Mediterranean Diet: A Heart-Healthy Eating Approach

Quick quiz: Where is heart disease less common ... in the U.S. or in Greece? Yes, it's true. Unfortunately (for us, at least), in countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea, heart disease is less common than in the United States. Researchers believe that the Mediterranean Diet pyramid -- common to Greece and southern Italy -- is a major reason for this difference.

So what's in Mediterranean diet recipes, anyway? What's the Mediterranean diet food list? Here's what people in that part of the world are doing to maintain their heart health, according to the Mayo Clinic Women's HealthSource.

Massages For Depression, Arthritis, Indigestion and More

In the last decade, massages have enjoyed a surge of popularity. Once thought of as a luxury for the pampered, it has become a favorite of stressed out office workers, recreational athletes and those of us who appreciate its ability to cleanse and relax both our bodies and our minds.

Massage’s benefits go way back; it’s an ancient healing art mentioned in Chinese literature as early as 3000 B.C., and Greek and Roman physicians used it to treat their ruler. “Massage has its roots in earliest medicine,” says Richard Why, president of the Texas-based Bodywork Institute. “It’s always been a crucial part of the health systems of most cultures.

Martial Arts Training Helps Seniors Fight Falling Injuries

Have you sharpened your karate chops? Perhaps you should. A new study has found that martial arts training as a form of exercise may be an effective way for osteoporosis patients to learn to reduce the potential for falling injuries.

Researchers in the Netherlands measured hip impact forces during martial arts fall exercises, and they determined these exercises could safely be taught to patients with osteoporosis. Fully aware of the risks of performing these tests on seniors, researchers took their initial measurements from a group of six healthy people, asked to perform martial arts fall training exercises.

Love Jogging With Your Dog? Well, What If You Could Get Him to Pull You on a Scooter?

When I first read about a harness that dogs wear to pull their owners on scooters, I thought "that's crazy, but wait, why does that look insanely fun?!" Then I immediately felt sorry for the dogs and realized that my pooch wouldn't make it around the block pulling moi (she's getting older and a horse and carriage she is not). What do you think of this funny new trend ...

I read about a kind of funny new thing on FitCeleb recently: dog-powered scooters. While a jog with your dog (even a walk!) is great exercise, a newish harness device from DogPoweredScooters.com probably doesn't really count as exercise, since, well, your dog is doing all the work! Fans say it's lots of fun, but at least a few critics have concerns about people and doggie safety with these things.

Let's Talk About Cankles

You know the term "cankles," right? They're described as "chubby ankles" or calves that stretch down to the ankle region without much definition. One major nationwide gym is waging war on cankles, and here's why it kind of bugs me ...

Gold's Gym has designated July as "Cankle Awareness Month." According to their Web site: "The word comes from the combination of 'calf' and 'ankle.' It occurs when the calf merges with an obese or swollen ankle."

Gold's claims that cankles are the "fastest growing aesthetic affliction in the United States"--even more than muffin tops and saddle bags. "Millions of people across the country are currently affected by cankles and millions more are at risk," they write on their "Say No to Cankles" Web site. "In fact, it is estimated that if current trends continue, by the year 2012 Cankles will surpass Love Handles as the number one aesthetic affliction in the world."

Lady Gaga's Secret To Staying Fit? The "Drunk Diet"

So Lady Gaga went on a Sirius radio show the other morning, and let her staying-fit secret out of the Birkin bag...

She said: "I'm on the drunk diet. I like to drink whiskey and stuff while I'm working. But the deal is, I've got to work out every day, and I work out hung over if I'm hung over."

So, you know. It's Lady Gaga, so we're not going expect the most traditional of staying-healthy secrets from her. Also, her boyfriend, Luc Carl, "just signed up to write The Drunk Diet, about how he lost 40 pounds while still 'being a hard-drinking party maker,'" so there could be a convenient tie-in there.

Just Looking At Your Body May Relieve Your Pain, Say Researchers

When you have to get a vaccine or give blood, do you look at the needle or away from it? I'm the type who not only has to look anywhere but my arm when giving blood--I also have to keep up a steady stream of babble so that I keep breathing and don't faint. (This just in: I am ridiculous.) In any case, researchers may have found some evidence that, if you want to control how much that shot (or other pain) hurts, you should look right at it.

A study in the journal Psychological Science revealed the interesting results of several power-of-the-mind-on-pain experiments.

Study participants had "heat probes" placed on their left hands, and the heat was gradually turned up until the participants felt it was too much pain. (Who else is glad they weren't part of this study? Anyway!) While the temperatures were increasing, participants either watched their own hand, or a wooden object. When they were looking at their hand, participants' pain threshold was about 3°C higher.