Do you Jog, it may help you live longer if you do?

The following was taken from an article written by Honor Whiteman and published in MNT weekly Newsletter and published May 17th 

New research further emphasises the importance of physical activity, after finding that people who are highly active can knock years off their biological age.

Researchers say that running for 30 to 40 minutes over 5 days per week could reduce cellular ageing by 9 years. But we are not talking about a light workout we are talking about a more serious workout on a regular basis, according to one of the researchers who said, “If you want to see a real difference in slowing your biological ageing, it appears that a little exercise won't cut it. You have to work out regularly at high levels.”

A researcher from Brigham Young University in Provo, UT, found that running for 30 or 40 minutes every day for 5 days each week can reduce the shortening of telomeres and decrease cellular ageing by 9 years.

Telomeres are the protective caps at the ends of chromosomes, which are thread-like structures in cells that hold our DNA. They are often compared to the plastic tips at the end of shoelaces, as they stop the ends of chromosomes from fraying and sticking to other chromosomes.

Telomeres are a marker of biological age. As we get older, telomere length shortens. When telomeres become too short, they are no longer able to protect chromosomes, which can cause cells to stop functioning and die.

Poor lifestyle factors, such as lack of exercise, can also contribute to telomere shortening by causing oxidative stress, which is the inability of the body to offset the cell damage caused by free radicals.

The new study - conducted by Prof. Larry Tucker of the Department of Exercise Sciences at Brigham - demonstrates just how important physical activity is for protecting against cellular ageing.

The findings were recently published in the journal Preventative Medicine. For his study, Prof. Tucker analysed the data of 5,823 adults who were a part of the 1999-2002 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

The researcher looked at the telomere length of each participant. In addition, he looked at subjects' participation in 62 physical activities over a 30-day period, using this information to calculate their physical activity levels.

Compared with participants who were sedentary, those who were highly active were found to have telomere lengths representing a biological age of 9 years less, and a biological age of 7 years less compared with those who were moderately active.

Thirty minutes of jogging daily for 5 days per week was deemed highly active for women, while 40 minutes of jogging every day for 5 days each week was considered highly active for men.

Prof. Tucker says that he was surprised to discover that the telomere length between sedentary participants and those who were moderately active were not significantly different. This indicates that in order to protect against cellular ageing, high levels of physical activity are best.

Acquired Brain Injury Day 17

Today I want to talk about Travel Insurance and the importance of reading the fine print. Colleen continues to move forward, slowly but surely. The plan is that if she continues to improve over the next week, they will move her our of the "High Dependency Ward" and then discharge her to another unit of the Alfred Health group The Caulfield Hospital for up to three of rehabilitation, and then we will be clear (hopefully) to fly home.

We have a Travel Insurance policy that covers multiple trips of up to 35 days over a year and since we were going to be in Victoria, Australia for 42 days this trip we bought a top up policy from the same company. We also, when we purchased our tickets, purchased trip cancellation insurance. So I thought we were well covered. As they say, the devil is in the details and in Insurance policy fine pring

The representative from our travel insurance, once I reported the claim, has been in touch with me every day. I realized early on that she was asking questions about my wife's treatment, and her progress, not out of concern but out of a desire to minimize the risk for the company. 

I answered all of her questions but when she asked about Colleen's prognosis and how she was doing,  I always answered that I was happy with the progress. I explained every time that I did not believe that I could not comment on any medical progress because I was not trained in the medical field and always referred to the hospital for that information. The head office for my insurance was in Eastern  Canada and so there was a huge time difference and I felt the representations frustration in being able to talk with the hospital. 

Early on in this process, I had been spoken to one of the Doctors on the medical team. He told me that the insurance company was phoning every day and the medical team did not want to update them on a daily basis as things could change very quickly. 

He asked my permission to give the insurance company updates only if the medical team needed permission for a new or updated procedure or if there was a substantial change, positive or negative in my wife's condition. I agreed but I told the insurance company that the doctors would keep them updated when/and as needed. 

The insurance company did not like that response and put pressure on me to give them more information about my wife's status. I did not become angry but I am sure my voice showed my annoyance, and by today I started to shift the focus on how/when Colleen would  be allowed to go home. 

I  asked the insurance company about getting us back home. The insurance company had told me that  the reports the insurance company had received from the Alfred was that Colleen would be able to fly home without support when she was discharged from the hospital. I conveyed that information to the coordinator.

According to the Liaison coordinator at the Alfred, they had told the insurance company that Colleen could not fly home without a medical escort, but that status might change in two or three weeks. This was at odds with what the insurance company had told me.

The Alfred Health group puts patients first and in my wife's time at the Alfred, I was in constant communication with members of the medical team working on my wife, a Social Worker, a Hospital Liaison  Coordinator and a Spiritual Adviser. Each of these people had a role to play in making sure that Colleen got the best treatment at the Alfred and would get the best treatment when she was discharged. 

According to the Liaison Coordinator, the chief Neurosurgeon on Colleen's team had spent a fair bit of time talking to the insurance companies Dr.'s  in Canada and when the Coordinator reported what the insurance company had told me he was quite upset with their interpretation of that discussion. He had written one letter to them and he wrote another letter that he said would clarify the situation. 

In the second letter, which I have, and which was sent to the insurance company, he clearly states that at this time and in the foreseeable future, Colleen could not fly without a medical escort period. I was not expecting that news, as I was hoping that we would still be able to get home by mid November. 

The insurance company would not pay for a medical escort, if Colleen was discharged from the Alfred, but the Alfred was going to discharge her into a rehabilitation facility so she could recover enough to fly home. My insurance company would not cover the cost of rehabilitation, nor would they cover the cost of a medical escort back to Canada if Colleen was discharged. I had to make some tough decisions about what I would do when ilt was time for the next step. Should we go home with an escort, or should we stay 

On a more positive tone, Colleen was staying awake longer, seemed to be happier, and more aware of what was going on around her. The only issue was that she believed that people were out to get her, and that we had to be careful. 

When I left for the day, I was upset with the insurance company, but I was happy with the progress that Colleen was making and was trusting that the medication and care she was receiving would soon take her to the next step..

Acquired Brain Injury Day 13

Tomorrow Colleen will be moved to the "High Dependency Ward". I see this as more forward progress. Her cognitive and memory are improving very quickly and she is remembering more and now knows who I am in relationship to her, which is a great relief to me. The "High Dependency Ward" is a ward for critically ill patients who have improved enough not to need one on one nursing. As I understand it, Colleen will be in a ward with one other patient with one nurse to oversee both of them. A small improvement, meaning she is moving to recovery.

Once it was apparent that she was regaining her cognitive skills the big concern was her physical development and from what I could see she would have no problem with this area. Time is critical and while her recovery is slow, it appears to be more forward than stalled.

With Danielle and Adam in town and able to visit my mood was getting more positive as was Colleen's. Ryder would be allowed to visit tomorrow and Colleen was looking forward to seeing him.

I have not yet talked about the support of friends and family back home and I need to say thank you for all of the needed support. Since I made the first phone calls I have made it a point to connect with only a select few back home, these people have agreed to spread the word about how Colleen is doing to others. This saves me energy, and time. I have an abundance of time, but not much energy and so I am careful how I use the energy. Over the last two week I have been drained and exhausted every day so I am careful how I expend what little energy I have. I phone back home every day, either to my son, Colleen's Mom or her brother or my brothers and my best friend.

The most difficult decision was about how to tell Colleen's mom who is 88 about how Colleen is doing. We decided to wait until we had an idea of how things were going. Colleen's Aunt (her mom's sister) past on the information that we should tell Colleen's mom sooner rather than later. So even though all the family knew within a day of the injury, Colleen's mom was told on the fourth day. She was told by Colleen's brother, and she took it better than we had expected.

I made a point of phoning her every two days, to keep her aware of what was going on with Colleen. I also talked to my younger brother every two days to vent, and to get some of my feelings out and he is a very good listener. For most of the other family I reported on Colleen's progress and listened to their statements of concern and well wishes. 

The response has made me feel so much better. I need the support of friends and family and when it was needed most it was there. I cannot imagine how I would have coped without the support I am receiving. Thanks to all.  

Acquired Brain Injury Day 11

Danielle and her family arrived in Rye, and I was glad to see them, although the strain of having her mom in critical condition is weighing heavily on my daughter and her partner. My grandson knows something is wrong but he is not sure what is wrong.

I think small children although they are too young to know the details or the seriousness of a situation, can sense the tension in the air. As adults we have to be careful to make sure that our stress and tension does not too adversely affect the young children. Ryder had been taken out of his routine because of the issues with his grandmother and although he did not act out we could tell he was upset

This morning we all drove into the hospital together and Danielle and I went to see Colleen, while Adam and Ryder went to play in the park. 

Paranoia is one of the effects of Acquired Brain Injury and it can last for a short time or a long time. This morning Colleen thought that the "powers that be" in the hospital were plotting to keep her in the hospital against her will. I thought it best to go along with Colleen's ideas  and we came up with a plan where we would work out together on how to convince those out to get her that she was getting better and should be allowed out. My daughter had a few problems with this approach, but I took her aside and we talked about the fact that we had to keep her mom calm, because of the danger of high blood pressure setting off a vibration. So my daughter agreed to go along with me on this approach.

By working out a plan, Colleen seemed to stay calm which was important as we were again moving into the 4th to 7th days after the second operation, where  the risk of arterial vibration was again high. We were hopeful that in three or four days, she would be out of the danger zone and would move off the critical care ward to the high dependency ward. 

Even though she was feeling that people were out to get her, Colleen was in good spirits. I saw that she was still a bit confused about some aspects of what was going on around her but her mood was light and positive. Colleen recognized  Danielle, and me and I was happy about that. 

We talked about the Melbourne cup and the wonderful costumes and laughed at the idea of a whole state shutting down for a week for races. The morning went fast and when Colleen had her lunch, she became tired and went to sleep, at this point Danielle and I went to join Adam. 

Ryder was enjoying the playground but we thought it best if they drove back to Rye so he could see his cousins. I would stay the afternoon with Colleen, take the train back and would be picked up in Frankston later on that day

The afternoon went slowly as Colleen slept for most of it, but the nurses did tell me that they thought Colleen would be moved soon to the high dependency ward. Good news, this meant, she was one step closer to discharge and closer to being allowed to go home.

Acquired Brain Injury Day 10

Melbourne Cup Day in Victoria is a very special day for the Australians who live in the state of Victoria. It is a state, if not a national holiday, and the state appears to shut down for the week, not just the day of the races. 

My daughter had talked about this day many times to us over the phone and my wife had been in Sawmill for the event the year my grandson had been born. I had not experienced the day or the excitement around the Melbourne cup. 

One of the big races was today and I was told when I left the house in Rye that I would be in for a treat on the public transit. I was bemused but I needed some lightness in my life. The people running or walking to the train from Frankston, were "dressed to the nines" as my mom would say. 

The women were decked out in flowing gorgeous gowns in spring and summer colours that rivalled anything seen on the red carpets at the Oscars or other massive awards celebrations held in North America. The women all wore high heels and the most outrageous hats I have ever seen, the men were dressed in suits, some tuxes, some with top hats but all had very highly polished shoes. The young children were dressed in suits and/or jackets for the boys and gowns or spring dresses for the girls.  Tourists stood out because we were dressed for the beach or the park. It was an amazing sight and one that cheered me up.  
My life paradigm at this time was about hospitals, threats of relapse, and the horror of stroke or death for women I had been with for over 50 years. I felt myself retreating into a narrow and negative outlook on life. Seeing the joy and the beauty of the Victorians as they rode public transit to the racetrack to celebrate a horse race was to me a celebration of life. The crowd was in a good mood and everyone was enjoying the ride, I allowed myself to be swept along; I felt myself moving to an important attitude shift.

Arriving at the hospital, the nurses talked about the day and how they wished they could be out and about. The radio station and the TV in the waiting room were all about who was at which track, and what gowns or tuxes the celebrators, both the rich and not-so-rich were wearing.  I found there was very little news about which horse would win the race. 

The exuberance of the day was infectious and while I was amazed by the celebrations, the nurses inside the ward were aware of the needs of their patients and were careful not to excite them.

Colleen and I talked about the upcoming race and she asked me to phone Danielle and tell her to bet on the number 3 horse.  My daughter put a small bet on the horse. The horse did not place in the top three she came in 10th. 

Later we discovered that the name of the horse (Falkner) my wife wanted to bet on had the same name as the park across the street from the hospital. Small world. Even though the horse did not come in the top three, it was a winning moment as I saw this as a sign that things were starting to turn around.  

I left the hospital in better spirits than I had been for a while, and while Colleen did not appear to be improving she was in good spirits. Her memory was slowly coming back and she knew who I was most days and was happy to see me every morning. 

I joined the happy crowds on public transit, many had been enjoying the spirit(s) of the Melbourne cup and I was enjoying the sense of hope that was starting to replace the sense of dread that I had been feeling. It was a good day.

Acquired Brain Injury Day 6

Preparations were underway for Halloween, and my grandson and his cousins were excited, but they also were concerned about Colleen. To make her feel better, Ryder who is four, got me to record him singing "Itsy Bitsy Spider" as he thought it would cheer his grandmother up. For those who don't know this song, it goes like this: 
The itsy-bitsy spider
Climbed up the water spout
Down came the rain
And washed the spider out
Out came the sun
And dried up all the rain
And the itsy-bitsy spider climbed up the spout again

Amber who is six drew and coloured in a picture with a short story that she thought would make Colleen feel better. I promised to bring both the recording and the picture and story to Colleen.

In order to cope more efficiently with memory disorders many people with ABI use memory aids; these included external items such as diaries, notebooks and electronic organizers, internal strategies for example visual associations, and environmental adaptations such as labelling kitchen cupboards. Research has found that ABI patients use an increased number of memory aids to help in their recovery. Since Colleen believed her memory to be good, and would not keep a diary,  we hit on the idea of bringing her pictures of friends and relatives so she could see them and remember these people. My hope was that by seeing the pictures she would move ahead in her mind from the 70s to the present day.  

I contacted my son and asked him to go through the pictures on the computer and email us a selection of pictures of relatives and friends. He did and we went to the local K-Mart and had the pictures printed out to take to Colleen. I spend the ride to the hospital writing the names on the back of the pictures along with who each person was in relation to my wife.

Colleen was in good spirits when I arrived,  but she was tired and we spend the day talking about whatever was on her mind. Colleen thought she was still in Canada and wondered why her Dad, her Granny and her Grandpa and her Mom had not visited with her yet. When I and the nurses told her that she was in Australia, she did not believe us and became agitated, but slowly over the course of the day she began to realize she was not in Canada.  I am not sure if she really believes this or is just agreeing so we would stop telling her where she is. However, she still was concerned that her Dad, Mon and her Granny and Grandpa had not come to see her. I could not tell her that her Dad, Granny and Grandpa were no longer with us, and her mom was in Vancouver, so when the topic was raised, I tried to change the topic. Lucky for me a person with Acquired Brain Injury has a short attention span at this stage of recovery. So the change of topic seemed to be working.

Colleen slept for a large part of the day, which gave me time to finish writing on the backs of the photos. In the afternoon I showed her the pictures and she knew everyone in the pictures, although she did get a couple of people confused. The nurses said that was a very good sign.

For the most part, it was a very positive day and I thought her short memory was starting to come into focus for her.  Her memory retention was still very weak.

I was hopeful as I made my way home. We still had one more day where there was a very high risk/danger of the arteries in the brain vibrating, but we were closer to moving out of that danger zone.