As reported by HealthDay, a recent Norwegian study found that physical exercise and weight control may help ward off fibromyalgia. Researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology followed 16,000 Norwegian women for 11 years, during which time 380 developed fibromyalgia. Below are several important findings from the study:
Since this investigation did not prove a direct cause and effect between exercise or body weight and fibromyalgia, more research is being called for. Patrick Wood, MD, of the National Fibromyalgia Association told HealthDay that exercising regularly and maintaining a healthy weight may be helpful in avoiding the condition, and that doing both are especially prudent for people with a family history of fibromyalgia.
This research was published in the American College of Rheumatology’s journal Arthritis Care & Research (62:12). To read the abstract, click on http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/123268508/abstract.
Might learning martial arts fall-arrest strategies be safe and useful for patients with osteoporosis? Could such training be helpful in preventing hip fractures in those with the disease? That’s what researchers wanted to learn from a feasibility study, using only young adult subjects, that was recently conducted in the Netherlands and published in BMC Research Notes, the journal of BioMed Central (3:111).
At the Colchester Campus of the UK’s University of Essex, research conducted by Dr. Jo Barton and Professor Jules Pretty has shown that a small amount of daily "green exercise" — for example, taking a stroll through a pleasant park or garden — will improve people’s mood, self-esteem and mental health. In fact, they found that just five minutes of such nature-based physical activity produced the greatest positive effect.
A renowned American botanist, agricultural chemist and educator, who lived from the mid-1860s to 1943, had this to say about enjoying the outdoor world:
