The 1 Hand Salute
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Cancer and Nutrition
One of the easiest and most effective ways to promote good health and to help protect against cancer is with your diet. The American Cancer society estimates that one third of all American cancer deaths might be diet-related. The conclusion is really pretty simple: kick cancer-loving food to the curb; embrace healthful food.
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Tai Mantis Kung Fu Academy celebrates its 17th anniversary this April with a special
deal: 17% off tuition for new students and 10% off most items in the
Pro Shop for existing students! -See Shifu Newton for details
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The Brain
The brain, a three pound chunk of organic matter, is not only the body’s most marvelous organ, it is the most complicated object known. The brain processes 400 billion bits of information per second, it makes the lungs expand with the inrush of air, and the heart beat 100,000 times per day and pumps 2 gallons of blood per minute, the immune system fight off infection. It secretes enzymes in exact amounts to digest your food, it monitors pain and pleasure, signals when to eat and sleep, house memories and thoughts. Every second 100,000 chemical reactions take place in every 70 to 100 trillion cells that make up the body. Recent calculations estimate that the communication between cells actually travels faster than the speed of light. By the way, this is 186,000 miles per second.
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STRESS
Under ideal conditions the body maintains homeostatic balance. This is where the body has the ideal blood pressure, temperature, the right levels of glucose in the bloodstream, and so on. Then there comes stress which was a part of our evolutionary make-up as a survival mechanism. When faced with a tiger that just jumped out of the bushes the cortex uses the data it has collected to make a decision on an appropriate response to the startling stimulus. If the cortex perceives a real threat the brain automatically sends signals straight to the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus then releases a stress hormone known as CRF. Next, the hypothalamus also signals to the pituitary gland to release hormones (ACTH) along with epinephrine and cortisol into the blood-stream that energize all of the body’s organs preparing us for fight or flight. This all works from the autonomic nervous system that has two parts to keep the body in homeostasis, which are the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system.
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