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Posts Tagged ‘heart diseases’

Tips to Prevent Heart Disease

May 3rd, 2010 Dan Hicks No comments

Tips to prevent heart disease is all about finding smart, affordable ways of avoiding becoming another statistic. This is no easy task with heart disease accounting for approximately one out of every four deaths annually in the United States. While these tips to prevent heart disease will provide you with some very good ideas you will have to supply the willpower. After all, change is often times something that doesn’t come naturally to most of us, at least at first.
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Nevertheless, I think you will find these tips to prevent heart disease interesting, affordable, and achievable.

  • Bring out the fish oil: Fish oil has been around a long time but it wasn’t until recently that research determined that the oil from cold water fatty fish (salmon, anchovies, herring, sardines, albacore tuna) provides protection against coronary disease. The omega 3 fatty acids found in fish oil help lower triglycerides (fats in the blood), lower blood pressure, reduce the risk of blood clots, improve arterial health, and reduce the amount of arterial plaque (which narrows arteries can lead to a heart attack). According to the American Heart Association a suggested heart health dosage ranges from 700 mg of the omega 3 fatty acids DHA and EPA to 900 mg per day.
  • Become more active: The latest studies reveal that 39.5 percent of those who have a heart attack are considered to be inactive. This certainly makes a lot of sense, because as a person grows older they generally tend to be less active. The Surgeon General recommends adults should exercise five or more days a week staying at it for 30 minutes or more.
  • Watch your weight: With so many people overweight it is easy to see how this one of our tips to prevent heart disease might be the hardest to master. After all we live in a sea of fattening foods at affordable prices. Excess weight increases the amount of work the heart has to do. It also raises blood pressure and blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and lowers artery scrubbing HDL (good) cholesterol levels.
  • Don’t smoke: Saying no to cigarettes is not an easy thing to do but quitting is an intricate part of any effective heart disease prevention plan. One recent study found smokers are 4 times more likely to develop heart disease than non smokers.
  • Change your eating habits: One of best suggestion here is to eat more fruits, vegetables, and soluble fiber foods (oat bran, apples, pears) and less meat. Additionally, substituting fish twice a week for other meats is a heart healthy idea as well.
  • Consider a natural cholesterol reduction supplement: Lowering blood cholesterol is not always an easy thing to accomplish with some finding they need that little extra bit of help to get them to the finish line. Natural cholesterol reduction supplements are a safe and effective compliment to any serious heart disease prevention plan.

In summary, there are no magic bullets in our tips to prevent heart disease. Heart disease prevention is simply about making smart lifestyle choices combined with supplementation.

Common Causes of Obesity

December 13th, 2009 Dan Hicks No comments

When most people think of what causes obesity, we think that people become obese by eating too much of the wrong foods and not getting enough exercise. Believe it or not, there are other causes of obesity that everyone should be aware of. Not only does this awareness afford some level of understanding for obese people, but it also helps people who are not obese to avoid the problem in their own lives.

First, you should be aware that there are actually several health problems that can cause a person to become obese, such as Hypothyroidism – a condition where the thyroid gland isn’t producing enough hormones that are needed to control weight. Some heart diseases can also cause rapid weight gain. Other health conditions that can cause obesity include pituitary conditions, diabetes, and numerous different syndromes.

Of course, overeating still causes obesity as well, but sometimes, the overeating is a symptom of an underlying mental condition, such as an eating disorder. Depression can also cause weight gain, as can many other mental conditions. Usually, when the condition is properly treated, the person who is obese is able to regain control of their weight as well.

Age can cause obesity. As we age, we become heavier – and there is nothing that we can do to stop this. However, the natural weight gain from age typically isn’t dangerous in any way, and the weight gain is usually just five or ten extra pounds. However, in some cases, the weight gain can get out of control, and this is usually the result of a separate health condition.

As we age, our metabolic rate also decreases, and what this means is that we don’t need as much food as we once did – in terms of calories. If we do not adjust our food intake as we age, and as our metabolism slows down, we will become obese.

Finally, some people really are born to be overweight. Genetics plays a huge role in how our weight is controlled, and if a person is born into a family that is largely overweight, they will need to be extra cautious about weight gain – most likely for their entire lives. It is vital that these people learn to eat right and get plenty of exercise.

Again, some people are overweight because they eat too much of the wrong foods and they don’t get enough exercise – but many people are overweight because there is an underlying condition. In most cases, when the condition is properly identified and treated, obesity can easily be combated.

The etiology of hypertension

December 13th, 2009 Dan Hicks 1 comment

There are many people in the world today who are falling prey to high blood pressure. The chronic condition in which blood pressure is elevated is called hypertension. There are two types of hypertension and they are primary and secondary. The causes of primary hypertension have not yet been ascertained and there are a large number of people who suffer from this condition. Secondary hypertension indicates that the high blood pressure is the result of another condition that can be a kidney disease or the tumors of adrenal and pheochromocytoma. Those people who suffer from persistent hypertension are susceptible to strokes, heart attacks, heart failure, arterial aneurysm and are the major contributing factor to chronic renal failure.

According to a recent study that was conducted by the American Heart Association it was observed that around 90 to 95 per cent of hypertension cases have no causes in particular, however, there are factors that have contributed to high blood pressure. As one ages, the blood vessels in the body begin to constrict and this brings about a reduction in the volume of blood flow. This in turn results in an increased amount of pressure that is exerted by the blood so that it can pass through the narrowing blood vessels.

It had been also observed that people who have a darker skin tone are more prone to hypertension compared to people with a lighter skin tone. The researchers also observed that black people also have higher chances of developing other complications that are associated with hypertension like strokes and heart disease. The exact reason of the above fact has not yet been ascertained but medical statistics have shown these results. There are some genetic and hereditary factors that also lead in the etiology of hypertension. There are studies that have proved that it has the tendency to run in the family. Those with a family history of hypertension have the increased risk of developing the condition than those who do not. These heredity factors are responsible for the transmission of the condition from one generation to another.

Another contributing factor to the etiology of hypertension is smoking. This leads to increased blood pressure as the chemicals that are accumulated over the walls of the arteries and the blood vessels. Passive smokers also have the risk of getting hypertension and so it is advised to avoid smoking. There are also some other factors that contribute to the etiology of hypertension like deficiency of vitamin D, low potassium levels, excessive consumption of alcohol and stress.