How Happy Are Your Feet? - Health & Fitness Magazine online!

HEALTH & THE ENVIRONMENT
By Dr. Donna Schwontkowski
(ret D.C.), M.S. Nutrition, M.H.
EXERCISE/FITNESS
By Maverick Jensen
Chemical in the News:
Bisphenol-A
Note to our readers: Each month of
2009 we’ll present you with an opportunity
to educate yourself on chemicals
in the environment and how they affect
your health and the health of your
children. This month’s chemical is:
BISPHENOL-A.
In addition, a free Special Report
and the opportunity to download mp3
recordings on the topic will also be
available. Stay up-to-date on this very
important topic and protect your health
by signing up for this very useful information
at www.DrDonna.info
Thinking about Getting
Tooth-Colored
Fillings or Sealants?
Better Think Again
By Dr. Donna
For the past year, the media has reported
on the harmful chemical bisphenol-
A, also known as BPA. This chemical
leaches out of hard plastic baby bottles.
Because the young bodies of babies are
immature and unable to detoxify BPA,
the health risks of BPA to children is
greater than the risks to adults.
BPA presents a paradigm to toxicity
studies: even low levels of BPA can be
problematic, with studies showing that
BPA may be one of the few chemicals
that is more toxic at lower doses.
In over 100 studies, BPA has been
linked to:
• altering cell-to-cell signaling pathways
on the cell surface to allow calcium
efflux in cells
• persistent changes to breast tissue
• permanent changes to the genital tract
• decreased antioxidant enzymes
• increased prostate weight
• increased aggression
• earlier puberty
• breast cells predisposed to cancer
• decreased testosterone levels
• insulin resistance
• decreased maternal behaviors
• damage to eggs and chromosomes
• reversed the normal sex differences in
the brain structure and behavior
• hyperactivity
• disruption of 200 genes
• spurs the formation and growth of fat cells
While much of the media focuses on
BPA emanating from plastic bottles
marked “7” on the triangle on the bottom
of the bottle, there are three other
sources of this health-ruining chemical:
1.tooth-colored dental fillings. The FDA
reported 50% of the fillings can be
composed of bisphenol-A in 2004.
2.sealants used to protect the molars of
developing children.
3.epoxy resin coatings on cans such
as tuna, canned fruits and canned
vegetables
Bisphenol-A is produced in the U.S. at
the rate of close to one billion pounds
a year. In one Center for Disease Control
study, the chemical was found in
95% of the serum of 400 adults tested
and identified in water, soil, the air,
and in plastics.
The solution to preventing BPA ingesion
is simple: use glass or stainless
steel containers instead of plastic, use
fresh and frozen foods, avoid canned
foods, and reduce sugar consumption
that causes tooth decay.
For more information and to find out
why the FDA is downplaying the
health-destroying effects of BPA, what
foods are high in BPA, and other facts
about the chemical, download the free
Special Report: What You Should Know
about Bisphenol A. How this harmful
chemical affects you and your children
at www.drdonna.info/bpa.html
Soccer Skills
How To
Improve Your
Weaker Foot
Improving your weak foot takes a serious
amount of time and hard work for
results to start to show. There’s no doubt
that the best players in the world have almost
equal ability with both feet. They can
perform dummies, tricks and pass efficiently with
both feet giving them more options and opportunities
when they have possession of the ball. Being able to use both feet is a skill
that every modern footballer needs to have.
There is no real secret to improving your weaker foot other than hard work in
your soccer training. As a player you need to be able to dribble with both feet
giving you the sense of unpredictability against defenders. It allows you to
beat defenders either using your left or right foot.
To improve your weaker foot ball control you can do simple drill is such as little
cuts, any kind of touches on the ball with your weaker foot is improving it.
To accelerate the process of improving your weaker foot you need to perform
dribbling drills such as little cuts around any kind of objects. To perform this
you dribble the ball touching the ball with the inside of the foot with your
weaker foot then with the outside of foot with the weaker foot and repeating
this is in a continuous motion. You can then create a variations such as 2
touches with the inside foot and 2 touches with the outside of the foot. Another
one is two touches with the inside of the foot and one touch with the outside
of the foot. There are many variations to this drill and it’s your hard work that
will make these drills pay off.
To improve passing with your weaker foot you simply have to use your
weaker foot. This can be done by either grabbing a mate and simply passing
the ball in different styles to each other, while learning and maintaining skills
with your weaker foot. Or if you do not have the opportunity to grab a friend
you can always find a wall and practice passing the ball and receiving the ball
with the wall. It’s important when using the wall that you pick a consistent
spot and try to hit it on a consistent basis. It’s crucial that you learn not only to
pass the ball along the ground with your weaker foot, but to learn to chip the
ball and practice your long passes. It’s crucial that you do not become a onefooted
player as this will make you predictable.
This article has only scratched the surface of what you can learn to learn
more go to Football Smart at www.footballsmart.890m.com/ and for more
on dribbling and skills go to Ball Skills at http://footballsmart.890m.com/
Ball%20Skills.html
38
January Edition 2009