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KCMY Wednesday, January 24, 2007 1B

Health/Fitness

Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare – All Saintsis a totally tobacco-free organization.

Unless otherwise noted, for information orto register, please call Community HealthEducation at (262) 687-3000.

Pregnancy Review

This one-evening class is for those who have already experiencedbirth and would like a review of relaxation techniques and to learnabout any changes in the obstetrics field. Registration is required.Call (262) 687-3000.

Date: Thursday, February 1, 2007

Time: 6:00 - 8:30 pmFee: $10 per coupleLocation: Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare – All Saints

Spring Street CampusHealth Pavilion3821 Spring Street, Racine

Prenatal Massage

Certified Prenatal Massage Instructor and Licensed Massage Therapist Tammy Naegeliwill instruct you in massage techniques that will help you and your partner during yourpregnancy and through labor. Registration is required. Call (262) 687-3000.

Date: Tuesdays, February 6 and 13, 2007

Time: 6:00 - 7:30 pmFee: $40 per couple for two-part classLocation: Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare – All Saints

Spring Street CampusHealth Pavilion3821 Spring Street, Racine

In Partnership with the Felician Sisters

For a complete listing of all our classes and programs, visit us online at www.wfhealthcare.org/racine.

Hello Baby!For childrenage3 to8expectinganewsibling.

Saturday,February3,2007

10:00-11:45am • Fee: $10.00

WheatonFranciscanHealthcare -All Saints20016794

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2007 THE JOURNAL TIMES SECTION Bpage editor: Heather Gascoigne

HEALTH AND FITNESS FILE

Coming ThursdayA look at Chicago’s yearlong Silk Road cultural event

Out & About

talk aboutsomething to

drink yourself thin?can you

he shoppers looked skeptical.“This is the fi rst drink that can

actually help you lose weight,” sales representative Anthony Monforte said confi dently, handing out tiny samples of a new soft drink, Celsius, at a Vitamin Shoppe in Aliso Viejo, Calif.

Leslie Bedford and Marsha McDonogh, offi ce workers who had

stopped by on their lunch break, took cautious sips. “Hmmm. It does taste like RC Cola,” McDonogh said, agreeing with Monforte’s description. Sold on the taste — and especially the promise — she plunked down $6.99 for a four-pack.

“If it really works, that’s great,” Bedford said. “Everyone in our offi ce wants to lose weight one way or another.”

Beverage makers are counting on it. Stung by falling sales and criticism that sugar-sweetened soft drinks raise the risk of obesity, they’re reaching into scientists’ laboratories to come up with healthier products — vitamin waters, sports

drinks, fortifi ed juices and now so-called negative-calorie drinks. The drinks, most notably Celsius and Coca-Cola’s and Nestle’s Enviga, promise to boost metabolism and burn calories.

The key ingredients are green tea and caffeine. Celsius’ manufacturer says its particular combination will increase metabolism enough to burn up to 77 calories per 12-ounce bottle; Coke states that three 12-ounce cans of Enviga will burn 60 to 100 calories. Snapple has also introduced green tea beverages, with labels that claim they boost metabolism.

“Consumers are looking for some functional benefi t,” says John Sicher, editor and publisher of Beverage Digest, an industry trade publication. “They are saying they want their calories to do something for them.”

The effects of the green tea drinks go beyond those of caffeine-laden zero-calorie sodas, the manufacturers of Celsius and Enviga say. An antioxidant found in green tea — epigallo catechin gallate, or EGCG — signifi cantly increases metabolism, they say. This, in turn, boosts the body’s ability to burn fat.

Raising metabolism is more complicated than simply ingesting a chemical that speeds up the heart rate, which often makes users jittery. Although scientists still aren’t sure just how EGCG works, some suggest it triggers greater production of a neurotransmitter called norepinephrine, elevating metabolism. Caffeine also raises the metabolic rate, and early research suggests combining EGCG with caffeine is the key to a measurable increase.

The concept is intriguing — but far from proven, pharmacology experts point out.

“The data are still emerging,” says Roger Clemens, a spokesman for the Institute of Food Technologists and an adjunct professor of pharmacy at the University of Southern California. “They are not convincing.”

Jeffrey Blumberg, a senior scientist in pharmacology at Tufts University is similarly skeptical. “In really carefully controlled studies, you can actually fi nd an increase in metabolic rate,” he says. “But if the effects are modest, it might be hard

Makers say these new soft drinks

can help you lose weight

Los Angeles Times story by SHARI ROAN u Photo by RICARDO DeARATANHA

A new wave of diet drinks, above, such as Enviga and Celsius, claim metabolism-boosting features.

YOUR YOGA LIFESTYLE STUDIOFREE YOGA WORKSHOPS: Celebrate

Yoga Day USA on Saturday, Jan. 27, with the following workshops: “Introduction to Yoga,” 10 a.m.; “Coping with Cancer through Yoga,” noon; and “Vinyasa Power Flow-dynamic Flow,” 2 p.m. Classes will be held at the Your Yoga Lifestyle Studio, 3214 Washington Ave. These classes are for anyone who is interested in yoga, for those who suffer from cancer or have a loved one they are stressed about and those who wish to experiment with a deeper yoga practice and sweat it out. Children ages 13 and older may attend with a signed parental waiver. To register, call Linda Messerschmidt at (262) 880-4044 or send an e-mail to: yyl@hughes.net. For more information, visit the Web sites, http://www.youryogalifestyle.byregion.net or http://www.yogadayusa.org

AMERICAN RED CROSSBLOOD DRIVE: January is National Blood

Donor Month, and a blood drive will be held from 2:30-7:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 30, at Racine Assembly of God Church Fellowship Hall, 1325 Airline Road, Mount Pleasant. To schedule an appointment or for more information, call the church offi ce, (262) 886-5644.

AURORA WELLNESS CENTERTHE HEART OF A WOMAN: Members of

the cardiology team at Aurora Burlington Clinic will present this informative discussion on heart disease and stroke, the greatest health threats to women. Free Cholesterol and blood pressure screenings will also be offered. 6-8 p.m. Feb. 7, Aurora Wellness Center, 300 McCanna Parkway, Burlington. Free. Reservations are required, call (800) 499-5736 or go to the Web site, http://www.AuroraHealthCare.org

City of Racine Health DepartmentFLU CLINICS: The City of Racine offers

fl u shots during their weekly immunization clinics in the City Hall Room 4, 730 Washington Ave., on the days listed. The fee is $25 for ages 19 and older and $6 for children ages 6 months through age 18. Call (262) 636-9358 for current information regarding availability.

n Tuesdays — 4-6 p.m.n Wednesdays — 1:15-4 p.m.

Fitness File is published every Wednesday and includes notices of nonprofi t fi tness and health-related programs. The deadline to submit an announcement is seven days before the desired publication date. Mail information to Fitness File, c/o Diane Collins, 212 Fourth St., Racine, WI 53403; fax to (262) 631-1780; or send e-mail to: dcollins@journaltimes.com

Clocks on the computerNewsday

World Clock ScreenSaverFreehttp://www.xemico.com/fssb/worldclock/index.

htmlDownload a world clock screen saver that will

display the time anywhere in the world — or several different times at once.AtomTime ProFreehttp://www.Atomtime.comBy downloading this free, award-winning

application, users can connect to the Atomic Clock in Boulder, Colo., and synchronize their computer’s clock to the offi cial U.S. time.

Home Tip: Gooey oven cleanupBY JAMES AND MORRIS CAREYFor Associated Press

Has holiday cooking rendered your your kitchen oven “gooey”? Here’s how to clean it without a lot of effort.

To give your oven a good cleaning, pre-heat it to 200 F before going to bed. Then, put a bowl of ammonia on the center rack, close the door and leave the kitchen exhaust fan on low. Next morning you’ll fi nd the ammonia has softened crusty spills and they’ll wipe up easily with a damp rag.

To clean gooey oven racks and barbecue grills, put them in a plastic trash bag with ammonia, seal with a twist tie and let them soak overnight. Next morning wash them in the tub or hose them off.

If you hate ammonia and live in warm weather, just leave them on the lawn overnight. Evening dew and enzymes in the grass will do the job.

More on DRINK, Page 4B