Dust Off That Treadmill - Walk For a Healthy Heart

So We all know walking is really, really a good exercise, right? It's good for our hearts, it's good for our other muscles (of which the heart is the most important one), and it just plain helps with overall fitness.

The problem is, we have lots of excuses when it comes to not taking our walk today. It's raining, it's snowing, whatever. Well, now, you have no more excuses. Why?

Break out that dusty old treadmill that's been sitting in the basement for the last 10 years. You probably have one, and if you don't, you can get one very inexpensively on eBay or even buy one new pretty cheaply, too. Lace up your walking shoes, plant that thing in front of the television or pop on your iPod, and get walking.

Here's the thing. Walking is the ONLY exercise you need to do at least to get started with your fitness program. It's a great way to get started if you're out of shape. As little as 20 minutes a day (10 to get started if you are really out of shape) is enough to burn significant calories, build muscle, and get your heart pumping, all of which you need for good health. And get this. The more you exercise and the more muscle you build, the more calories you burn. That means once you've gotten in some good walking time and have built up some muscle, you burn calories faster even when you're resting.


The benefits of walking on a treadmill

Here's what walking on a treadmill can do for you. It can give you better endurance, it can stave off heart failure (especially if you're at risk), it can improve your circulation, it can strengthen your heart and cardiovascular system overall, and it can lower your blood pressure.


Treadmills work when you're in good shape, too

The treadmill is a great piece of machinery overall, because it works for you whether you have been sedentary for a long time or whether you're in pretty good shape and want to step up your workout one more notch. Once you've gotten better shape, you can ramp things up by jogging instead of walking on your treadmill. Or, you can buy some inexpensive ankle and arm weights and increase resistance that way.

Some of the newer treadmill models have the ability for you to increase the incline (either mechanically or manually) on the treadmill itself so that you're walking uphill instead of on a level surface. This, increases resistance - therefore your workout. However, you shouldn't do any of these more advanced exercises until you know you are in reasonably good shape. If you've been sedentary, again, a good decent walking pace is about 3 miles an hour, and is going to make you break a sweat and give you the 20 minute workout you need. Remember to stay on it for that long without breaking pace.

Of course, a final piece of advice is that you need to check with your doctor before you start any exercise program, especially if you've been sedentary for a long time. That said, though, once you've been cleared, break out that treadmill and start walking. You won't be sorry, and you'll see results in just a couple of weeks.

Don't think that Fitness Treadmills are only about walking. You can get a healthy heart by exercising Treadmill Fitness. This could be the best thing you ever did for your heart!


P.S., supplement your exercise with Vitamin C.


source

Walking The Best Exercise

If a daily fitness walk could be put in a pill, it would be one of the most popular prescriptions in the world. It has so many health benefits. Walking can reduce the risk of many diseases — from heart attack and stroke to hip fracture and glaucoma. These may sound like claims on a bottle of snake oil, but they're backed by major research. Walking requires no prescription, the risk of side effects is very low, and the benefits are numerous:

Managing your weight. Combined with healthy eating, physical activity is key to any plan for long-lasting weight control. Keeping your weight within healthy limits can lower your risks of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, cancer, sleep apnea, and osteoarthritis.

Controlling your blood pressure. Physical activity strengthens the heart so it can pump more blood with less effort and with less pressure on the arteries. Staying fit is just as effective as some medications in keeping down blood pressure levels.

Decreasing your risk of heart attack. Exercise such as brisk walking for three hours a week — or just half an hour a day — is associated with a 30% to 40% lower risk of heart disease in women. (Based on the 20-year Nurses' Health Study of 72,000 female nurses.)

Boosting "good" cholesterol – the level of high-density lipoproteins (HDL). Physical activity helps reduce low-density lipoproteins (LDL or "bad" cholesterol) in the blood, which can cause plaque buildup along the artery walls — a major cause of heart attacks.

Lowering your risk of stroke. Regular, moderate exercise equivalent to brisk walking for an hour a day, five days a week, can cut the risk of stroke in half, according to a Harvard study of more than 11,000 men.

Reducing your risk of breast cancer and type 2 diabetes. The Nurses' Health Study also links regular activity to risk reductions for both these diseases. In another study, people at high risk of diabetes cut their risk in half by combining consistent exercise like walking with lower fat intake and a 5% to 7% weight loss.

Avoiding your need for gallstone surgery. Regular walking or other physical activity lowers the risk of needing gallstone surgery by 20% to 31%, found a Harvard study of more than 60,000 women ages 40 to 65.

Protecting against hip fracture. Consistent activity diminishes the risk of hip fracture, concludes a study of more than 30,000 men and women ages 20 to 93.

The list goes on and on. Many other studies indicate a daily brisk walk also can help:

• Prevent depression, colon cancer, constipation, osteoporosis, and impotence
• Lengthen lifespan
• Lower stress levels
• Relieve arthritis and back pain
• Strengthen muscles, bones, and joints
• Improve sleep
• Elevate overall mood and sense of well-being.

Keep it Steady

A steady routine is the most important factor in getting the most out of your exercise program. Walking for at least 30 minutes a day, 5 or more days a week is recommended.

Use these tips to keep you on track:

• During your walks, you should be able to maintain a conversation. If you're breathing too lightly, increase your pace. If you can't catch your breath, slow it down.
• Walk around the local area after lunch or dedicate 15 minutes to walking up and down stairs. Climbing is an excellent way to strengthen your heart.
• At night, trade a half hour of TV for a brisk stroll around the block. Take a friend with you for company or get the whole family involved.

The Best Medicine

Any amount of walking is good, but for the best health results, set a brisk pace and walk for 30 minutes at least 5 times a week. Be sure to check with your doctor on the level of exercise that's best for you.



source

AEROBICS - Good For Heart Health

Regardless of age, weight or athletic ability, aerobic exercise is good for you. If you do love your heart and for the sake of your heart health, You should overcome tardiness to get yourself moving and any type of exercise is better than none, but aerobic fitness has the most benefits. Aerobic activity is an exercise that causes your body to use oxygen in order to burn fat for energy. Typically, this requires activity that is sustained over a period of time and that uses the large muscles of your arms and legs. This type of exercise makes your heart work harder. Over time, it strengthens and conditions your heart.


The benefits of Aerobics

Oxygen can only be supplied to the muscles through the red blood cells. When muscles are being used in exercise, the heart must pump more blood through the body to supply the extra need for oxygen. This, in turn, causes the lungs to be expanded to fill the need of oxygen required by the red blood cells being quickly moved through the body.

Due to the fact that the muscles are requiring more oxygen to create energy, the body naturally increases the amount of oxygen inhaled. The heart rate increases as it pumps the blood through the system faster to supply the necessary oxygen to each muscle. Thus the circulation of the blood is greatly increased.

This increase in circulation has a twofold benefit to the body. First, an abundant supply of oxygen is taken not only to the muscles, but also to every part of the system. And second, the blood is circulated through the eliminating organs at a much greater amount, thus resulting in an increase in the elimination of the body's wastes. Both of these are essential for good health and healing.


What Should I Know About Aerobic Exercise?


In order to maximize your cardiovascular fitness level, experts recommend that your aerobic exercise is strenuous enough to raise your heart rate to a certain level. This level is called your target heart rate. In addition, your aerobic exercise should keep your heart rate elevated for at least 20 minutes.

It may be helpful for you to know about these guidelines. But, you don't have to exercise at this level of intensity to lower your risk for heart and blood vessel disease. Even frequent moderate aerobic activity has been shown to improve health.


A physically fit person has greater ability to tolerate the physical challenges of daily life, whereas an unfit person would terminate activity because of fatigue.


Aerobic activity comes in many forms and you can benefit from the time you spend in doing them. The benefits of aerobic exercise are good for your heart and will help to make you live longer, stay healthier and feel great.



P.S., supplement your exercise with Vitamin C rich foods and fruits.

A Woman’s Heart, Anxiety vs. Heart Attack

There is no doubt that women today are under more stress than ever. One of the “gifts” left to us by the women’s liberation movement is that we not only get to fry-the-bacon-up-in-a-pan at night, but we are also frequently out there in the workforce bringing-home-the-bacon as well.

Add to that the demands of children, homework, soccer practice, PTA, church and other civic activities, our cup truly RUNS over! Super Girl has nothing on us! It’s no wonder that heart disease is the number one killer of women. Sisters, we have STRESS in our lives!

Just how bad our stress level really is was recently brought home in a very real way to me. One of my best girlfriends just had the “pleasure” of a one-night stay at the local heart “hotel” (hospital). This definitely wasn’t her destination when she left for work that morning. She’s a single-parent of two small preschool children. She’s a widow and has no backup at home. (Are we getting the stress level picture yet?) In addition, she works for a company that’s been laying off workers for months and outsourcing jobs overseas. She’s been working 70-80 hour work weeks for months in an effort to ensure her job stays in the good old USA. (Bingo! Stress level gets a 120%!)

As she recalls it, her chest began pounding and hurting unbearably. She was short of breath and couldn’t breathe - sick to her stomach, sweating, dizzy and lightheaded. The pain radiated down her left arm. She tried to ignore it for a while but as the day progressed, the symptoms only increased in intensity. Finally, she phoned the nurse on call with her insurance company who promptly sent her straight to the hospital for evaluation.

Fortunately, this hospital visit had a happy ending. She was diagnosed with a panic or anxiety attack. Some of the symptoms of a panic attack are similar to those of a heart attack. Panic attack symptoms include: chest pain, sweating, shortness of breath, rapid heartbeat, hyperventilation (very rapid breathing), and dizziness/faintness. In addition, a panic attack may also be accompanied by a sense of fear or impending disaster. Other panic attack symptoms may also include trembling, headache, chills, hot flashes, stomach cramps, or tightness in the throat and trouble swallowing.

Panic attack symptoms generally last about a half an hour. However, there are exceptions and they can last for hours. In addition, there are instances, such as my girlfriend's experienced, where the symptoms can last up to a day.

Symptoms of a heart attack also include chest pain (described as a “fullness or a crushing” type of pain which may radiate to your left arm, back, neck, jaw and shoulders), sweating, shortness of breath, nausea and an “impending sense of doom.” (Sound familiar?) In addition, symptoms in women can be somewhat different than those experienced by men. Women may also experience heartburn, severe/unexplained fatigue, sleep disturbances, dizziness and clammy skin. The Women’s Heart Foundation also reports that approximately 1/3 of all women do not experience any chest pain at all during a heart attack. In addition, 71% of women report that they experienced flu-like in the weeks leading up to the heart attack.

Since some of the symptoms are similar, you may not be able to easily tell whether you are experiencing a panic attack or a heart attack. While a panic attack is not life threatening, a heart attack certainly can be. When in doubt, seek treatment. It is always better to err on the side of safety than to leave a potential heart attack untreated until it’s too late.

Until next time, here’s wishing you a healthy heart.



P.S. take care of your heart. Eat vitamin C rich fruits and foods.


source

Predicting A Heart Attack

In the past, doctors believed that most heart attacks occurred when the arteries become blocked by plaque. However, scientists have learned that a significant number of heart attacks are caused when the cap, or crust on top of the plaque, is weak. This type of plaque is known as vulnerable, or soft, plaque. If the cap ruptures or cracks, the cholesterol, fats and other chemicals inside the plaque deposit are released into the bloodstream. The body senses an “injury” and sends platelets to seal the site. The platelets adhere to the sticky plaque cells, causing clumps of cells and the formation of a clot. That clot can become large enough to block the artery, leading to a heart attack.

The American Heart Association estimates 16.8 million Americans have coronary artery disease. It’s the leading cause of disease-related death in the U.S. This year, 1.25 million men and women in this country will have a heart attack.

Vulnerable plaque often lies hidden on the walls of the artery. Often, the deposits don’t bulge out, so they may not be detected with standard imaging or diagnostic tests. And since they are so small, patients often don’t have any symptoms until the plaque ruptures, causing a sudden, unexpected heart attack.

Vulnerable plaque appears to be associated with inflammation. Researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston have been studying the combined use of PET/CT scans to screen patients for these areas of “hot” plaque. Prior to a scan, the patient is given an injection of glucose with a radioactive tracer (called 18F-FDG). The glucose is taken up by active cells (like areas of inflammation), carrying the tracer with it. The CT part of the imaging shows the anatomy of the heart. The PET portion detects the location and concentration of the radioactive tracer. But the scientists found the active heart muscle cells took in so much of the radioactive glucose plaque “hot spots” could not be seen.

To overcome the imaging obstacle, the researchers give patients a high-fat drink three hours before the scan. The radioactive glucose injection is given two hours later (one hour before the scan). Nuclear Medicine Specialist, Gerald Kolodny, M.D., explains the heart muscle takes up the fat for its energy needs rather than the glucose. This enables the inflammatory cells in vulnerable plaque to take up more of the radioactive glucose, creating a better picture of those “hot spots.”

In a study published in the April 2009 issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine, the researchers report the technique can effectively detect vulnerable plaque in coronary arteries. Further research needs to be done to confirm the efficacy of the technique and determine who may benefit most from the testing. Kolodny says if 18F-FDG PET/CT proves to correctly identify areas of vulnerable plaque, the technique may be useful for screening high-risk patients and monitoring the effects of therapy.

P.S. reduce your risk of a heart attack by loading yourself with Vitamin C rich fruits.

source

Are You Having A HEART ATTACK?

In the movies, heart attacks are easy to recognize. The victim, sweaty and pale, suddenly clutches his chest and complains of terrible pain just before he drops to the floor. "That’s the typical textbook definition of what it should look like," says noted cardiologist Dr. Benjamin Alimurung, head of the Cardiac Catheterization Unit and medical director of Makati Medical Center. "But if you’re older, female or diabetic, you’re less likely to experience the classic symptoms of a heart attack."

Heart disease is one of the leading causes of death in the Philippines. Every year, thousands of people have heart attacks and about a third of these are fatal. Almost half of heart attack deaths occur within one hour after symptoms appear and often before the person even gets to a hospital. Thus, it is very important that you know its symptoms and act quickly when these appear — it may save your life. It is equally important that one realizes that some symptoms are atypical, some you might not even think are related to the heart.

Warning Signs

A heart attack occurs when blood flow to a part of the heart suddenly becomes obstructed, usually by blood clots that form at the site of a damaged artery (see illustration). The heart cells that are deprived of fresh blood and oxygen die over a period of a few hours. A heart attack may develop gradually or begin with only mild chest discomfort that may not seem alarming at first. In some patients, symptoms may come and go.

The typical signs that may indicate a heart attack include chest pain, breathlessness, nausea, and vomiting. One telltale serious sign, Dr. Alimurung warns, is the combination of any heart attack symptom with shortness of breath. "Difficulty of breathing is bad, particularly when breathlessness is not because of normal physical exertion. If one who usually can walk up five flights of stairs without breathlessness can suddenly only climb one or two, that’s a problem."

Missed Signals

Sometimes, symptoms may not fit the typical pattern. The pain may not be in the chest, but rather along the left arm, in the stomach area, or even the jaw. The reason for the unusual pain locations is because the heart lacks the type of sensory nerves found in the fingers and in other pain-sensitive parts of the body. "The heart tries to send pain messages, but it does not have the right nerves to send them correctly so it sends a jumbled message over the wrong cable," Dr. Alimurung explains.

Pain is not the only sign of a heart attack that one easily mistakes. Other symptoms can easily be mistaken for other much more benign problems such as heartburns. Although there may be other explanations for your symptoms, it is best to get to a hospital quickly and let a doctor examine you to make sure you are not having a heart attack.

Women, the elderly, and people with diabetes are most likely to have the kinds of unusual symptoms that are easily missed. Women (and their doctors) sometimes overlook symptoms because they mistakenly assume that heart attacks more commonly afflict men; in fact 64 percent of all women who die suddenly of coronary heart disease have no previously recognized symptoms. Seniors often mistake the signs of a heart attack for symptoms of other diseases or even of the aging process itself, even though they have a higher rate of heart disease than any other age group. Diabetics may have no symptoms at all, even though they’re at higher risk for heart attacks. High blood pressure and high cholesterol, conditions that increase the risk for diabetes and heart disease, are often symptom-free, so many people don’t realize they have these important risk factors.

What To Do

It often is not possible to self-diagnose a heart attack. The old adage is true: It’s better to be safe than sorry. When you develop a heart attack, every minute counts. Emergency department staff will work quickly to determine if a full-blown heart attack is in progress or whether you need hospital confinement for further close observation and additional tests before the diagnosis of a heart attack is confirmed or ruled out.

Once you’ve called for emergency help, it is generally recommended that you immediately chew and swallow an aspirin — unless you’re allergic to this medicine or have a stomach ulcer that bled recently — to help thin your blood. When you arrive at the hospital, you can expect a flurry of activity. It may seem as though your blood pressure levels, heart rate, and temperature are being checked all at once, even as a brief medical history is taken. Blood tests may be done, and you may be hooked up to a heart monitor. An electrocardiogram (ECG) test helps to determine whether a heart attack is occurring. Other accurate indicators of a heart attack are revealed from the initial blood tests. An elevation in certain markers may appear in the blood as a result of damaged heart muscle. However, these blood test markers may not become abnormal until a few hours after a heart attack.

Heart Attack!

If markers indicate you may be having a heart attack and you have access to a medical center, you may be sent immediately to the cardiac catheterization laboratory — commonly called a cath lab. There, a doctor quickly performs coronary catheterization or angiogram. If the angiogram detects a blockage, the same catheter may be used to open the blocked vessel with a tiny balloon (coronary angioplasty) and most often, will place within the artery a tiny expandable steel mesh-like slotted tube device called a stent. The procedure immediately restores blood flow to the heart muscle, effectively limiting or preventing the heart attack. Studies in the Philippines and other countries show that coronary angioplasty can cut a patient’s risk of dying by 40 percent if done promptly and within less than two hours of heart attack onset. Doctors typically call this important critical time frame as the "golden window of opportunity."

If you don’t have ready access to a medical center with a cath lab, the next best therapy is with intravenous (IV) clot-buster medications, called thrombolytics. These dissolve blood clots that form and block the coronary arteries. Thrombolytics are most effective when given during the first two hours after the symptoms appear and usually not later than 12 hours after. If multiple blocked or narrowed coronary arteries are detected, coronary artery bypass surgery may be recommended. The surgery will likely be scheduled several days to weeks after a heart attack. The delay allows your heart to stabilize.

Hospital Time

If you have had a heart attack, you can expect to spend several days in the hospital. During your hospital stay, tests such as chest x-rays and echocardiograms may be done to determine how well your heart is functioning and if you have any evidence of fluid buildup in the lungs that could indicate congestive heart failure due to poor pumping capacity of the heart. Before discharge, a treadmill or other stress tests may be done to determine if more areas of the heart are at risk from blocked vessels and to see how well your heart functions with physical exertion.

Certain well-known drugs have been shown to be of clear benefit to people who have had a heart attack. These include drugs such as aspirin and clopidogrel (Plavix), which are used to help reduce the risk of blood vessel clotting. Statin-type cholesterol-lowering drugs may be used both to rapidly improve cholesterol to target levels and for their ability to stabilize blood vessel walls, which may also help stop future clots from forming. In addition, most people who have had a heart attack will be advised to take angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and beta blocker class drugs. These prescription medications have been shown to improve long-term outcomes for people who have had a heart attack.

Time Is Muscle

If you experience chest pains that persist for 15 minutes or have any other reason to believe you may be having a heart attack, don’t delay. Call for emergency help. Time is critical when a heart attack is under way because the heart muscle is dying. What should you do if you’re not sure? Make the call anyway or rush to the hospital and get emergency help. When it comes to heart attacks, the earlier you are treated, the more heart muscles will be saved, and the faster, better, and more complete your recovery will be.

Save this article and read it again. What you learn now may save your life later!

source

"Parachute" May Help Some Heart Patients

Experimental Device Is Designed to Increase Blood Flow in People with Congestive Heart Failure

(CBS) Congestive heart failure patients may soon be able to "parachute" their way to better lives.

A new device, dubbed "the parachute," is meant to increase blood flow in those patients, and is doing well in clinical trials.

The device, dubbed "the parachute," looks like an upside-down chute. A small incision is made in a leg artery, and it's snaked up to the damaged portion of the pumping chamber of the heart, isolating the inefficient portion of the weakened heart chamber and enabling blood to flow more effectively. Most patients are discharged from the hospital a day after the procedure.

The parachute could be available within three years, if all continues to go well in the clinical trials.

It was developed and is made by CardioKinetix of Menlo Park, Calif.

Myrna Muso, a 69 year-old New Jersey grandmother, suffered a heart attack eight years ago. Since then, she's quit smoking and had a defibrillator-pacemaker inserted, but was still suffering from the effects of congestive heart failure, unable to catch her breath or continue any of her old activities.

As a new grandma, she couldn't enjoy the presence of her energetic grandson, and it would take her four days just to clean her small apartment.

When a friend heard about "the parachute," Muso signed up to be a part of the clinical trial.

She had it implanted in May and says she was "elated" after taking her first few breaths of air after the surgery. She wasn't huffing and puffing as she usually did, and has been able to become more active.

Muso told her story on "The Early Show" Wednesday, in the first of a three-part series on heart health, and her cardiologist, Dr. Robert Kipperman of New Jersey's Morristown Memorial Hospital, described how the parachute works.


Watch CBS Videos Online

Eat your heart out

I Love My Heart! I Love my Health! That's what people always say when someone questions them about their health and well being but science says that you have done nothing in your action towards loving your heart if you haven't taken a close look at your diet. If you already have risk factors such as hypertension, cholesterol, smoking, obesity, a sedentary lifestyle and high stress, start on your diet right away! If you have no obvious risk-factors(good for you!), this 5 easy steps will let you have a healthy heart throughout your lifetime.

1. Up your anti-oxidants

• Anti-oxidants such as vitamins C, E, beta carotene and bioflavonoids occur naturally in fruits, vegetables, wholegrains, nuts and seeds. They protect the heart from free radical damage.

• Eat gooseberries or amlas every day. Rich in Vitamin C, they mop up free radicals from the body. Steam your veggies for retaining Vitamin C. • Add a glass of freshly-squeezed citrus fruit juice combined with carrots, 3-4 times a week for Vitamin C and beta carotene.

• Snack on 4 almonds, 2 walnuts and 1-2 Tbsp of sunflower seeds each day to get a Vitamin E boost. Add a teaspoon of wheat germ to your breakfast cereal for more Vitamin E.



2. Feast on good fats

MUFA or monounsaturated fatty acids are good fats. Get them in olive, soya, and mustard oil; nuts (walnuts and pistachios) and seeds (sunflower, flax seeds), olives and dark chocolate. They have been proven to reduce 'bad' LDL cholesterol and increase 'good' HDL cholesterol.Good polyunsaturated fatty acids like Omega 3 and Omega 6 are also heart protective and found in oily fish (sardines, salmon, tuna) and flax seeds. Add them to your diet.

3.Fill up with fibre

Fibre is important for lowering bad cholesterol, a major risk factor in heart diseases. Fruits, vegetables, wholegrains, beans and legumes are good sources of both soluble and insoluble dietary fibre. Oats are great for reducing cholesterol levels, so start your day with a steaming bowl of porridge. Switch to wholewheat bread and pastas and go for brown rice instead of refined.

4.Add more vitamin D
Recent research published in the American Journal of the Medical Sciences (2009), points out the importance of Vitamin D for keeping your heart healthy. According to one article, low Vitamin D levels could increase the risk of high blood pressure, heart failure, and ischemic heart disease. There is still little information on whether taking Vitamin D supplements will reduce these risks. But because you love your heart and to be on the safe side, ensure that you expose your body to 20 minutes of sunlight every day for Vitamin D synthesis.

5.Eat this way

• Loving your heart is not simple so go easy on saturated fats and cut trans fat. Swap red meat with fish such as salmon, sardine, mackerel, sea bass. Pick white meat if you don't like fish.

• Reduce your dairy intake and go for soya instead. ? Add more coloured vegetables to your diet. Go for salads and steamed veggies.? Cut back on your salt intake. Avoid table salt and stay away from packaged foods, pickles and processed foods.

• For snacks, swap chips, cookies and chocolates with fruits, nuts and seeds.

• Swap refined foods with wholegrain foods such as brown rice, brown bread and wholewheat pastas.

• Try grilling, baking, stir-frying and steaming foods, instead of frying them.

• If you drink alcohol, exercise moderation. You can opt for red wine as it is said to contain heart-friendly polyphenols.

• Use a mix of healthy oils-olive oil, canola, rice bran, mustard and soya oil.



source

Congestive heart failure's cause varies

Congestive heart failure refers to a large number of conditions that affect the structure or function of the heart, making it more difficult for the heart to supply sufficient blood flow to meet the body's needs.

Dr. Michael E. Silverman of Cardiovascular Specialists of Central Maryland and chief of medicine at Howard County General Hospital writes about the causes of and treatments for the problem.

•Congestive heart failure occurs when one or more of the heart's chambers loses the ability to maintain proper blood flow. This can happen because the heart can't fill well enough with blood or because the heart can't contract strongly enough to propel the blood with enough force to maintain proper circulation. In some people, both filling and contraction problems can occur.

•Major risk factors for developing congestive heart failure include high blood pressure and coronary artery disease. Certain viral infections and substance abuse are also risk factors. Heart valve problems, sleep apnea, and diabetes can lead to congestive heart failure as well.

•The most common signs and symptoms of heart failure are shortness of breath or trouble breathing; fatigue, tiredness, malaise; and swelling in the ankles, feet, legs, and abdomen.

Breathing problems can manifest in several ways. If you are out of breath just from walking stairs or doing simple activities, you have what doctors call "dyspnea." If you wake up at night and are breathless, you have "paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea." If breathlessness occurs when you're lying flat, you may feel the need to sit up or be propped up with pillows. This inability to breathe easily unless sitting up straight or standing erect is called "orthopnea."

•It should be noted that some heart failure patients have exercise intolerance but little evidence of fluid retention, whereas others complain primarily of swelling and report few symptoms of dyspnea or fatigue. When fluid buildup is present, there also may be weight gain, increased urination, and a cough that worsens at night and/or while lying down.

•An individual with heart failure should first focus on lifestyle changes. Controlling high blood pressure and weight are critical to improving the disease. Your diet should be low in sodium or salt, which not only helps with blood pressure levels but can also help reduce swelling (edema) in your legs, feet, and abdomen. Aerobic exercise (walking, swimming, biking, etc) is very helpful.

Medications are the mainstay of therapy and include diuretics, ACE inhibitors, angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), beta-blockers, vasodilators, aldosterone antagonists, and Digitalis.

Biventricular pacemakers, left ventricular assist devices, and even transplantation are beneficial in a select group of patients with CHF.



source

Smoking Ban reduces Heart Attacks

The ban on smoking in public places has triggered a greater-than-expected fall in the number of heart attacks, it has been reported.

Early results of a study commissioned by the Department of Health revealed heart attack rates dropped by about 10% in England in the year after the ban was introduced in July 2007, The Sunday Times reported.

Separate research found an even sharper decrease - 14% - in Scotland, where the ban was imposed a year earlier. Another study in Wales is expected to reveal similar results.

The research into heart attack rates in England is being led by Anna Gilmore of Bath University.

She said: "There is already overwhelming evidence that reducing people's exposure to cigarette smoke reduces hospital admissions due to heart attacks."

John Britton, director of the UK Centre for Tobacco Control Studies at Nottingham University, said: "We always knew a public smoking ban would bring rapid health benefits, but we have been amazed by just how big and how rapid they are."

Ellen Mason, a senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, explained why smokers and passive smokers have an increased risk of having a heart attack.

She said: "Exposure to cigarette smoke induces rapid changes in blood chemistry, making it much more prone to clotting. In someone who has narrowed or damaged coronary arteries, smoke exposure can tip the balance and cause a heart attack."

Other western European countries have seen similar falls in heart attack rates after smoking bans. Figures showed France had a 15% drop in emergency admissions for heart attacks after a year, while both Italy and Ireland had an 11% reduction.


source

Vitamin D Deficiency Increases the Risk of Heart Disease Among Diabetics

New research suggests that people with diabetes may face an increased risk of heart disease if they have a deficiency of vitamin D. An article in Science News magazine cites a study at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis indicating that macrophages, the immune cells that normally fight heart disease by absorbing LDL cholesterol, may do their job too well in cases of vitamin D deficiency. Instead of helping to prevent heart disease in these patients, the macrophages may actually contribute to it.

Endocrinologist Carlos Bernal-Mizrachi and his colleagues tested blood samples from 76 obese people, average age 55, who had type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and low vitamin D levels. From these samples, the researchers cultured macrophages and exposed the immune cells to LDL cholesterol (the bad kind). They found that macrophages from type 2 diabetes patients showed a greater tendancy to absorb excessive amounts of LDL when they were cultured without vitamin D than when they were bathed in the vitamin. This transformed the macrophages into cholesterol-filled foam cells, the building blocks of arterial plaque.

Previous research has suggested that vitamin D deficiency may contribute to the risk of heart disease, but this is the first indication of the cellular mechanism that actually causes the increased risk.

Foam cells are part of the debris that collects inside blood vessels, eventually forming a fibrous cap of plaque. When the plaque ruptures and a blood clot forms, a stroke or heart attack can occur.

The study found that non-diabetics showed much less of this effect than diabetic patients did.

Further research by the same group of scientists has shed light on the reason for these results. In diabetic people, vitamin D helps reduce stress to the endoplasmic reticulum, which controls many cell functions. Reducing stress causes the macrophages to absorb less LDL cholesterol. In cases of vitamin D deficiency, this stress reduction does not take place, and the macrophages absorb more LDL cholesterol than they should. The stress also contributes to inflammation, which releases proteins that degrade plaque and lead to cap breakdown.

Though the results are preliminary and more research will be done on this question in the future, it appears that people with diabetes should pay attention to their vitamin D levels.

Writing in the health section of the Today Show website, nutrition and health editor Joy Bauer gives some good, basic information about the vitamin and how to make sure you’re getting enough of it.

There are three ways of getting vitamin D: exposure to sunlight, eating vitamin D-rich foods, and taking supplements.

Regular exposure to sunlight allows your body to make its own vitamin D. All you need is about 15 minutes of direct sun, a few times a week. However, you should use common sense and limit your exposure to prevent sunburn.

In addition to sunlight, you can also get vitamin D from certain foods. These include fish such as mackerel, salmon, and sardines, as well as shrimp. Skim milk and fortified yogurts are good, too, as are fortified cereals. Shiitake mushrooms are also very high in vitamin D.

However, since food sources are limited, it might be a good idea to consider a supplement. If you take one, be sure that it contains at least the Daily Value, which is 400 IU. Women taking extra calcium should get a brand that also includes vitamin D, preferably D3 (cholcaciferol, the most potent form.)

An article at DermNet NZ, a health Web site set up by the New Zealand Dermatological Society, stresses that sunlight is the best way to get vitamin D without risking overdose. Your body will not make more of the vitamin than it needs, so there is a natural safeguard against getting too much of it that way. If you are taking a supplement, it is possible to get an overdose of the vitamin, which can cause nausea, vomiting, poor appetite, constipation, weakness and weight loss. An overdose of vitamin D can also raise your blood calcium level, sometimes causing confusion and heart rhythm abnormalities. It should be stressed that people taking vitamin D supplements should never exceed the recommended dosage.

The information in this article is not intended as a substitute for a doctor’s advice. Always consult your doctor when considering dietary changes, supplements, etc.

source

Heart attack symptoms? Don't wait

If you saw someone experiencing symptoms of a heart attack, what would you do? Most likely, you would call 911. But if you're a woman and thought you were having a heart attack, your response would probably be different.

Women often hesitate or fail to call 911 when they experience heart attack symptoms. Most women feel they are not really having a heart attack, do not want to raise a false alarm or self-diagnose themselves as having heartburn or other minor health issues.

Women might not even realize they are experiencing a heart attack. Some common symptoms for women are unusual fatigue, shortness of breath, weakness or inability to perform daily activities, nausea, sleep disturbances and indigestion. However, some warning signs are ignored as non-cardiac, such as a burning sensation in the back, arms, shoulders or teeth.

Any intense complaint that is above the waist should be taken seriously as a possible heart attack. Many doctors say that a woman's perception of heart disease may be her biggest risk factor of all.

Minutes matter when a heart attack occurs because every second is critical, as blocked coronary arteries prevent blood from reaching oxygen-starved heart muscle. Women should call 911 first and then chew on an aspirin. Aspirin can improve the chance of survival by reducing the size of the clot (if present) in the coronary artery. By calling 911, assessment begins rapidly on the way to the hospital. The EMS crew can alert the hospital's cardiac team of your arrival and can immediately begin treatment to open the blocked artery that is causing the heart attack. It is also important to remember to never drive to the emergency room because you won't get valuable care that you would otherwise receive from the EMS crew, and you put yourself and other drivers at risk of a crash.

Women must remember to never take a wait-and-see approach to a possible heart attack. The longer you wait, the more damage a heart attack can cause. As the adage goes, it's better to be safe than sorry. Always call 911.


source

Getting a second chance

When your young, especially when you're in your 20s, you feel invincible. You feel you can do anything and you expect a lot of things - go to college, get a job, get married, have fun, go to parties, drink beer. You expect you have the world ahead of you, stretched and limitless.

You never expect it could end. You ask yourself, I'm young, energetic and strong. Heart Attack is out of the question. Well, that's the mindset of a young graduate student that is being featured in this blog.

Graduate student Lee Kluck found out that just because you're young, it doesn't mean you're invincible. After having a heart attack at the age of just 28, Kluck had to turn his life around and figure out how to put it back together again.

"It really changes your outlook on things when the surgeon comes up to you and tells you that you've had a heart attack and it should've killed you," said Kluck. "It was a total shock to the system."

It all began on just an average day last spring.

"One day on the way to class my shoulders went slack and I noticed throughout that next week I started having chest pain," he said. "But because it wasn't radiating down the side of my body and I wasn't having cold sweats, I waited about a week before going in to [Student] Health Services. I finally did, though, and they hooked me up to an EKG and consulted a cardiologist. But they told me it wasn't serious and sent me home."

Unfortunately, the pain only got worse.

"Finally on the morning of March 11, I went to the emergency room at Sacred Heart Hospital," he said. "After running tests, they came in and said, as I like to joke, 'Congratulations! You've had a heart attack!'"

After the heart catheterization the next day, a procedure where plastic tubing is inserted into a vein or artery and is advanced to the heart, the doctor said if a blockage was found, then they'd perform a stint, which is a ballooning of the blocked artery, he said.

"Now, I'm awake for the heart catheterization, and they're showing me the different arteries on the screen … and show me that there was a blockage on the backside of my heart, in the left main artery," he said.

After consulting with other doctors, they decided that the only option was open-heart surgery, he said.

"I remember thinking back to the previous Christmas," he said. "I remember telling myself, 'you are 310 lbs. and you are not 22 years old anymore. You need to get in shape, because if you don't you're going to have a heart attack, sooner rather than later.' So I had started walking two miles a day and was trying to curb some of my less savory eating habits."

But the doctor told him that his heart had been working overtime for too long, he said.

"My surgeon and his physician's assistant came in to see me after the procedure, and my surgeon said, 'They tell me you know a little bit about the Navy,'" he said.

Being a Masters student in naval history, Kluck certainly did ­­- devoting his time to studying U.S. Naval Aviation in the Korean War - his way of contributing, he said. So he was, in a way, prepared for his surgeon's direct demeanor.

"My surgeon was a Captain in the Naval Reserve and his physician's assistant is a retired Major in the Airforce and was a combat rescue officer," he said. "And my surgeon says, 'I'm going to give it to you like I give it to those people - blunt, informative, and forward - we need to cut you open. You need between one and three bypasses done."

After getting a few hours to let the information soak in, Kluck decided to go through with the surgery, despite the risks that it could either cause excessive bleeding, stroke, or death, he said. And after six hours on the operating table and a double bypass, Kluck woke up in the Critical Care Unit of Sacred Heart Hospital.

Then began his long recovery, with the knowledge that things would never be the same.

"After spending over three weeks in the hospital, I was finally sent home," he said. "I had to withdraw from school and move back home to heal. I had a diet of basically veggies, brown rice, and white meat and a scar that ran from my neck to the top of my belly. I was in unbelievable pain."

So Kluck began the steps he needed to take to start his new life.

"Before I could get into shape, I had to build up my stamina again," he said. "I started walking on a treadmill and started off being able to only walk for about seven minutes before getting exhausted."

But Kluck sticks to his diet and keeps up the exercise - his life depends on it.

"The surgeon said that in five to 15 years, I'll need to have surgery again," he said. "I'm doing everything I can to push that date out. It's my turn to work hard to keep myself healthy because all of the doctors and nurses worked so hard to help me. If I don't, I'll feel like I've let them down."

And even after this traumatic event, Kluck decided to go right back to school the very next semester.

"A lot of who I am has changed even," he said. "I used to have problems sharing opinions. Now I always share what's on my mind. Because when it comes down to it, nothing's as tough as that moment when they look at you and tell you you've had a heart attack and shouldn't be here."

Continuing work on his thesis in U.S. Naval history, Kluck definitely has been given a second chance.

"It was a traumatic experience, but it was a good thing, too, because now I have a new appreciation for life and made the necessary changes to protect it," he said. "Every day's a great day because I'm here."


source

Green vegetables to heart rescue

LEAFY greens have bounty of benefits. Packed with nutrients and fiber, it is low in calories. BEN UKWUOMA reports that researchers have uncovered a possible reason why green vegetables are good for the heart.

RESEARCHERS have discovered a possible reason why green vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower are good for the heart. Their work suggests that a chemical found in vegetables can boost natural Defence mechanism to protect arteries from diseases.

The Imperial College London team hopes their work could lead to new dietary treatments to prevent heart problems.

Details that appear in Arteriosclerosis Thrombosis and Vascular Biology shows that many heart diseases are caused by build up of fatty plaques in the arteries, known as atherosclerosis.

However, arteries do not get clogged up with these plaques in a uniform way. Bends and branches of blood vessels - where blood flow is disrupted and can be sluggish - are much more prone to the build-up.

The latest study has shown that a protein that usually protects against plaque build up, called Nrf2, is inactive in areas of arteries that are prone to diseases.

However, it also found that treatment with a chemical found in green "brassica" vegetables such as broccoli can activate Nrf2 in these disease-prone regions.

Lead researcher, Dr Paul Evans said: "We found that the innermost layer of cells at branches and bends of arteries lack the active form of Nrf2, which may explain why they are prone to inflammation and disease.

"Treatment with the natural compound sulforaphane reduced inflammation at the high-risk areas by 'switching on' Nrf2.

"Sulforaphane is found naturally in broccoli, so our next steps include testing whether simply eating broccoli, or other vegetables in their 'family', has the same protective effect.

"We also need to see if the compound can reduce the progression of disease in affected arteries."

Professor Peter Weissberg, medical director of the British Heart Foundation, which funded the research, said: "These fascinating findings provide a possible mechanism by which eating vegetables protects against heart disease, as well as adding evidence to support the importance of eating 'five-a-day'. The biochemistry revealed in this research could lead to more targeted dietary or medical approaches to prevent or lessen disease that leads to heart attacks and strokes."

Using normal mice, and mice engineered to lack the Nrf2 protein, the research found that in straight sections of arteries Nrf2 was present in the endothelial 'lining' cells.

Through its action on other proteins, it prevented the cells from becoming inflamed, an early stage in the development of atherosclerosis.

In the lining cells of disease-prone sites - such as bended or branched arteries - Nrf2 was attached to a protein that made it inactive. This stifled its protective properties.

But the addition of sulforaphane re-activated Nrf2 in the disease-prone regions of the artery, restoring the cells' ability to protect themselves from becoming inflamed.

The researchers believe that this will enable these artery regions to remain healthy for longer or even reduce the progression of existing disease. Dark green leafy vegetables are warehouses for calories, perhaps the most concentrated source of nutrition of any food. They are rich sources of minerals (including iron, calcium, potassium, and magnesium) and vitamins, including vitamins K, C, E, and many of the B vitamins. They also provide a variety of phytonutrients including beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin, which protect our cells from damage and our eyes from age-related problems, among many other effects. Dark green leaves even contain small amounts of Omega-3 fats.

Perhaps the star of these nutrients is Vitamin K. A cup of most cooked greens provides at least nine times the minimum recommended intake of Vitamin K, and even a couple of cups of dark salad greens usually provide the minimum all on their own. Recent research has provided evidence that this vitamin may be even more important than we once thought (the current minimum may not be optimal), and many people do not get enough of it.

Dark green leafy vegetables are calorie for calorie, perhaps the most concentrated source of nutrition of any food. They are a rich source of minerals like iron, calcium, potassium, and magnesium and vitamins, including vitamins K, C, E, and many of the B vitamins. They also provide variety of phytonutrients, including beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin, which protect our cells from damaging and our eyes from age-related problems, among many other effects. Dark green leaves even contain small amounts of Omega-3 fats.

Perhaps the star of these nutrients is Vitamin K. A cup of most cooked greens provides at least nine times the minimum recommended intake of Vitamin K, and even a couple of cups of dark salad greens usually provide the minimum all on their own. Recent research has provided evidence that this vitamin may be even more important than we once thought -the current minimum may not be optimal. And many people do not get enough of it.

Dr. Albert Osaretin Egbuhi, an associate professor of Biochemistry, College of Medicine University of Lagos, said: "Greens have very little carbohydrate in them, and the carbohydrate that are there are packed in layers of fiber, which make them very slow to digest. That is why, in general, greens have very little impact on blood glucose."

Broccoli for instance is said to be highly nutritious, containing over 20 vitamins and minerals. A cup is bursting with 2280 IU of vitamin A and 123 mg of vitamin C.

"It is an excellent source of folate and dietary fiber and a good source of potassium, calcium, the B vitamins and other essential nutrients. In addition to its sulforaphane content which aids in increasing the levels of enzymes that block cancer, its indole-3 carbinol content has captured the attention of those looking to prevent hormone-related cancers, including breast and prostate cancer." Egbuhi stated.

Aside from being a very good source of vitamin C, cucumber is also packed with molebdenum, a mineral that reduces the symptoms of allergy and helps prevent anemia by enabling the body to use iron. In addition to its vitamin A, D and E contents, this watermelon relative also contains vitamin K, a nutrient required to make at least three proteins essential for bone formation. A cup of cucumber contains 149 mg of potassium

Essentially, most vegetables are nutrient dense and loaded with good-for-you vitamins and phytonutrients, but green vegetables and leafy greens pack a pile of health benefits into two important factors: flavonoids and folate.

"Flavonoids are anti-oxidant compounds that give some of the colour to foods like dark chocolate, grapes, strawberries, blueberries, and peppers."

Flavonoids, according to experts, also help keep arteries flexible, acting almost like a non-stick coating preventing cholesterol buildup. Two of the richest sources of flavonoids are green beans and broccoli.

Green beans have high concentration of Vitamins A and C, two other potent anti-oxidants which do everything from protecting us against cancer causing free radicals to promoting collagen and elastin production in the skin, to help fight signs of aging.

Broccoli, while high in flavonoids, also contains important phytonutrients that aid in cancer prevention. In some studies it has been shown to reduce the size of cancerous tumors that already exist. In addition, broccoli is high in calcium as well as vitamin C, having nearly twice the amount of vitamin C of that of orange. The significance of that combination is that vitamin C aids in the absorption of calcium.

Folate is a B vitamin that helps cells regenerate, or renew themselves. While it assists in the production of healthy blood cells and the treatment of anemia, it is also a needed component in the making of DNA, the building blocks of cells. By preventing changes to DNA, it also aids in the prevention of many types of cancers.

Clinical studies have also shown that a lack of folate increases the risk for alzheimers, depression, and other forms of mental fatigue. Because of the connection with the production of red blood cells, folate, or the manufactured form, folic acid, has long been recommended to pregnant women as it aids in the development of a healthy nervous system in the fetus. What are our best green food sources of folate? Spinach, kale and asparagus.

Green vegetables also contain many phyto-chemicals and beta-carotene. These nutrients help protect cells from damaging, improve immune functions and help protect our eyes from age-related diseases. Some studies suggest that lutein and zeaxanthin may reduce the risk of certain types of cancers such as breast and lung cancers. They are useful in reducing the risk of cancer and heart disease since they are low in fat, high in dietary fiber, and rich in folic acid, vitamin C, potassium and magnesium as well as containing a host of phytochemicals, such as lutein, beta-cryptoxanthin, zeaxanthin, and beta-carotene.

One study showed that an increment of one daily serving of green leafy vegetables lowered the risk of cardiovascular disease by 11 per cent.

In the Adventist health study, the frequent consumptions of green salads by African-Americans were associated with a substantially lower risk of mortality.

Because of their high magnesium content and low glycemic index, green leafy vegetables are also valuable for persons with type 2 diabetes.

Green vegetables are also major sources of iron and calcium for any diet. Swiss chard and spinach are not considered good sources of calcium, due to their high content of oxalic acid. Green leafy vegetables are rich in beta-carotene, which can also be converted into vitamin A, and also improve immune functions. Millions of children around the world have increased risk of blindness, and other illnesses because of inadequate dietary vitamin A from green leafy vegetables.

Lutein and zeaxanthin, carotenoids found in dark-green leafy vegetables, are concentrated in the eye lens and macular region of the retina. They play a protective role in the eye. They protect against both cataract and age-related macular degeneration, the major cause of blindness in the elderly. Some studies suggest that lutein and zeaxanthin may help reduce the risk of certain types of cancers, such as breast and lung cancer, and may contribute to the prevention of heart disease and stroke.

In a Swedish study, it was reported that eating three or more servings a week of green leafy vegetables significantly reduced the risk of stomach cancer, the fourth most frequent cancer in the world. Cabbage, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, and broccoli are rich in indoles and isothiocyanates, which protect us against colon and other cancers.

Broccoli sprouts have been reported to contain 10 or more times as much sulforaphane, a cancer-protective substance than does mature broccoli. A higher consumption of green leafy vegetables has been shown to significantly decrease the risk of breast cancer and skin cancer.

Studies have identified a gene, connexin 43, whose expression is upregulated by chemopreventive carotenoids and which allows direct intercellular gap junctional communication. In many human tumors, gap junctional communication is deficient and its upregulation is associated with decreased proliferation. Hence, the cancer-preventive properties of carotenoids are partly explained by their impact on gene regulation.

Quercetin is a bioflavonoid found in leafy green vegetables. Quercetin has an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity and displays unique anticancer properties. Quercetin is a natural compound that blocks substances involved in allergies and acts as an inhibitor of mast cell secretion, and causes a decrease in the release of interleukin-6.

source

Inhaling a Heart Attack: How Air Pollution Can Cause Heart Disease

University of Michigan tests show short-term exposure to fine particle air pollution
can drive up high blood pressure, raise risk of heart attack.

It's well known that measures such as exercise, a healthy diet and not smoking can
help reduce high blood pressure, but researchers at the University of Michigan Health System
have determined the very air we breathe can be an invisible catalyst to heart disease.

Inhaling air pollution over just two hours caused a significant increase in
diastolic blood pressure, the lower number on blood pressure readings,
according to new U-M research.

The study findings appear in the current issue of Hypertension, a publication
of the American Heart Association.

Nearly one in three Americans suffer from hypertension, a significant health
problem that can lead to heart attack, heart failure, stroke, and other
life-threatening problems.

"Although this increase in diastolic blood pressure may pose little health
risk to healthy people, in people with underlying coronary artery disease this
small increase may actually be able to a trigger heart attack or stroke," says
Robert D. Brook, M.D., lead author and vascular medicine physician at the U-M
Cardiovascular Center.

In the study, researchers hoped to identify which air pollutants are harmful
and how the pollutants work to damage the cardiovascular system.

Eighty-three people in Ann Arbor and Toronto were involved in testing and
breathed air pollution, concentrated by a mobile air quality research
facility, that was similar to what would be found in an urban environment near
a roadway.


"We looked at their blood vessels and then their responses before and after
breathing high levels of air pollution," explains Robert Bard, M.S., overall
research project manager.

Ozone gases, a well-known component of air pollution, were not the biggest
culprit. Rather, small microscopic particles about a 10th of the diameter of a
human hair caused the rise in blood pressure and impaired blood vessel
function, tests showed. The blood pressure increase was rapid and occurred
within two hours, while the impairment in blood vessel function occurred later
but lasted as long as 24 hours.

It's believed these fine particles deposit deep into the lungs and certain
components may gain entrance to the blood stream, or cause an inflammatory
response throughout the body.  There is also evidence that functions in the
body's nervous system are also disrupted.

The research is the latest in the relatively new field of Environmental
Cardiology which looks at the association between air pollution and heart
disease. Brook says that at the very least the findings support efforts to
maintain current ambient air quality standards set by the Environmental
Protection Agency.

"It really bolsters and strengthens the importance of maintaining air quality
for human health," says Brook.

There are practical ways to avoid exposure to high levels of air pollution,
such as avoiding unnecessary travel or commutes and not exercising during rush
hour, or near busy roadways, Brook says. In modern society, the burning of
fossil fuels is the primary source for air pollution.

"If air pollution levels are forecasted to be high, those with heart disease,
diabetes or lung disease should avoid unnecessary outdoor activity," he says.


source

Rat Poison To Reduce Heart Attack Risk

As bizarre or as funny as it may sound it is true. The wisdom of the old tells us that every poison can be an antidote and that is so with rat poison as well, with a new study proves that it can significantly reduce stroke risk.

According to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, a new drug developed as an alternative to popular drug warfarin, also used as rat poison, has been found to significantly reduce stroke risk.

Though there does exist the practice of giving warfarin to patients at risk of stroke, however, the treatment is considered to be quite dangerous and a regular supervision has to be maintained during the process.

In the new study, the doctors found that the new drug, dabigatran (Pradaxa), was 34 per cent more effective at reducing the heart risk and blood clots in at-risk patients than well-controlled warfarin. It also reduced death rates by 15 per cent.

In the three-year long study, the researchers recruited patients with an average age of 71, all of whom suffered from atrial fibrillation, a heart rhythm disorder that greatly increases the risk of stroke.


" The trial indicates that dabigatran may offer a useful alternative to warfarin for stroke prevention."


The British Heart Foundation said that the results for an alternative to warfarin were promising, but the drug would not be available to patients until next year at the earliest.

"Warfarin is a highly effective treatment when indicated for stroke prevention, but it is underused, often because of safety concerns or the need for regular blood tests to monitor its effects," Times Online quoted Keith Muir, a medical advisor for the Stroke Association, as saying.

The trial indicates that dabigatran may offer a useful alternative to warfarin for stroke prevention in some circumstances. "However, the trial only involved people who could equally well have taken warfarin, and anyone currently taking warfarin should continue it unless advised by their doctor," he added.



source

One in four heart attack and stroke patients miss medication

Almost a quarter of people on medication to prevent strokes and heart attacks are not taking their drugs, research has found.

Women are slightly more likely than men to take their drugs on time, according to a poll of 472 patients, but overall 26% said they either missed doses or did not use their prescribed medication at all.

Anti-clotting drugs were not taken regularly by 29% of patients at a GP practice in the North-east of England, and 23% failed to take statins on time, which reduce cholesterol and lower the risk of heart attacks and strokes.

Research presented at the British Pharmaceutical Conference in Manchester found that older patients and those on large numbers of drugs were more likely to stick to a medication schedule.

Pharmacist Wasim Baqir, from The Village Green Surgery, Sunderland, said: “Simply prescribing a drug is not enough.

“Doctors and other members of the primary care team, such as pharmacists, need to work with patients so they understand the importance of taking their medicines in the right dose, at the right time.”

source

What is a Heart Attack?

A heart attack occurs when the blood supply to part of the heart muscle itself — the myocardium — is severely reduced or stopped. The reduction or stoppage happens when one or more of the coronary arteries supplying blood to the heart muscle is blocked. This is usually caused by the buildup of plaque (deposits of fat-like substances), a process called atherosclerosis. The plaque can eventually burst, tear or rupture, creating a "snag" where a blood clot forms and blocks the artery. This leads to a heart attack.

If the blood supply is cut off for more than a few minutes, muscle cells suffer permanent injury and die. This can kill or disable someone, depending on how much heart muscle is damaged.

Sometimes a coronary artery temporarily contracts or goes into spasm. When this happens the artery narrows and blood flow to part of the heart muscle decreases or stops. We're not sure what causes a spasm. A spasm can occur in normal-appearing blood vessels as well as in vessels partly blocked by atherosclerosis. A severe spasm can cause a heart attack.

The medical term for heart attack is myocardial infarction. A heart attack is also sometimes called a coronary thrombosis or coronary occlusion.

It is difficult to estimate exactly how common heart attacks are because as many as 200,000 to 300,000 people in the United States die each year before medical help is sought. It is estimated that approximately 1 million patients visit the hospital each year with a heart attack. About 1 out of every 5 deaths are due to a heart attack.

Risk factors for heart attack and coronary artery disease include:

* Bad genes (hereditary factors)
* Being male
* Diabetes
* Getting older
* High blood pressure
* Smoking
* Too much fat in your diet
* Unhealthy cholesterol levels, especially high LDL ("bad") cholesterol and low HDL ("good") cholesterol

Higher-than-normal levels of homocysteine, C-reactive protein, and fibrinogen may also increase your risk for a heart attack. Homocysteine is an amino acid. C-reactive protein and fibrinogen are linked to inflammation. Fibrinogen is also involved in blood clotting.



source A
Source B

Program for the Reversal of Heart Disease

If you have vascular disease, and if you want not to have it, there is a plan for you.

1. Get yourself into chelation therapy and stay the course. This is the fastest, most proven method of dealing with this life-threatening condition. The literature proving this is extensive, despite what uninformed doctors may tell you. Then, in consultation with a doctor who practices nutritional medicine, take the following steps: (All the following dosages may be adjusted by your doctor, based on his or her experience and medical opinion.)
2. Vitamin C to bowel tolerance — as much as you can take without diarrhea. For most people this will be in the range of five to ten grams (5,000-10,000 mg.) each day. Spread this amount into two equal doses 12 hours apart. (Vitamin C prevents further cracking of the blood vessel wall — the beginning of the disease.)
3. Co-enzyme Q10 90-180 mg. twice each day (strengthens the heart muscle).
4. L-carnitine 3 grams twice each day (also strengthens the heart muscle).
5. L-lysine 3 grams twice each day (acts to release lipoprotein(a) from plaque formation and prevent further deposition of same).
6. L-proline 3 grams twice each day (acts to release lipoprotein(a) from plaque formation and prevent further deposition of same).
7. Niacin decreases the production of lipoprotein(a) in the liver. Inositol hexaniacinate is a form of niacin which gives less of a problem with flushing and therefore allows for larger therapeutic doses. Begin with 250 mg. at lunch, 500 mg. at dinner and 500 mg. at bedtime the first day; then increase gradually over a few days until you reach four grams per day, or the highest dose under four grams you can tolerate. Be sure to aks your doctor for liver enzyme level tests every two months or less to be sure your liver is able to handle the dose you are taking.
8. Vitamin E (as Unique E) 800-2400 IU per day. (This inhibits the proliferation of smooth muscle cells in the walls of arteries undergoing the atherosclerotic changes.)
9. Stop smoking. (This decreases the free radical load on your body.)
10. Adopt a sensible diet with plenty of veggies and not so much fat. (The metabolism of fat decreases your body vitamin pool dramatically.)
11. Ask your doctor for a comprehensive stool analysis (Great Smokies Lab) to see if you are digesting well all that good food. Your diet does not matter much if it is not getting into your body.
12. Lower stress in your life however you can.
13. Adopt a sensible exercise program in collaboration with your doctor.



source