The Exercise Paradox – Are We Designed to Sit on the Couch?

We all know that exercise is good for the body and brain, and yet we are becoming less active as work has become more sedentary.  If getting out for a walk, or taking a trip to the gym seems difficult, researchers at the University of British Columbia say that the problem is real, and it’s happening inside your brain. Research findings, published recently in the journal Neuropsycologia, say that we may be designed to prefer lying on the couch.  Matthieu Boisgontier, lead author of the paper, wrote “Conserving energy has been essential for human’s survival, as it allowed us to be more efficient in searching for food and shelter, competing for sexual partners, and avoiding predators. The failure of public policies to counteract the pandemic of physical inactivity may be due to brain processes that have been developed and reinforced across evolution.”

In their study, the researchers had young adults sit in front of a computer. They flashed sequential images of stick figures that depicted either physical activity such as running, biking and swimming, or inactivity, such as sitting or lying down. Subjects were told to move their markers as quickly as possible toward the pictures of physical activity and away from the pictures of inactivity.  Subsequently, the order was reversed.  Electrodes were recording their brain activity.  While participants were faster at moving towards the active pictures and away from the lazy pictures, brain results showed that this required their brains to work harder.  Avoidance of physical inactivity comes as a cost – namely increased involvement of brain resources.  Boisgontier said “These results show that our brain is innately attracted to sedentary behaviors.”   Researchers asked whether people’s brains can be retrained, adding that knowing what is happening is an important first step.  

I found this paper to be astounding.  What are its take-home messages?  I think it’s important to knowthat the lure of the chair, the hammock and the bed is innate and powerful.  If we want to stay strong and feel well, we have to find ways to balance resting and moving.  We are all aware that physical activity, including walking, is beneficial for the brain, bones, muscles, heart and most body organs.  It helps with weight control and diabetes prevention. Therefore, we have to plan to get movement into our lives. Do more work in your garden, or home.  Join a class, or a team. Take Pilates, dance classes, Qigong or Tai Chi. Form a group with friends to walk, talk and visit the gym. If you are a solitary person, you can find good exercise classes of all kinds on line.   Set an alarm to get you up from the chair hourly during the day.  We humans are endlessly inventive.  Knowledge is powerful.  Let’s go for it!

Sadja Greenwood  MD, MPH

Plastic Pollution – What Can You Do?

First comes knowledge.  When I read that a friend, Laurie Riley, was not buying any plastic goods or anything wrapped in plastic, I was galvanized. People are changing from despair into action!  Several long conversations with Laurie have taught me what an individual, and better yet, a group, can do.  Here goes, with many thanks to Laurie.  

China is no longer accepting our plastic waste for recycling.  Huge amounts are piling up at recycling centers, and much of it is going into landfills or just sitting with no place to go. These centers will not be able to accept the mounds we are creating, and side effects will be toxic to the environment.  Remember the saying – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle?  We must Reduce and Reuse starting now. Recycling has become a very difficult predicament.

 Pollution of the oceans is an enormous problem. Over 5 trillion pieces of plastic currently litter the ocean,, accumulating in in 5 huge ‘gyres” throughout every ocean.  The biggest one is between Hawaii and California; the large and tiny pieces of plastic therein are killing fish, ocean mammals, birds and even plankton.  

Enter Boyon Slat, a young Dutch inventor, entrepreneur and Aerospace Engineering student dropout who founded the company - The Ocean Cleanup. He is 24.  He has developed and built a floating device that has sailed through the Golden Gate heading for the gyre.  Slat estimates that they will deploy 60 of these free-floating barriers in the ocean by 2020.   They hope to remove 50% of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in 5 years. The free-floating barriers are made to withstand harsh weather conditions and constant wear and tear.  After two decades they hope to have collected 90% of the trash in the patch. The Ocean Cleanup has raised $35 million so far in crowd funding, with generous donations from Marc Benioff  of Salesforce and Peter Thiel of  Paypal.  

Obviously it is important that we humans throughout the world reduce the millions of tons of plastic that we discard yearly. Scouring the beaches for waste is a good approach.  Changing our buying habits is also necessary.  Take note of the plastic bags you now have, and reuse them over and over. Don’t take new ones; use your own cloth bag to go shopping.  Try to avoid packaged foods, which almost always come in plastic. Make cloth baggies to use when you buy in bulk. Never accept a plastic straw for your drinks; you can find reusable ones in many places, including at the store cited below. Compost your food waste – it’s easy to do and you will be rewarded with great soil for your garden.  Jennie Pfeiffer is a ‘master composter’ so you can give her a call for suggestions. 

For a store that has a great many products made without plastics, including tooth brushes, straws, deodorants, cosmetics and lots of kitchen ware, visit packagefreeshop.com.  They are based in New York, but have plastic-free shipping. Shipping is free for orders over $50.  Look over their selections – it may work for you.  The founder of this store is Lauren Singer, who has a blog called Trash is for Tossers, and has put all the trash she has produced in the past five years into a 16oz mason jar!

You can follow the ocean cleanup progress at theoceancleanup.com.  You can read the definitive book on living without plastic by Beth Terry – Plastic Free – How I Kicked the Plastic Habit and How You Can Too.  Again – many thanks to Laurie Riley and to all of you who are working for a cleaner environment.  

Sadja Greenwood, MD, MPH  back issues on this blog

 

The Amazing History of the Condom – and Why it is Important Today

Drawings from ancient Egypt show men with sheaths over the penis; the purpose of this – whether ritual or sexual – is not known. The material used was probably linen. Evidence dating back to the 14^thcentury suggests that upper classes in Asia used ‘glans condoms’ that covered the tip of the penis, and could be dislodged during use.  The Chinese made theirs from oiled silk paper or lamb intestine, and the Japanese made theirs from harder materials such as tortoise shell (!). 

In the late 15^thcentury, a well-documented outbreak of syphilis occurred among French troops; the disease spread across Europe, and then into Asia.  Syphilis was more serious than it is today, covering the body with pustules and leading to death in a few months.  To the rescue came an Italian anatomist , Gabriele Fallopio, who invented a device made of linen sheaths soaked in a chemical solution and then dried.  The cloths were held on with a ribbon. Fallopio as an anatomist is famous for his description of the woman’s fallopian tubes.  He performed an experiment, recruiting 1100 men to use his device.  Epidemiologists today say that 1000 subjects are necessary to get a representative sample.  This happened in the 1490’s and is amazing.  We do not know the length of his experiment.  He reported that none of his subjects became infected with syphilis.

The first documented use of the word ‘condom’ is thought to have occurred in 1666 when the English Birth Rate Commission reported a drop in birth rates and attributed it to condoms.  Condom usage was rising in this era.  They were made of animal bladder or intestine, or of linen soaked in chemicals.  Condoms were available to buy in pubs, markets, barber shops and from chemists, but due to expense their use was usually confined to the middle and upper classes.  In the 1700s Casanova is thought to have been a frequent user of condoms for protection against syphilis.  His memoirs make reference to this, as does a picture of him with several attractive young women as he blows a condom like a balloon. 

In the 19^thcentury birth control advocates began to promote condom use to less affluent people – advocates in England included Jeremy Bentham and in the U.S. Robert Dale Owen.  Assertive and popular women and men traveled and lectured around the country teaching about physiology and sexual matters.  They often sold condoms after their lectures.  Moralists and some medical professionals condemned this practice as spreading abortion and prostitution.  However, in 1861 a condom advertisement appeared in the New York Times, 10 years after the paper was founded.   

The rubber vulcanization process was invented by Charles Goodyearand patented in 1844.^[7] The first rubber condom was produced in 1855,^[8] and in a few years several major rubber companies were mass-producing rubber condoms. A main advantage of these condoms was their reusability, making them a more economical choice in the long term.  However, skin condoms were initially cheaper and offered better sensitivity.  By the end of the 19th century "rubber" had become a euphemism for condoms in countries around the world.

 In 1919, due to high rates of sexually transmitted disease (STDs) in World War 1, the search was on for better protection.  Frederick Killian in Ohio invented a latex condom which was thinner and easier to use than rubber.  The latex used in condoms is a natural compound  from rubber that is not vulcanized.  Condom making increased, leading to mass production. In the 1920’s quality control of condoms was pursued.  In the 1950’s a reservoir tip and lubricant was added to collect semen and reduce leakage.  A lubricant was added to reduce friction.  In the 1980s the AIDS epidemic increased condom use worldwide.  In 1994 polyurethane condoms were introduced to reduce allergies to latex.  And so the refinement and improvement of condoms goes on.  The female condom is available in the U.S. and many other countries – its effectiveness against STDs has not been thoroughly studied. Its use is somewhat awkward and cannot be hidden from a partner.

What is the take-home message of this long and rather amazing history of the condom? Be aware that rates of syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia have climbed rapidly for the 4^thconsecutive year in the U.S. according to the Centers for Disease Control.  Antibiotics are in danger of becoming resistant.  If not treated early, STD’s can lead to serious illness.  Hepatitis B and HIV can also be a danger to people of any age who have sex with new partners. Talk honestly with your health care provider and protect yourself.  Human ingenuity is impressive.  Use yours!!

Sadja Greenwood MD,MPH