Diabetes in the drivers seat

It is well known that truck drivers face an uphill slog when it comes to finding the time & opportunity for adequate exercise but it now appears that even if they are achieving their 30 minutes a day of huff and puff, that may still not be enough to ward off the dangers of all those hours spent sitting behind the wheel.

Recent research released by the International Diabetes Institute (IDI) has found that spending the majority of the day sitting down counteracts the positive effect of moderate-to-vigorous exercise.

Lead researcher at the IDI, David Dunstan, said the findings showed that exercise and being sedentary influenced health independently of each other.

"It does have widespread implications for workers who sit for six or seven hours a day," Associate Professor Dunstan said.

"The question is, is that 30 to 60 minutes (of recommended exercise) enough? Our research suggests it's not."

"You can spend two hours a day being very active, and the remaining 22 hours sitting on your rear end," Associate Professor Shaw said. While the two hours of exercise would be beneficial, doing nothing for so long would erode that benefit, he said.

It would appear that the best way to ensure that all the good work of vigorous exercise does not go to waste is to be as active as possible throughout the day.

Walking instead of standing still when talking on the phone, parking as far as possible from the truck stop and being on the constant lookout to fit in extra moves no matter where you are or what you are doing are just some of the ways you can make a big difference and keep Diabetes at bay.

Diabetes itself is a condition where the body cannot maintain normal blood glucose levels.

Insulin is a hormone that helps glucose move from the blood into the cells.  When the body does not produce enough insulin, the blood glucose level rises.

Diabetes affects an estimated 800,000 Australians, and many of these are not aware they have the disease.  If undetected or poorly controlled diabetes can lead to blindness, kidney failure, lower limb amputation, heart attack, stroke and impotence.

The Australian Governments “Health Insite” website advises of the following symptoms for Diabetes:

Symptoms for Type 1 Diabetes may occur suddenly and include:

The symptoms of Type 2 Diabetes have a gradual onset. They can be easily missed or mistaken as part of the normal aging process. They include:

Blurred vision;
Tiredness;
Urinating more frequently;
Feeling thirsty all the time;
Numbness and tingling in the feet or legs; and
Recurrent infections.

If these symptoms occur, you should see a doctor.  

Mobile Phones - killer in the cab?

 

Mobile phones have become an essential part of the truckies tool kit. From organising loads, keeping in touch with the office, calling for breakdown assistance and generally any need you can think of - the mobile phone is an indispensible part of our lives.
 

But sometimes it’s hard not to feel sorry for the humble mobile phone – blamed for everything from road accidents to cancer, they are now having the finger pointed at them for causing headaches, mood changes, confusion and sleeping disorders.

 

A recent report published in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s “Progress in Electromagnetics Research Symposium (PIERS)” has reported that of 71 volunteers participating in the study into the effects of exposure to mobile phone radiation, 28 showed noticible symptoms of radiation exposure after taking part in the study.

 

Researchers stated that “The study indicates that during laboratory exposure to 884 MHz wireless signals, components of sleep, believed to be important for recovery from daily wear and tear, are adversely affected”. They also reported that participants experienced more headaches and took longer to fall asleep after exposure to the radiation.

 

Interestingly the study was funded by the Mobile Manufacturers Forum who have since stated that they view the findings as “inconclusive”; highlighting the real problems with mobile phone related health concerns – how do we separate fact from fiction?

 

Another recent study has found that there is no link between mobile phone usage and a common brain tumor, glioma.  The report published in the British Medical Journal by Professor Patricia McKinney of the University of Leeds stated that “Overall we found no raised risk of glioma associated with regular mobile phone use and no association with time since first use, lifetime years of use, cumulative hours of use, or number or calls”.

 

Sweden's Karolinska Institute may disagree, having published findings that show that 10 or more years of mobile phone use doubled the risk of a tumour occurring on the side of the head where the phone was held.
 
Equally worrying for men are the findings by the University of Szeged that men who carry a mobile in their hip pocket, even in standby mode, could reduce their sperm count by as much as 30 per cent.
 

It would appear that for every million spent on proving that mobile phones are a health hazard, ten million is spent by large corporations proving that they aren’t.

 

It is possible that Professor Lawrie Challis, chairman of the Mobile Telecommunications and Health Research Programme, may have the best advice - in that with cancer having such a long latency period and mobile phones not having been in use long enough, it is just too soon to tell.

 

So what do we do in the meantime? Possibly the only solution is the old adage “everything in moderation” – use mobiles as little as possible, don’t have them near you unless you need them, use a landline wherever you can and don’t let the kids use them at all.

 
On a lighter note, Clarins - the giant French cosmetics company - have released a spray which they claim will protect you from the radiation emitted by your mobile phone.
 
The new product called "Expertise 3P" is said to contain molecules derived from microorganisms living near undersea volcanoes and from plants which survive in extreme conditions.  Apparently these molecules, when sprayed on daily, protect the skin from the bombardment of radiation emitted by your mobile.
 
So now when you need a rest break, you can freshen up in the cab with a quick spritz of  3P, tell your boss you're going to look after your health for an hour or so, and switch off that mobile - afterall he wouldn't want you to be exposed to too much radiation now would he?
 
        

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