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Hello,

I trust you're safe, fit and well.

All strength to Ukraine 🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦

Young blood.

What's next in the search for the fountain of youth?

Blood. Specifically, young blood. Reputable and repeatable research is converging on a phenomenon whereby young mice show signs of aging after receiving blood from old mice. There are signs that transferring young blood may rejuvenate old mice, metabolically.

Will we see sun tan clinics replaced by Young Blood Clinics?

We are just beginning to understand the health consequences of Long-Covid, and they are concerning. For me, the shocker is the accelerated onset of diabetes - see item #2.

Are you able to take a stroll after each meal? It turns out that this small hack might help keep diabetes at bay, making it well worth the effort - see item #1.

Here are the topics I have chosen for you to help you live longer better:

⭑ Moving around after a meal staves off diabetes - new research ✔
⭑ Research starting to converge on Long-Covid and diabetes onset
⭑ Do you chew gum and walk? Congrats, you've lost a little extra weight ✔
⭑ Test your balance, and do these 3 at-home exercises to improve it

01 Just 2 Minutes of Walking After Eating Is Beneficial, Study Shows​

Wonderful. A good news story that isn't just a headline!

New research suggests that it takes far less exercise than was previously thought to lower blood sugar after eating.

Research published this month in Sports Medicine examined the effect of different types of activity on post-eating (postprandial) glucose control in adults without diabetes. In one experiment, subjects ate a high-carbohydrate meal and exercised immediately afterwards, while another group waited 15 minutes before exercising.

The researchers measured blood sugar levels every 20 minutes over a three-hour period. They found that those who walked immediately after a meal experienced the lowest blood sugar spikes, followed by those who stood up and then those who remained seated.

The findings suggest that people could benefit from moving around after meals, even if they don't take a full walk.

Another study published earlier this month in the journal Nutrients found that people who walked for just 2 minutes after a meal had better insulin sensitivity than those who didn't.

⇒ Insulin resistance refers to our body's inability to use glucose properly.

When someone has insulin resistance, their cells are unable to store glycogen, which is the form of stored energy used by muscles during activity. This leads to elevated blood sugar levels, which commonly leads to diabetes, and can also lead to heart disease, high cholesterol, obesity, and even cancer.

What it means for us: Taking the 2-minute walk after a meal will help your metabolic health, and in particular, improve your insulin sensitivity and thus better regulate your blood sugar levels.

This is great news because it appears that this one simple activity will reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes. For this, it is well worth "sacrificing" two minutes.

I try to walk about 2 kilometres after every meal, but you may well get similar benefits with respect to better insulin sensitivity by the 2-minutes used in the study.

Start small. Just do it. Build it into your lifestyle.

Related: How To Keep Your Weight Off With Daily Walks — 5 Fun Level-ups That Everyone Can Do​

02 Can COVID-19 Cause Diabetes?​

In last week's newsletter (Article #3) I noted that there is no current test that can be easily and reliably performed to determine who has had COVID. I suggested that it is important to know if you have been infected as Long-COVID can be extremely debilitating. The long-term negative effects include fatigue, brain fog, anxiety, insomnia and muscle pain.

Just published research cited by Cleveland Clinic heightens the need to know if you have been infected. After recovering from a COVID-19 infection, people were almost certainly more likely to develop diabetes, the report says.

⇒ About 40% more likely. As a diabetic, this is a startling outcome.

I know the consequences of diabetes, and it is a condition that you need to avoid to the utmost extent of your ability. You have to work much harder to combat the consequences of having diabetes than you do to prevent it in the first place.

What this means for us: If you are over 50 and have had COVID-19, then take particular care to reduce your risk of developing diabetes. Watch out for signs of diabetes - see your doctor if any of these below are worrying you:

• ​Blurred vision.
• ​Fatigue.
• Feeling very hungry or thirsty.
• Increased need to urinate (usually at night).
• Slow healing of cuts or sores.
• Tingling or numbness in your hands or feet.
• ​Unexplained weight loss.

My practical advice, based on what I do to manage my own diabetes, is to (1) exercise regularly including strength training, (2) cut out all added sugar (but don't panic about natural sugars such as in fruit), (3) maintain a healthy weight, and (4) and this is key - ensure that your waist measurement remains less than half your height.

The last point seems simplistic, but it isn't. A waist measurement of more than half your height is a leading indicator of the risk of developing diabetes.

And last but not least, take a 2-minute walk after every meal, even better, a walk around the block - see Item #1 above.

Related: Measuring Your Waist Will Tell You If You Are On Your Way To Diabetes​

@Medium - Follow my publication there↗, covering ⭑food, ⭑brain, ⭑body, ⭑life

03 Chewing Gum Helps You Lose More Weight!?​

This research surprised me. I wouldn't have believed it if someone had mentioned it at the coffee shop!

Apparently, it has "long been known" that gum chewing while walking increases walking speed and heart rate. News to me.

However, it was unclear if it burnt more energy i.e. used more calories.

⇒ A just-published study reports that the simple act of chewing gum can raise the body's metabolic rate by as much as 15 per cent!

Study participants performed a 15-minute walk at their own pace while either chewing 2 pieces of gum or taking 2 placebo pills.

Fat oxidation, energy expenditure, oxygen consumption, heart rate, step counts, and walking distance were recorded continuously throughout the experiment. Gum chewing increased both energy expenditure and fat oxidation compared to the control trial. Heart rate and blood pressure were also significantly elevated during gum chewing.

What this means for us: I think, what it means, is that if you enjoy chewing gum while walking, then keep doing it. The results were widely reported in the context of a new way to lose weight.

Here's the reality: researchers report that people who chew gum for 30 minutes burn about 7 calories more per hour than those who don't. They also found that the effect lasts for up to three hours after you stop chewing.

So optimistically, let's call it 21 calories extra lost by chewing gum while walking for 30 minutes to the coffee shop and back, plus the after-burn. That's equivalent to one teaspoon of sugar that you had in your coffee.

Better than nothing, for sure, and every little bit helps. You might enjoy your gum more just for the pleasure of chewing it, and not looking upon it as a dietary food. Chew and enjoy, I say!

PS Just because I am a nerd I checked the claim that gum can increase our metabolic rate by 15%. Typically, a 30-minute walk will burn ~120 calories. 15% times 120 calories equal 18 calories, which is quite close to my estimate above of 21 calories. CONFIRMED!

Related: This One Exercise Will Reshape Your Body And Your Brain, If You’re Game​

04 Three Balance Tests That Are Also Exercises for Better Balance

Our exercise of the week is ... three of them, to improve our balance.

Our balance naturally deteriorates as we age. One reason is because of the deterioration of our fast-twitch muscles, making them ever slower in reacting to correct our imbalance.

However, the main reason is that the unconscious process that our brain goes through to keep us upright gets a bit rusty.

Inside our inner ear is the vestibular system, where we perceive balance. This system connects to the brain, which gives us a message when we are about to fall and directs the body to take corrective action. But with age, cells in the vestibular system die off, affecting our ability to correct our position.

We cannot regenerate the vestibular cells.

⇒ But the good news is that we can exercise and slow the aging of the messaging from the brain to our muscles in response to signals from the inner ear.

As we age, there can be multiple causes of poor balance. We can improve the "brain muscle" coordination if this is the main cause. It's important that we do because a fall can ruin your lifestyle and shorten your life.

What this means for us: We have to isolate the pure balance problem from other factors. Sometimes the underlying issue is more a lack of strength or a lack of flexibility, rather than balance per se.

There are reliable medical methods, but the following is a good place to start at home. These are "tests", but they also hold the solution to poor balance:

1. Start by standing with your feet an equal distance apart and close your eyes. If you feel swaying or can’t maintain your position here, with both feet firmly planted, then it’s definitely a balance issue, more than strength or flexibility.
2. Next, stand on one leg and tilt your neck back so that you are looking at the ceiling. Point your nose right up at the ceiling. Then lift a foot off the ground a little so that all your weight is on one leg.
   Much of our balance perception is based on our sight of a level horizon. By looking upwards we don’t have that visual reference. You may find yourself quickly falling over. This also indicates a pure balance issue.
3. The final progression is closing your eyes while standing on one leg. Lift your leg a little off the floor and stand on one leg. Here, since we don’t have any visual cues, we are relying on our internal body position sense and again, this is a challenge for your balance.

Great news. If you have difficulty with any of the tests, you can simply use them as exercises.

For example, each time your Apple Watch tells you to stand, do these exercises. Set a timer for a minute and do a few sets. You should progress pretty quickly.

No problem with these balance tests? Your primary restriction may not be poor balance per se. Work on your strength and flexibility, and you’ll likely see a great improvement in your ability to hold your balance.

Good luck.

In case you missed it...

Related: Rebuilding Your Fast-twitch Muscles Doesn’t Require Fast Movements​

Thanks for reading!

About the newsletter: Do you think it can be improved? Have a story idea? Want to share about the time you met Chris Hemsworth, or your questions about how to live longer better? Send those thoughts and more to me at walter@bodyagebuster.com

'4 Most Valuable' is a weekly newsletter from Walter Adamson. If you like it, please forward to a like-minded soul. Someone forward this to you? You can subscribe from this page.

Resources for you:

​The Exact Slow Pace You Must Run and Cycle To Max Fat-Burning​

​As You Age Pistachios Can Help You Sleep Better​

​I Started Trail Running At 70. Besides Being Bitten By A Dog I Love It​

​Vitamin D Is Free Yet We Don’t Get Enough And Our Health Is Suffering​

​How Bananas Benefit Your Bones — And Brain​

​The Surprising Benefits of Black Tea Daily​

​Are You Ab-Wheel Rolling To Back Pain? I Was — Not Now​

​Forget Beetroot Juice, Eat More Vegetables For Nitrate Potency And Longer Life​

​How To Go From On-knee to Full Pushups, and Reap The Benefits​

​Brain Health Is Boosted By Eating Less, Often — Here’s How To Start​

​Why Walnuts Lower Heart Disease and Help You Sleep Better​

​The Surprising Way Hip Flexors Pull You Down Into An Elderly Stoop And ​Shuffle, And How To Avoid It​

​This One Exercise Will Reshape Your Body And Your Brain, If You’re Game​

​Shining Light On Infrared Therapy - It Helped Unlock My Shoulder​

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