Tag Archives: Flora

More Silver Sprinters than ever before in London Marathon

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London: Thousands of ‘silver sprinters’ plan to join their younger counterparts in this year’s London Marathon.

A greater interest in fitness and wellbeing is thought to be driving the trend, with nearly 1 in 10 participants falling into the over 50 age bracket in this year’s marathon (1).

The new figures contradict the traditional image of the over 50’s leading a sedentary life as nearly 7,000 50-70 year olds gear up to run in this year’s competitive 26 mile race, on the 13th April.

However, while experts applaud an active ageing population, they’re also offering a word of warning, given that a recent survey from LitoZin Joint Health©, revealed 74% of runners over the age of 45 suffer from regular joint pain. Joint specialist Dr. Kaj Winther urges participants not to overdo final training sessions and to help keep their joints lubricated by dosing up on a natural supplement such as Litozin Joint Health, which can help reduce joint inflammation and keep niggling pains at bay.

‘Many people with arthritic problems fear that exercise will make their conditions worse, but it is in fact lack of exercise that can lead to joint deterioration and pain’, explains Dr Winther. ‘Rather than further damaging your arthritic joints, a regular program of moderate activity and stretching and strengthening exercises can reduce pain, improve mobility and increase the stability of arthritic joints by strengthening supporting muscles’.

To protect your joints when preparing for a marathon, remember the following:

Invest in properly fitted, well cushioned running shoes.

Don’t overdo training in the final days before the race to minimise muscular aches and pains.

Do not train if you have flu, a fever or stomach bug and only start gentle training, build up again gradually once you have fully recovered.

Make sure you include plenty of carbs in your training diet in the run up to the race
Drink plenty of fluids before and during the marathon.

Make sure you stretch and warm up your muscles before you begin.

Take a natural rosehip supplement to help keep joints mobile and pain free. LitoZin Joint Health® contains the anti-inflammatory active ingredient GOPO®, which is derived from Rosa canina, a type of rose-hip.

“The anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory benefits of GOPO have been proven to offer long-term relief from joint pain and an increase in joint mobility. GOPO has an active benefit on all types of joint pain making it particularly suitable for sports related joint pain,” explains Dr Winther.

Studies also show that due to its anti-inflammatory properties, GOPO is more effective at reducing pain and improving mobility than other supplements for joint pain, such as glucosamine.

More about the survey
©The LitoZin Joint Health Sports Survey was undertaken with 500 men and women across the UK in August 2007 and looked at the impact on joint health of various sporting activities amongst groups of men and women in the under 45 and over 45 age groups, who all undertook 10 hours or more of light exercise a month. Any statistics taken from this release must be referenced to the LitoZin Joint Health Sports Survey.

LitoZinâ Joint Health is available in Boots, Superdrug, Holland & Barrett, independent pharmacies and health food stores, and is priced at £19.99 for 120 capsules. For more information on LitoZinâ Joint Health, please see www.litozin.co.uk

About Lanes

G R Lane is one of the major natural medicine companies in the UK and manufactures well-known products such as Olbas, Kalms, Quiet Life and Aquaban.

Established in the 1930’s by Gilbert Lane – an early supporter of the idea that we can improve our health through diet and the use of carefully selected plants and nutrients – Lanes remains a family owned business and is chaired by Gilbert’s grand-daughter, Janet Lane.

(1) www.london-marathon.co.uk

UK fat consumption continues to grow

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London: Research released by low-fat spread Flora has revealed that the UK’s saturated fat consumption is a third (33.5%) higher than the average Guideline Daily Amount (GDA) for a typical UK adult*

Fat forecast: Based on the current rates of decline, it will take until the year 2048, another 41 years, for average saturated fat intake to fall to the recommended level in the UK. In the meantime, these fats can raise cholesterol levels, which can increase the risk of developing heart disease – the UK’s biggest killer.

Better in the eighties: The rate at which levels of saturated fat intake are falling has slowed to almost a standstill in the 2000s (-0.7%): our diets are now only improving at just over half the rate at which they did in the 1990s (-1.3%), and only a quarter of the rate of improvement seen in the 1980s (-2.7%).

Fooling ourselves: Although 79 per cent of the population claim to be concerned about staying fit and healthy, the proportion of those concerned about saturated fat has in fact fallen between 2003 and 2006 (from 53 to 46 per cent).

Saturated society: The total annual saturated fat consumption of UK adults stands at a colossal 489,000 tonnes, which is enough fat to fill the Big Ben clock tower 157 times, or 1,220 Boeing 747s. The average UK adult eats 9.86 kilograms of saturated fat a year – that’s the same amount as in 146 packs of butter!

Fat facts: When asked to identify the best and worst fats, 72 per cent of UK adults were either wildly wrong or simply did not know that it is important to eat good polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, while cutting down on bad saturated and trans fat to help maintain a healthy heart.

Good vs. bad: The South West eats more saturated fat than any other region, with an average daily consumption of 28.3g, 3g more than people living in London who consume the least. The report also found that cheese and chocolate top Britain’s ‘guilty foods’ league with (36%) and (34%) respectively of UK adults saying they definitely eat too much of both. Surprisingly, the fourth biggest contributor to sat fat in the UK diet is butter and this wasn’t even listed.

Ethical living: A quarter of UK adults (25%) have recently been more concerned with making sure they buy organic and fair trade food than checking the nutritional value of food. Additionally, 49% of adults stated that eating more locally grown and fair trade food was a motivation for recent dietary change.

Sugar rush: People are three times more likely to be aware of the levels of sugar in their diet than the levels of saturated fat.

Dr Chris Steele says: “This report goes some way to highlighting the high levels of saturated fat in the diets of the UK population, which needs a prompt response if any reversal of the situation is to be expected. We need to make the necessary dietary changes to bring down the incidences of problems including high cholesterol and heart disease.”

The increasing frequency and complexity of nutritional messages, along with ethical and environmental concerns, appears to have created a ‘fatigue’ with health messages during the 2000s. Although 68 per cent of UK adults believe they should be eating less fatty foods, disappointingly few appear to be making the necessary changes to their diet.

It is important to replace ‘bad’ saturated fat (found in fatty meats, butter, cheese and whole milk) and trans fats (found in processed foods, such as cakes, pastries and also present in butter) with ‘good’ fats, which include monounsaturates and polyunsaturates, (such as Omega 3 and 6) found in vegetable seed oils and spreads, nuts and oily fish. A good way to do this is to make a small change like switching from butter to a healthier alternative like Flora spreads, which can help lower cholesterol and maintain a healthy heart.

The research programme was designed and carried out by the Future Foundation, a think-tank specialising in the analysis of consumer trends. Original survey research was carried out with a nationally representative online sample of 1012 UK adults aged 16+ by Research Now between the 14th and 18th of June 2007. Other sources of data drawn on in the report included The National Diet and Nutrition Survey, the Expenditure and Food survey, Food Standards Agency research, and Future Foundation proprietary ‘Changing Lives’ research data

*GDA reference for an average adult is 20g (based on the female GDA): Source IGD

Britons eating more bad fats than ever

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London: Research released by Flora today reveals that the UK’s saturated fat consumption is a third (33.5%) higher than the average Guideline Daily Amount (GDA) for a typical UK adult*

· Fat forecast: Based on the current rates of decline, it will take until the year 2048, another 41 years, for average saturated fat intake to fall to the recommended level in the UK. In the meantime, these fats can raise cholesterol levels, which can increase the risk of developing heart disease – the UK’s biggest killer.

· Better in the eighties: The rate at which levels of saturated fat intake are falling has slowed to almost a standstill in the 2000s (-0.7%): our diets are now only improving at just over half the rate at which they did in the 1990s (-1.3%), and only a quarter of the rate of improvement seen in the 1980s (-2.7%).

· Fooling ourselves: Although 79 per cent of the population claim to be concerned about staying fit and healthy, the proportion of those concerned about saturated fat has in fact fallen between 2003 and 2006 (from 53 to 46 per cent).

· Saturated society: The total annual saturated fat consumption of UK adults stands at a colossal 489,000 tonnes, which is enough fat to fill the Big Ben clock tower 157 times, or 1,220 Boeing 747s. The average UK adult eats 9.86 kilograms of saturated fat a year – that’s the same amount as in 146 packs of butter!

· Fat facts: When asked to identify the best and worst fats, 72 per cent of UK adults were either wildly wrong or simply did not know that it is important to eat good polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, while cutting down on bad saturated and trans fat to help maintain a healthy heart.

· Good vs. bad: The South West eats more saturated fat than any other region, with an average daily consumption of 28.3g, 3g more than people living in London who consume the least. The report also found that cheese and chocolate top Britain’s ‘guilty foods’ league with (36%) and (34%) respectively of UK adults saying they definitely eat too much of both. Surprisingly, the fourth biggest contributor to sat fat in the UK diet is butter and this wasn’t even listed.

· Ethical living: A quarter of UK adults (25%) have recently been more concerned with making sure they buy organic and fair trade food than checking the nutritional value of food. Additionally, 49% of adults stated that eating more locally grown and fair trade food was a motivation for recent dietary change.

· Sugar rush: People are three times more likely to be aware of the levels of sugar in their diet than the levels of saturated fat.

Dr Chris Steele says: “This report goes some way to highlighting the high levels of saturated fat in the diets of the UK population, which needs a prompt response if any reversal of the situation is to be expected. We need to make the necessary dietary changes to bring down the incidences of problems including high cholesterol and heart disease.”
The increasing frequency and complexity of nutritional messages, along with ethical and environmental concerns, appears to have created a ‘fatigue’ with health messages during the 2000s. Although 68 per cent of UK adults believe they should be eating less fatty foods, disappointingly few appear to be making the necessary changes to their diet.

It is important to replace ‘bad’ saturated fat (found in fatty meats, butter, cheese and whole milk) and trans fats (found in processed foods, such as cakes, pastries and also present in butter) with ‘good’ fats, which include monounsaturates and polyunsaturates, (such as Omega 3 and 6) found in vegetable seed oils and spreads, nuts and oily fish. A good way to do this is to make a small change like switching from butter to a healthier alternative like Flora spreads, which can help lower cholesterol and maintain a healthy heart.

Know your good and bad fats – listen to Flora nutritonist Jacqui Morell Elixir Podcasts