A Test to Predict Longevity?

According to a recent study, there is a simple test to predict your risk of premature death, including death from heart disease, cancer, and other causes as well.  See if you can climb four flights of stairs in under a minute, without having to stop. 

This study measured the exercise capacity of over 12,000 participants.  The study then followed these people for about 5 years.  People with poor functional capacity, had a death rate from heart disease almost 3 times higher, and cancer deaths were almost double, compared to study participants who had good exercise capacity.

If you want to try this test yourself, please use good judgement.  If you have heart disease, or if you have trouble walking up a single flight of stairs, you should talk with your doctor before trying this.  If you try the test and have chest pain, stop and contact your doctor.
If you can complete the stair test, then you have a good functional capacity.  Good functional capacity comes from being physically active on a regular basis.

How does exercise help your heart?
Your heart is a muscle, just like other muscles in the body.  The more it is used, the stronger it gets.  When you are physically active, your heart has to pump blood faster in order to supply your muscles with the oxygen they need.  So not only are your leg or arm muscles getting a work out, your heart muscle is getting a work out at the same time.

If you are physically active on a regular basis, your heart becomes strong enough that it can pump more blood with each contraction, which allows your heart to beat slower.  A slower heart rate, due to a strong heart, is associated with a longer life.

Regular exercise also improves your blood pressure.  Lower blood pressure means lower risk of cardiovascular disease.  Exercise also improves your cholesterol levels, increasing the good cholesterol and decreasing the bad.

You may be thinking "I understand why exercise helps my heart, but how does it decrease my chances of getting cancer?" 
You might be surprised to hear that your immune system kills cancer cells that develop in your body all the time.  Mutations can occur in cells for a number of reasons, and if left to continue to multiply, that mutated cell would become a cancer.  If your immune system is functioning well, it recognizes those tiny cancers and attacks them; that's just part of the job of the immune system.   If you are exercising regularly, your immune system functions well.  It is "tuned up" and ready to fight for you.

What should you do if you cannot meet the stair test challenge?
 If you cannot do it, that is a sign that you need more exercise on a regular basis.  If you are young and healthy, you should gradually increase the amount that you exercise on a daily or weekly basis.  If you are older, or have underlying health problems, you should talk with your doctor before increasing your exercise regimen, just to be sure that you are healthy enough for the level of exercise that you are planning.  Your doctor may want to do a stress test, in order to get a more accurate measure of how many METs of activity you can perform, and to make sure that your heart is healthy.

If you have any questions about longevity, please log into your account and send us your question. We are here to help.

Dr. Anita Bennett MD - Health Tip Content Editor

Autism Spectrum Disorder

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a disorder related to brain development which causes problems with behavior and the ability to communicate or interact with other people.  The word spectrum indicates that there is a wide variation in both the type and the severity of symptoms that different people experience.  Although there is no "cure" for ASD, there are treatments that can improve a person's symptoms and their ability to function.  Routine screening for ASD is recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics for all children.  This is a big topic, so it will take more than one week to cover.

What are the symptoms of ASD?

Remember that the symptoms can vary between individuals.  Here are some of the possible symptoms:

• Making little, or inconsistent, eye contact
• Failing to respond to someone calling their name or other attempts to gain their attention
• Doesn't speak or has delayed speech, or may speak in a sing-song or very monotone manner
• Repetitive movements, such as rocking, spinning, or hand gestures
• Having difficulties with the back and forth of conversation
• A mismatch between what is being said by the person and their facial expressions, movements, or gestures
• Difficulty understanding the actions or emotions of other people
• Repeating certain behaviors or actions, such as repeating the same word or phrase
• Getting upset by slight changes in routine
• Having an overly focused, or intense, interest in certain topics or details of objects
• Being less or more sensitive than most people to things such as light, noise, temperature, textures, etc.

Individuals with ASD may also have strengths that others do not.  These can include:

• Excellence in math, science, music, or art
• Being a strong visual or auditory learner
• Being able to learn things in great detail and remember information for long periods of time

What causes ASD?

Unfortunately, we don't know the exact cause of ASD.  It is a complex disorder and there are likely a number of causes.  The scientific information does indicate that there is a genetic component, although that genetic link is not well understood and requires more study.  Here are some risk factors for ASD:

• Male sex - Boys are about 4 times more likely to develop ASD than girls
• Family history - Having one child with autism increases the risk of having another child with ASD
• Older age of parents - This is true for either mother or father
• Extreme prematurity - Babies born before 26 weeks of gestation
• Certain genetic conditions - Such as fragile X syndrome, Rett syndrome, tuberous sclerosis

There is NO link between vaccines and ASD.

The science is clear.  There has been extensive research done, which shows that there is no link between autism spectrum disorder and any vaccines.  Avoiding childhood vaccines can place your child at significant risk of serious diseases.

Next week, we will talk about how the diagnosis of ASD is made, along with some of the latest research.
If you have any questions about autism spectrum disorder, please log into your account and send us your question. We are here to help.

Dr. Anita Bennett MD - Health Tip Content Editor