancer just bad luck? The answer is yes and no . . .

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2015 Health Goals

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January 1 has come and gone. The traditional first day of work is a couple of days away. This is the perfect time to set your health goals for 2015.

In my experience, all health goals fall into one of these categories:

  • Losing weight
  • Getting fitter
  • Managing diseases

Losing weight is always number one on everyone’s list. Most of the time, having more endurance, getting stronger, and having more energy goes hand in glove with that goal as well; if we have high blood pressure or have some other health issue . . .

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Happy 2015!

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For my first message of the New Year, I want to say this: resolve to take better care of your health in 2015. It’s the foundation for everything you do—how you perform at work, how well you take care of your family, how fully you support your friends, how well you serve the church and organizations where you volunteer, and how much you enjoy your life every day.

One more thing: thank you. Thanks for supporting the Messages, for attending my seminars, and for buying products at drchet.com. Most of all, thank you for trusting me to . . .

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The Bottom Line on School Lunches

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Healthier meals in schools were proposed and opposed—what happened next? True to form, the federal government gave in to the food industry. They didn’t reverse the Kids Act, but they left it to the school districts to decide whether a switch to whole grains caused any hardship. They also suspended the target for lower sodium levels until there’s more research. Pathetic.

Here’s what I think as a health educator: there was no training for staff or students on what constitutes healthy nutrition. In most school districts, food is made in one central kitchen and shipped to . . .

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Kids Act Opposition

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Yesterday, I told you about the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 with the objective of improving the choices of the food offerings in school lunches. But great ideas that were started two years ago may die before they really get going. School districts, food industry advocates, and a national school-lunch association (funded in part by the food industry) are seeking to change the Kids Act. They say that the new guidelines cost too much, there’s too much waste, and school lunch purchases have declined. They want the guidelines waived if a school loses money on their . . .

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Healthy Hunger-Free Kids

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There’s no easy way to say this so I’m just going to blurt it out: we’re raising a generation of overweight and obese children. They eat too much saturated fat, too much sodium, not enough vegetables, not enough fruit, and they’re way too sedentary. When Paula and I go out to eat, I can always predict what nearby children are going to order or what they’ll be eating: chicken nuggets or mac and cheese. I’m always right, but I wish I weren’t. I understand that it’s tough to be a parent who . . .

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Low Carb vs. High Carb: The Bottom Line

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Today we finish the review of the latest study on the potential health benefits of low carb vs. high carb. We know what the researchers suggested are the beneficial effects of a low-carb diet and the potential problems of a high-carb diet. Were they correct? Let’s take a look.

I’m going to say this upfront because as you read on, you might get the impression I didn’t think much of this study, but that’s not really my viewpoint. This was a monumental effort by many different people. Think about it: they prepared every meal . . .

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Low Carb vs. High Carb: The Results

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In today’s message, we’re going to continue the review of a recent study that compared a low-carb to high-carb diet (1). Today I’ll focus on the results the researchers emphasized.

The researchers measured just about every variable associated with the development of type 2 diabetes including anthropomorphic measurements, insulin levels, and the complete breakdown of all the types of fatty acids found in triglycerides.

Let’s start with the basics. All subjects lost weight even though that wasn’t the intent of the study. The number of calories per day was decreased by an average . . .

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