Most fitness regimens involve a combination of exercise and good nutrition, however exactly what those two things encompass will vary on an individual basis. Age also plays a factor, as monitoring things like cardiac efficiency and bone density become more important over time.

Body Type and Fitness

It’s true that genetics plays a part in overall body shape and conformation; however it is still possible to achieve a degree of fitness regardless of genetics. Physical fitness is completely independent of body type. While members of some ethnic groups may be built to carry a different ratio of body fat to lean muscle mass than others, exercise and good nutrition can still allow these people to have efficient cardiovascular systems, good bone density, and live long lives free from debility. It’s entirely possible for a person carrying a higher percentage of body fat to have higher endurance and a faster recovery time than someone with a higher percentage of lean muscle, as fitness encompasses a broad range of characteristics, very few of which have to do with body composition.

Regardless of what genetics and body type dictates, it is possible to achieve a high level of physical fitness with the properly tailored diet and exercise regimen.

The popularity of things like the anti-inflammatory diet shows how much nutritional research has advanced. Now that the mechanisms of the body are understood to work together, nutrition has developed an emphasis on treating the body as whole, as opposed to a series of parts. A low glycemic diet can be effective for helping more than just diabetes, for example, as diets high in sugar have become linked to higher instances of heart disease, stroke, cancer, and even infections. Processing methods like canning or boiling have also been shown to lower the amount of vitamins in foods, so most healthful nutrition encourages people to eat raw, steamed, or other minimally-processed meals.

“Nutraceuticals”

It’s very common to see “super foods” touted for their anti-aging and protective benefits, like acai berries, blackberries, and pumpkin, or even for their effectiveness in treating specific conditions, like cranberries and infections of the lower urinary tract. Sometimes termed “nutraceuticals” (a combination of “nutrition” and “pharmaceutical”), these foods encompass isolated compounds from a specific food (like soy protein), a whole food, or a dietary supplement.

While the effects of medication on treating or preventing disease is generally more dramatic and pronounced, nutraceuticals have the benefit of being easy to add to an existing dietary regimen, and having very few or no side effects, making them a viable option for those who have a family history of or risk factors for disease, and wish to lower their risks of contracting it.

The JIDC’s Mentoring System

Another critical aspect of the Journal of Infection in Developing Countries is its Mentoring System. Designed to ensure that the information contained in the journal is of an acceptably high standard, the mentoring system allows editors working for the JIDC to offer information above and beyond that offered by editors of most other scientific journals. This can include everything from where to obtain high-quality materials (including research-quality strains of certain diseases, or breeds of lab animals) to suggesting potential collaborators that may be interested in helping with certain facets of the research being conducted. This allows for more thorough analyses to be performed, which has the triple effect of both providing more information on the research topic, increasing the likelihood that the resulting papers will be published, and possibly even encouraging more widespread interest in the subject.

With situations like infectious disease in developing nations, widespread interest can be the difference between an effective drug or vaccine, and an epidemic. The Mentoring System raises the standard of infectious disease research across the board.

Therefore, it presents an easy-to-understand format with the look of any other magazine. It is notable for being one of the first consumer magazines to provide this sort of information, as opposed to other widely-available publications at the time. These tended to either intersperse serious medical information with advertisements and editorials on other subjects (like child rearing, fashion trends, celebrities, and other articles commonly found in commercial women’s or entertainment magazines), or be intended for medical professionals and academics to read, and thus very difficult to understand for a layman.

Medicine Magazine’s Format

The magazine looks, at first blush, like almost any other consumer magazine, featuring colorful cover photography and bold headlines in eye-catching colors. However, the content inside provides a serious and rather in-depth look at not only pharmaceutical, epidemiological, and public health information, but covers other health concerns like preventative medicine, long-term management of conditions like allergies, asthma, or COPD, and how to protect one’s family from things like unscrupulous medical practitioners, counterfeit medication, or prescribing errors.

Medicine Magazine also provides some additional content on its website in much the same format as the magazine itself, including breaking medical news, making it a very good resource for individuals or families unable to obtain the hard copy magazine in their area.

Publications by the RPS

The Society puts out several highly-regarded reference books, including the British National Formulary. This reference guide is essentially a compendium of prescribing and pharmacology information, widely used by doctors and other professionals with the ability to prescribe medications, and is particularly useful in that it includes comprehensive information on all medications available through the National Health Service. They also put out the British National Formulary for Children, a similar resource to the British National Formulary, but with an emphasis on pediatric medicine and prescribing information for babies and children. They also publish Martindale: The Complete Drug Reference, which is a similar (but more comprehensive) resource to the British National Formulary. Martindale includes information for drugs used worldwide, making it of particular use to doctors and academics communicating across national borders.

The RPS is also responsible for numerous online publications, including MedicinesComplete, a collection of pharmaceutical information geared towards pharmacists, doctors, and other medical professionals. PJOnline is another such publication, with content geared towards and driven by the pharmacist members of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society.

How Lipitor Functions in the Body

All statins function by impacting the production of cholesterol in the body, and thus how much of it ends up in the bloodstream. Lipitor works on the enzyme HMG Coenzyme A reductase, which catalyzes the reaction that produces cholesterol. Since cholesterol is necessary for certain functions in the body, this triggers the liver to increase its expression of receptors specifically geared towards Low-Density Lipoproteins (termed the “bad cholesterol,” in contrast with High-Density Lipoproteins). So, Lipitor has the dual effect of both limiting the production of cholesterol by the liver, and increasing the organ’s uptake of LDL, while somewhat increasing blood levels of HDL.

Studies have found that, while statins are extremely effective at lowering levels of dangerous LDL in the blood, pairing them with a fiber supplement is as effective as doubling the dose. This is because, as fiber leaves the body through the colon, it absorbs bile acids produced by the liver from cholesterol. This has the added effect of encouraging the liver to uptake even more cholesterol to replenish the body’s levels of these substances. Coupled with Lipitor’s effect on the liver’s production and use of cholesterol, this can dramatically lower overall blood levels of cholesterol, further cutting the risk for individuals at high risk of cardiovascular disease. Lipitor does have some associated side effects, however the majority of these are mild when compared to the potential for developing a heart attack or stroke.

How Prozac Functions in the Body

To understand how Prozac and other SSRIs work, it must be understood what serotonin does. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter synthesized from the amino acid tryptophan, and found in high concentrations in the central nervous system, platelets, and digestive tract. This molecule impacts mood, appetite, and sleep, as well as exerting some impact on learning functions. Low levels of serotonin can cause problems with breathing and cardiac function, as well as less dangerous issues like gastrointestinal problems, depression, and psychological disorders.

In the brain, a synaptic gap is the space across which two receptors communicate by sending signals in the form of neurotransmitters like serotonin. Rather than triggering the body to produce more serotonin in instances where low levels of the neurotransmitter might be present, SSRIs effectively allows serotonin to remain in the synaptic gap for a longer period of time, “tricking” the receptor by allowing the same serotonin to repeatedly stimulate it, as opposed to being taken up. It can take several weeks for Prozac and other SSRIs to have their full effect on the body, and that, coupled with the relatively high instance of side effects, limit the drug’s use to situations where its benefits greatly outweigh any potential risks.

For this reason, it’s also a valuable drug for treating certain autoimmune conditions, as well as to prevent rejection in patients following an organ transplant. However, because of this effect, cortisone has numerous potentially dangerous side-effects, largely having to do with insulin resistance, the cessation of menstruation, and even psychological effects like depression.

How Cortisone Functions in the Body

Cortisone is an interesting molecule, in that it is both the end product of the adrenal system’s breakdown of cholesterol during steroidgenesis, but can also become the primary molecule used in the synthesis of cortisol, another stress hormone. Natural cortisone is secreted with adrenaline during times of stress, and these two together produce the physical sensations an acute stress response (the “fight-or-flight response”). Cortisone is part of a class of chemicals called glucocorticoids, which have numerous effects in the body. They function by binding to glucocorticoid receptors presented in nearly every cell of the body, and function by increasing the production of anti-inflammatory proteins by the nucleus, while suppressing the production of those that induce inflammation.

Unfortunately, cortisone’s effect on metabolism means that this drug can impact bone formation, wound healing, and even fat breakdown, so it is generally only available after a consultation with a physician to determine that cortisone’s benefits outweigh its risks.

How Aspirin Functions in the Body

Aspirin has a clot-preventing effect by inhibiting thromboxane, a lipid that causes platelets to bind together. Because it prevents thromboxane’s production, Aspirin has a longer blood thinning effect than some other NSAIDs, as patients must wait until the affected platelets are taken out of circulation and replaced with fresh ones before undergoing surgery, for example. This makes it very valuable when used as part of a protocol for reducing a patient’s risk of developing blood clots, heart attack, or stroke.

The drugs effect on fevers, pain, and inflammation is directly attributed to its inhibition of cyclooxygenase (also abbreviated as COX). Since COX is needed to produce prostaglandins from arachidonic acid, this inhibits their production, and thus their effect on sensitizing the nerves in the spinal cord to pain. Like Aspirin’s anti-clotting effect, since this is the result of the drug’s inhibition of the production of a molecule, it can take several days for the body to eliminate Aspirin from the system, and replenish its stores of COX.

Aspirin’s history of use, low instance of serious side effects, and effectiveness make it a good choice for over-the-counter treatment of painful or inflammatory conditions.