Going to the gym is good for your overall health, but if you and the gym aren’t practicing good hygiene you could still catch a nasty illness, an expert says. “Good hygiene prevents sicknesses like a cold, influenza and even salmonella, but cleanliness can also indicate that a gym is well-maintained overall, including the quality of equipment,” said Melanie McNeal, a physical and occupational therapy manager at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. “If hygiene rules are not followed you could get sick, get others sick or even have your membership cancelled.” When going to a new gym for the first time, there are a few key indicators to determine if hygiene is prioritized in the space: A lack of sanitary wipes for members or staff to wipe down equipment after use often means equipment is harboring unseen bacteria No signs posted asking members to clean equipment after using or no cleaning schedule posted suggests cleanliness is not a priority for the gym Other gym members using equipment and not cleaning it afterwards on a consistent basis can show there is not a culture of cleanliness Caked on layers of dust on equipment can indicate that equipment has not been cleaned in a while  Lots of broken-down machines for extended periods of time can be due to a lack of interest from gym management in…  read on >  read on >

Simple exercises performed during rounds of chemotherapy can help people avoid nerve damage normally associated with the cancer-killing drugs, a new study suggests. About twice as many cancer patients on chemo wound up with long-lasting nerve damage if they didn’t exercise, compared with two groups assigned different exercise regimens, researchers reported July 1 in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine. “The potential of physical activity is hugely underestimated,” lead researcher Fiona Streckmann, a research assistant at the University of Basel in Switzerland, said in a news release. About 70% to 90% of people who get chemo complain of pain, balance issues or feelings of numbness, burning or tingling, researchers said in background notes. These nerve symptoms can disappear after cancer treatment, but about half the time they endure. For the study, researchers recruited 158 cancer patients receiving one of two chemo drugs, oxaliplatin or vinca-alkaloids, and divided them into three groups. Two groups completed exercise sessions twice a week during their chemotherapy, each lasting 15 to 30 minutes. One group exercised while balancing on an unstable surface, and the other exercised on a vibration plate. The third group received standard care, with no exercise regimen. Regular exams over the next five years showed that the exercises performed alongside chemo reduced the incidence of nerve damage by 50% to 70%, researchers said. Exercise also improved patients’ quality…  read on >  read on >

Tai Chi appears to improve sleep, and as a result reduces inflammation and boosts the immune systems of breast cancer survivors, a new study says. The ancient Chinese martial arts practice relies on slow, precise movements performed as the person breathes deeply and focuses attention on the body. This mind-body practice appears as good as or better than cognitive behavioral therapy in helping breast cancer survivors deal with the aftermath of their disease, researchers reported recently in the journal Brain, Behavior and Immunity. About 30% of breast cancer survivors suffer from insomnia, twice the rate of the general population, researchers said in background notes. For this study, researchers analyzed blood samples from 90 Los Angeles breast cancer survivors who underwent weekly Tai Chi or cognitive behavioral therapy sessions lasting two hours for a three-month period. Both Tai Chi and cognitive behavioral therapy produced similar decreases in insomnia among the participants.  But the blood samples, taken over 15 months, revealed that Tai Chi led to significant and sustained reductions in inflammation, compared with cognitive behavioral therapy.  Tai Chi participants also experienced increases in antiviral activity within the immune system, although cognitive behavioral therapy produced even better improvements. These could help reduce the risk of breast cancer recurring in survivors, researchers said. “Effective treatment of insomnia has potent impacts on the immune system,” said lead researcher Dr.…  read on >  read on >

Youth sports are important for the development of children and teenagers, but there’s no sure way to ensure a youngster doesn’t get hurt while competing. That’s why it’s important for parents to spot and appropriately respond to their children’s sports injuries, Dr. Eileen Crawford, an orthopedic surgeon with the University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital, said in a news release. “Various types of injuries can happen with any sport, but some injuries are more commonly associated with specific activities,” she said. Contact or collision sports usually cause traumatic injuries like ligament tears and broken bones, Crawford said. On the other hand, sports like swimming, rowing and running tend to cause repetitive use injuries. Meanwhile, gymnasts and pitchers are more likely to suffer bone or cartilage damage due to repeated high stress on their joints. “While these are the common types of injuries we see in these sports, it doesn’t mean that they are the only injuries that occur in a given sport,” Crawford said. Proper conditioning, stretching and warming up can help prevent sports injuries, she said. Children also can protect against injury by working on their core strength, balance, flexibility and proper form. “While it isn’t the fun part of participating in youth sports, it can make it easier to avoid or bounce back from injuries,” Crawford said. “Exercises that keep the…  read on >  read on >

Role models are important in health as well as in life, but such inspiration is more likely to come from your mom than a celebrity like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, a new study says. People had greater motivation to reach their health goals if they looked to a person in their everyday life – a friend, relative or health expert – as their role model for good health, rather than a celebrity, researchers found. Women were more likely than men to choose such a personal role model over a celebrity, and their own mother was the person most often named, results show. “We know that parents have a huge influence on shaping people’s health trajectories throughout their life just by teaching them about physical fitness and nutrition,” lead researcher Nicole O’Donnell, a Washington State University doctoral student in communications, said in a news release. “As this research shows, parents’ influence does matter and it’s long lasting, even well into adulthood.” For the study, researchers surveyed more than 400 adults who said they were inspired by health role models. Nearly two-thirds of those surveyed (64%) chose a family member, peer or acquaintance as a health role model, and many cited “perceived similarity” as the reason they chose to emulate someone close to them. “If you see a friend get a gym membership, or decide to run…  read on >  read on >

A tough-to-treat, drug-resistant fungal infection may be as close as your local garden center, new research shows. Investigators at the University of Georgia (UGA) in Athens found high levels of multidrug-resistant fungi in compost, soil and flower bulbs sold at popular retailers. “Gardening is a nice, stress-relieving hobby. But I’m nervous for people who may not be aware that working with compost and flower bulbs could pose a risk to their health,” said study lead author Marin Brewer. She’s a professor in UGA’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. The fungus in question is Aspergillus fumigatus, which lives in soil naturally but can trigger illness if inhaled. People with healthy immune systems can probably fight off the fungus, but folks with compromised immune systems could get very sick and even die if they encounter a variant that’s become resistant to multiple anti-fungal drugs. People who may immunocompromised are those battling chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis, type 2 diabetes, HIV/AIDS and COVID-19. Anyone taking immunosuppressants — for example, cancer patients or people who have undergone an organ transplant — are also at risk. A. fumigatus is already on health experts’ radar: It’s estimated that over 2 million people are infected globally, and the World Health Organization recently named the fungus as a critical threat to health. Even in healthy people, A. fumigatus can trigger…  read on >  read on >

If you’ve recovered from lower back pain, try walking away from a recurrence. New research out of Australia shows that folks who started a walking regimen kept recurrent back pain episodes at bay for much longer than people who didn’t. “We don’t know exactly why walking is so good for preventing back pain, but it is likely to include the combination of the gentle oscillatory movements, loading and strengthening the spinal structures and muscles, relaxation and stress relief, and release of ‘feel-good’ endorphins,” said senior study author Mark Hancock. He’s a professor of physiotherapy at Macquarie University in Sydney. Over 800 million people around the world suffer from low back pain, according to background information from the study authors. In 7 of 10 cases, the pain will ease — only to return later. Special exercise programs, along with educating patients about back pain, are typically part of standard care aimed at preventing a recurrence. Hancock’s team wondered if plain old walking might help. “Walking is a low-cost, widely accessible and simple exercise that almost anyone can engage in, regardless of geographic location, age or socio-economic status,” he reasoned in a Macquarie news release. In the new trial, 701 adults who had recently recovered from an episode of low back pain were randomized to either an individualized walking program and six physiotherapist-guided education sessions over six…  read on >  read on >

Folks nearing retirement shouldn’t skip leg days at the gym, a new study advises. One year of heavy strength training preserves vital leg strength up to at least four years later, researchers found. “This study provides evidence that resistance training with heavy loads at retirement age can have long-term effects over several years,” concluded the research team led by Carl-Johan Boraxbekk, a professor of cognitive neuroscience of aging with Umea University in Sweden. For the study, researchers assigned 369 people at an average of 66 to one of three different groups. One-third lifted heavy weights three times a week for a year, while another third performed moderate intensity training with body weight or resistance bands thrice weekly. The remaining third were encouraged to maintain their usual level of physical activity. Bone, muscle strength and body fat were measured at the start of the clinical trial, then again after one, two and four years. Leg strength was preserved at the same level in the heavy weights group after four years, but not in the other two groups. Meanwhile, fat levels remained the same in the exercise groups but not in the control group, results show. All three groups experienced similar decreases in handgrip strength, lean leg mass and leg extensor power — the ability to kick a pedal as hard and as fast as possible. The…  read on >  read on >