The term “Rx” comes from the original latin for “recipe”, or prescription. Though not quite the latter, here are some interesting things that I read this week. Only some of it is directly related to diet and health, but all of it is cool. By popular demand, I will also include some insights into my training this week.
Interesting science:
Alcohol after lifting weights increases testosterone. Healthy young men did heavy squats, and were subsequently given a good amount of alcohol (equivalent to around 10 shots of tequila for a 70kg man). Compared to placebo, the alcohol-treated men had higher testosterone levels for the few hours after exercise. Similar results have not been seen in endurance or circuit-training style workouts, because these don’t naturally raise testosterone in the way that lifting weights does. However, we don’t know whether this effect was due to increased testosterone production (a good thing in this setting), or reduced uptake of testosterone into the muscles (a bad thing for strength and recovery). Therefore, the authors warn against using this as an excuse for athletes to drink more. In the absence of exercise, alcohol reduces testosterone levels, and chronic alcohol use is known to reduce recovery and strength. However, if you hit the gym before a date on a friday night, there may be other uses for this increased testosterone level…. (link).
Creatine could reduce brain and other organ damage after difficult or premature births. Creatine is abundant in meat, though we make about 50% of it ourselves. Supplementing with additional creatine increases strength and performance in athletes, but also improves cognitive function and muscle strength in the elderly. Though the safety and efficacy of creatine supplementation during pregnancy has not been investigated yet, it has a long safety record in sports. Fetuses appear to rely on their mother for their creatine supply, and animal experiments show that giving extra creatine during late pregnancy prevents brain, kidney and heart damage in the pups if problems arise. Very promising! Finally, vegetarians and vegans tend to have around 30% lower creatine levels, so this is another reason include animal products in the diet, at least during pregnancy (link).
Growing new brain cells makes us forgetful! An area of the brain called the hippocampus is crucial in the formation and retention of memories, and this area tends to shrink as we get older (I wrote previously about how exercise can minimise this effect – here). In a study this week, they suggest that the reason why babies retain few memories is because they are constantly making new neurons in the hippocampus (neurogenesis). As these new neurons plug into the existing circuits, they destabilise previous memories. Adults make fewer new neurons, which is why they retain memories better. While we know that having a bigger hippocampus is better for memory, this study stimulated neurogenesis in adult mice after a memory was made, which increased forgetfulness. We know that actively accessing the memories we have already is important for increasing the strength of memory circuits (maybe by preventing new neurons from destabilising those circuits). So, while bigger is probably better (in the hippocampus at least), it’s definitely a case of “use it or lose it” (link).
A really nice blog on why we appear to be alone in the universe. Are we the rare super-intelligent species that won the evolution lottery? Or are we the runty colony of morons stuck in the cold, dark bit of the galaxy, where none of the more evolved civilisations can be bothered to come and visit? (link)
Articles relevant to the blog article I wrote this week (read it here):
Training:
This weekend I was out of town and away from the gym, so I strapped on my trusty weights vest (20kg), and wandered into the Norwegian wilderness. Wearing the vest throughout, I did the following:
This was followed by steak, potatoes, wild mushrooms, and lots of salad.
Interesting science:
Alcohol after lifting weights increases testosterone. Healthy young men did heavy squats, and were subsequently given a good amount of alcohol (equivalent to around 10 shots of tequila for a 70kg man). Compared to placebo, the alcohol-treated men had higher testosterone levels for the few hours after exercise. Similar results have not been seen in endurance or circuit-training style workouts, because these don’t naturally raise testosterone in the way that lifting weights does. However, we don’t know whether this effect was due to increased testosterone production (a good thing in this setting), or reduced uptake of testosterone into the muscles (a bad thing for strength and recovery). Therefore, the authors warn against using this as an excuse for athletes to drink more. In the absence of exercise, alcohol reduces testosterone levels, and chronic alcohol use is known to reduce recovery and strength. However, if you hit the gym before a date on a friday night, there may be other uses for this increased testosterone level…. (link).
Creatine could reduce brain and other organ damage after difficult or premature births. Creatine is abundant in meat, though we make about 50% of it ourselves. Supplementing with additional creatine increases strength and performance in athletes, but also improves cognitive function and muscle strength in the elderly. Though the safety and efficacy of creatine supplementation during pregnancy has not been investigated yet, it has a long safety record in sports. Fetuses appear to rely on their mother for their creatine supply, and animal experiments show that giving extra creatine during late pregnancy prevents brain, kidney and heart damage in the pups if problems arise. Very promising! Finally, vegetarians and vegans tend to have around 30% lower creatine levels, so this is another reason include animal products in the diet, at least during pregnancy (link).
Growing new brain cells makes us forgetful! An area of the brain called the hippocampus is crucial in the formation and retention of memories, and this area tends to shrink as we get older (I wrote previously about how exercise can minimise this effect – here). In a study this week, they suggest that the reason why babies retain few memories is because they are constantly making new neurons in the hippocampus (neurogenesis). As these new neurons plug into the existing circuits, they destabilise previous memories. Adults make fewer new neurons, which is why they retain memories better. While we know that having a bigger hippocampus is better for memory, this study stimulated neurogenesis in adult mice after a memory was made, which increased forgetfulness. We know that actively accessing the memories we have already is important for increasing the strength of memory circuits (maybe by preventing new neurons from destabilising those circuits). So, while bigger is probably better (in the hippocampus at least), it’s definitely a case of “use it or lose it” (link).
A really nice blog on why we appear to be alone in the universe. Are we the rare super-intelligent species that won the evolution lottery? Or are we the runty colony of morons stuck in the cold, dark bit of the galaxy, where none of the more evolved civilisations can be bothered to come and visit? (link)
Articles relevant to the blog article I wrote this week (read it here):
- Mark Sisson on why going gluten free might be worth trying in a number of disease states, even if concrete evidence is still lacking (link).
- From last month, a British study, which suggests that “5-a-day” isn’t enough. We should probably be eating at least 10 portions a day! (link). Plus, tinned stuff not only doesn’t count, but also appears to be bad…
Training:
This weekend I was out of town and away from the gym, so I strapped on my trusty weights vest (20kg), and wandered into the Norwegian wilderness. Wearing the vest throughout, I did the following:
- Saturday: 3 Rounds: 200m uphill walking lunge. 50 Push-ups. 50m Bear Crawl.
- Sunday: 2.5 mile trail run. 10x50m hill sprints in the forest. 2.5 mile run home.
This was followed by steak, potatoes, wild mushrooms, and lots of salad.