don's report archive

by Donald B. Ardell, Ph. D.

Wellness in the Headlines
(Don's Report to the World)

We would all welcome a magic bullet or quick fix for whatever ails us or, better yet, a potent tonic that, taken daily, would keep the doctor away, that is, make us healthy. An apple a day won't do it -- that idea did not last as long as a belief in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny. Yet, there is one near-magic bullet out there -- it's called exercise! Actually, a more accurate expression would be daily vigorous exercise of a cardiovascular nature! Hardly a week goes by without another study showing that such activity serves to prevent, delay or otherwise discourage one physical breakdown of a body part/system or another. That's why I suggest that exercise is almost a magic bullet.

Most of the research done relative to exercise is in relationship to heart disease or some other illness/medical problem that physicians and other investigators link to sedentary lifestyles. Unfortunately, little of this research seeks to explore and document the positive returns from high levels of physical fitness, such as increased work performance, better life quality, added energy levels and similar advantages apart from not dying prematurely.

In my view, an exceptional level of fitness enables our continued evolution, that is, helps us individually adapt to the changing circumstances of our times. Our environment continues to change and these modifications invite new survival challenges. Fit people are most likely to successfully manage adaptations to new conditions, and thereby improve their prospects of replication, assuming that they are (unlike yours truly) still interested in replicating! Unlike in the distant past, current humans no longer require brute physical strength or food gathering skills to survive to replicate or do what they like. Rather, they need fitness levels necessary to maintain stable mental outlooks in a fast paced, information and technology driven world.

However, if you still prefer more studies focused on a body part or system that shows exercise will enable you to last longer, I have good news for you -- another one has just come out! This latest research shows that exercise makes cholesterol less dangerous. Yes, even a little exercise changes both the size and density of cholesterol-carrying proteins, rendering them less damaging. Before this latest study, positive changes in cholesterol were not shown as one many exercise benefits. The new report, based on work done at Duke and East Carolina Universities and published in last week's New England Journal of Medicine, found that exercise alters the number and size of the particles that carry cholesterol through the bloodstream.

As you probably know, cholesterol is an essential fat, or lipid, that circulates through the body attached to protein particles. It is more likely to clog the arteries when it is carried by small, dense protein particles than when it is moved by relatively large, fluffy ones. Exercise promotes the latter, even if the total amount of cholesterol stays the same.

This latest study involved 111 sedentary, overweight men and women -- in other words, normal Americans. Randomly assigned to three exercise groups, the subjects engaged in the equivalent of walking 12 miles a week, jogging 12 miles a week or jogging 20 miles a week while eating at levels designed to keep their weight constant. The effects on cholesterol levels from walking and jogging 12 miles were the same -- jogging 20 miles, as you might expect, enabled even better changes. Bottom line: Exercise at the minimal level of 30 minutes a day (for example, brisk walking) will lower the risk of heart disease by 30 to 40 percent. What a deal -- almost a magic bullet.

If you exercise sufficiently, you will gain in two broad ways: you will reduce your risk of dying from heart disease and you will increase your prospects for raised life quality. The latter is the best payoff, in my view, but the first should not be discounted. After all, approximately 960,000 Americans die each year from cardiovascular disease. What's more, 250,000 of those deaths are directly attributed to a lack of regular, sufficiently intense physical activity.

All the best. Stay well, work out and look on the bright side of life.

(Note: This essay will be filed in the archives in the PHYSICAL DOMAIN under the skill area of exercise and fitness. Additional articles related to this theme may be found there.)

(Ed. Note: Views expressed in this and other columns are those of the author and not necessarily those of the SeekWellness Editorial Board.)

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