Sports « Weekly Gravy

Playing sports may improve the brain’s ability to process sounds, a finding that could lead to new therapies for people who struggle with hearing, researchers report. “No one would argue against the fact that sports lead to better physical fitness, but we don’t always think of brain fitness and sports,” said study senior author Nina Kraus. She’s a professor of communication sciences and neurobiology at Northwestern University, in Evanston, Ill. “We’re saying that playing sports can tune the brain to better understand one’s sensory environment,” added Kraus, director of the university’s Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory. The study included 495 female and male Northwestern student athletes and a control group of 493 age- and sex-matched non-athletes. The participants’ brain activity was monitored while they wore earbuds that delivered speech sounds. The athletes were more adept than those in the control group to tune out background noise to better process the speech sounds, according to the study published Dec. 9 in the journal Sports Health. That skill can be useful for athletes when they’re trying to hear a teammate or coach calling to them during a game. Kraus equated it to listening to a DJ on the radio. “Think of background electrical noise in the brain like static on the radio,” Kraus said in a university news release. “There are two ways to hear the DJ better: minimize… read on >

(HealthDay News) — Hiking in the chilly weather can be a fun way to stay active. But before you head out on the trail, it’s important to prepare for unexpected conditions. For safe winter hiking, the North Country Trail Association has this advice: Never go out alone. Always make sure someone knows where you are going. Beware of reduced visibility. Bring lights, a map and other safety items. Don’t forget food, water and a first aid kit. Always wear proper footwear, and dress in layers. Beware of hypothermia. Keep extra dry, warm clothes in your backpack.

With the arrival of winter, it’s time for skiing, sledding and ice skating, but it’s also when snow blindness can strike. Snow blindness is like a sunburn in the eyes. It’s caused by the same UV rays that give you that summer tan. In the case of snow blindness, the rays are reflected off the snow and into your eyes, explained experts from Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center. The cornea is the outer dome of the eye. It is covered by a thin layer of cells called the epithelial layer. UV light can burn this layer just as it burns your skin. UV burns to the cornea are called photokeratitis. Inflammation of the epithelial layer can result in blurred vision. When this happens after being outside on a bright snowy day, it is commonly referred to as snow blindness. Snow blindness can cause your eyes to feel burning, itching, stinging or intense pain. The same condition can result from being on the water or a beach as UV rays are reflected off the water or sand. Photokeratitis can also occur at high elevations where less UV light is absorbed by the atmosphere, the experts noted in a medical center news release. The best way to protect yourself is to use UV-light protective eyewear, the Ohio State team said. This can be either sunglasses or… read on >

(HealthDay News) — Before you accept the challenge of running a marathon, it’s important to make sure you and your body are prepared, says Rush University Medical Center. The school provides eight marathon training tips for the prospective runner: Get a checkup. Ask your doctor if your heart can handle the stress of a marathon. Create a marathon training plan at least four months before the race. Pace yourself. Figure out how far and fast you should run. Find shoes that fit your feet, gait and body type. Take a break. If you’re feeling achy or worn out, take the day off. Make sure you drink extra fluids throughout your training. Join a running group to stay motivated and learn practical advice. Learn how to distinguish minor strains from serious injuries.

The holiday season can give you real headaches, but you can take action to prevent them, an expert says. To reduce stress, make plans well in advance and know your limits, advised Dr. Bing Liao, a neurologist at Houston Methodist. “The nature of the holiday season already increases stress levels, so finding small ways to reduce schedule stress can help ward off a headache,” Liao said in a hospital news release. “This can mean planning well in advance to avoid the hassle of making last minute travel plans, or deciding not to attend a party at the end of a long day.” Be sure you have an adequate supply or a refill of your prescription medications before the holidays, she advised. Missing doses or cutting back could trigger a headache or even serious side effects. “Don’t binge anything during the holidays — food, alcohol, or television,” Liao said. “We all know how a hangover can affect the brain, but most don’t realize that overeating can also trigger a headache. And having the next day off from work doesn’t mean you should stay up late watching holiday movies. The brain needs the same amount of sleep during the holidays as it does the rest of the year, so stick with your usual bedtime.” Running holiday errands can lead to skipped meals and dehydration, which can trigger… read on >

If you can tackle a tough workout, that may bode well for your longevity, new research suggests. A woman’s risk of dying from heart disease, cancer or other causes is much lower if she can engage in vigorous exercise, scientists report. The new study included more than 4,700 middle-aged and older women, average age 64, who were referred for treadmill exercise echocardiography because they had known or suspected coronary artery disease. The women walked or ran on a treadmill with a gradual increase in intensity, and continued until they were exhausted. During a median follow-up of 4.6 years, there were 345 heart-related deaths, 164 cancer deaths and 203 deaths from other causes. After adjusting for other factors, the researchers concluded that high exercise capacity was significantly associated with lower risk of death during follow-up, though the study didn’t prove a cause-and-effect link. The annual rate of death from heart disease was nearly four times higher in women with poor exercise capacity (2.2%) than in those with good exercise capacity (0.6%), the investigators found. The annual rate of cancer deaths was twice as high among women with poor exercise capacity (0.9%) than those with good exercise capacity (0.4%), and the annual rate of death from other causes was more than four times higher among those with poor exercise capacity (1.4%) than those with good exercise capacity… read on >

(HealthDay News) — Figuring out which nutrition and exercise information is trustworthy may be difficult, says the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. The agency debunks these common misconceptions: Bread, pasta and rice are not necessarily fattening. Try to eat whole grains to feel fuller. You do not have to avoid all fats if you’re trying to lose weight. Go for foods with healthy fats, such as avocados and nuts. Dairy products may not be unhealthy. Adults should have three servings a day of low-fat dairy products. Physical activity does not have to be for long periods. You can perform short spurts of activity during the week. Lifting weights will not always make you look “too bulky.” Only intense strength training will build large muscles.

Of all sports, football sends the most U.S. males to the emergency room, while cheerleading and gymnastics most often do the same for women and girls, a new report finds. And, overall, U.S. emergency departments see about 2.7 million patients between the ages of 5 and 24 for sports-related injuries each year, according to a new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In some cases, these injuries might even be a gateway to opioid addiction: Opioid painkillers were given to ER patients suffering from a sports injury in about one in five cases, the study found. That number rose to nearly half (46%) among young adults aged 20 to 24. “As we have learned from the opioid crisis, many patients move from appropriately prescribed opioid medications to misuse of opioids,” noted Dr. Teresa Amato, who directs emergency medicine at Northwell Health’s Long Island Jewish Forest Hills, in Forest Hills, N.Y. She wasn’t involved in the new research. “I would encourage any parent with a child that has a sports-related injury who is being evaluated in an emergency department to have an open and frank discussion about pain control and if opioids are needed,” Amato said. “Of course, in some cases there will be a need for these medications, but the discussion prior to dispensing or prescribing opioids may prevent misuse later… read on >

Is your workout routine in a slump? To keep challenging your body, it’s important to tweak your regimen every three months or each season. By aligning these changes to seasonal changes, you can also start the right prep for the next season’s sports, such as training for skiing in the fall and hiking in the spring. To begin, grab a calendar and chart out your key dates and activities. Not all the changes to your program have to be dramatic, according to the American Council on Exercise. Challenging yourself can be as simple as changing your strength-training equipment from free weights to resistance bands or to bodyweight-only exercises like push-ups, wall sits and crunches. If you’ve been exercising solo, one effective change is to build in a social component. Ask a friend to join you for workouts or sign up for a class you’ve always wanted to try. You’ll have more fun and be more accountable when others are involved. Look into any worksite wellness programs that your employer has made available to you. Classes held at your office complex means no need to travel to a gym. If time constraints have been limiting your workouts to the weekends, this convenience should make it easy to add weekday sessions to your schedule. If a worksite program isn’t in place, talk to your employer about starting… read on >