Fitness Blog

Here’s a good update on skiing conditioning from LAT writer Jay Blahnik.  He recommends three different types of squat type exercises, all of which will help you on the slopes. See details here. Another point that the article makes is to take it easy in your first couple of days back skiing this season, which is definitely good advice.

Actually, all core conditioning is good for skiing.  For examples of good core conditioning on a fitness ball, check out this U-tube video from getfitsource.com This video shows just one set of core conditioning.  There are many, many more on the getfitsource.com site.  If you follow a dedicated core conditioning workout on a regular basis you will definitely notice the benefits the next time you go skiing.

This medpagetoday.com article recaps various studies that show conclusively that statins, one of the most widely prescribed anti cholesterol pharma, do not provide any benefit against Alzheimer’s disease.  Over a 12 year study period, those using statins were no more or less likely to develop Alzheimer’s than those who did not use the drug.

This Businessweek article recaps the same results and indicates that the proof of ineffectiveness of statins against Alzheimer’s contradicts a widely reported 2000 study that claimed statin users were 70% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s.  It is now clear that the earlier study failed due to selection bias:  those concerned with their health take statins at higher rates than the general population and are less likely to develop Alzheimer’s but not because they take statins.

While statins may not help to stave off Alzheimer’s, general exercise has been found to provide some protection against dementia.  See our 2006 post on the subject here.  Money quote:  “People who exercised more than three times a week developed dementia at a rate of 13 per 1,000 patient-years, compared with 19.7 per 1,000 patient-years for those who exercised less.”

Year's End, Blog's End: I've been making my annual year end inventory - deciding what to keep and what to toss. It's become obvious in the past several months that this blog is one of the things that it's time to toss. This will be the last post for Medpundit. Truly.

Wishing you all the best in 2008 and the years beyond.


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