Weekly Health Quiz: Dehydration, Light Bulbs and CBD

1 The following type of blade has been shown to significantly delay browning of produce such as apples and avocado:

• Serrated blades
• Steel blades
• Tanto blade
• Ceramic blades

  Ceramic knives are chemically inert, and said to slow the browning process. Ceramic blades are best for slicing fruit, vegetables and boneless meat, but should not be used on frozen foods, meat with bones or cheese. Learn more.

2 The most comprehensive global strategy to minimize pollution and related environmental destruction would be:

• Implementation of regenerative agriculture and biodynamic farming

  Most growing environmental problems can be traced back to modern food production, including air, water and soil pollution. Regenerative and biodynamic farming address and resolve all of these environmental problems, and would be the most comprehensive strategy to minimize pollution. Learn more.

• Taxing or fining polluting industries such as the oil and paper industries
• Drastically reducing meat consumption
• Reducing use of synthetic fertilizers in agriculture

3 LED light bulbs harm health primarily by:

• Increasing melatonin production
• Increasing cellular damage and decreasing cellular repair and regeneration

  LEDs emit blue light that generates high amounts of reactive oxygen species and oxidative stress, and are devoid of near-infrared light that would help counteract some of that damage. When using LEDs, you end up with increased cellular damage and decreased repair and regeneration. Learn more.

• Increasing cellular energy production
• Emitting heat in the form of near-infrared light

4 To activate your parasympathetic nervous system and induce relaxation and calm, you’ll want your breath to be:

• Quick and shallow
• Rapid and deep
• Slow and light

  Breathing less is a sign of better health. To activate your parasympathetic nervous system and induce relaxation, you’ll want to breathe slowly and lightly, such that the hairs in your nostrils do not move. Learn more.

• Longer on the in breath than on the out breath

5 The following beverage has been shown to cause dehydration and raise your risk of acute kidney injury when consumed after performing manual labor or exercise in hot weather:

• Tea with milk
• Iced black coffee
• Water
• Soda

  Recent research demonstrates the acute deleterious effects soda can have on your kidney function when used to quench your thirst during exertion on a hot day. Drinking soda causes dehydration and raises markers for kidney disease when consumed after performing manual labor or exercise in 95-degree F. weather. Learn more.

6 The following statement about CBD (Cannabidiol) is true:

• Has many health benefits

  There are many medical benefits to cannabis and CBD (cannabidiol) and they are increasingly recognized by the scientific community. Learn more.

• Cannabidiol produces a marijuana "high" from THC
• Is no safer than opioid pain killers
• Is not available legally in any state

7 When evaluating your blood tests, what is the most important fact to understand about how to interpret your results?

• Be in the middle of your laboratory reference range to be healthy
• Identify an evidence-based set of optimal reference ranges and evaluate based on those ranges

  When evaluating your blood tests, you’ll want to identify an evidence-based set of optimal reference ranges and not simply go by the “normal” laboratory reference ranges. Learn more.

• Be in the upper standard deviation of the reference range
• Be in the lower standard deviation of the reference range