High Blood Pressure

Every encounter you have with a health care professional likely involves getting your blood pressure checked. Why is blood pressure measurement such an important indicator of health? What does it mean if your blood pressure is high? High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is the force applied against the wall of the arteries as the heart pumps. High blood pressure is a silent disease, one that may not have any symptoms for months or even years.

Blood pressure measurements are checked with a syphgmomanometer and a stethoscope. An inflatable cuff is placed around the arm and a stethoscope placed over the arteries in the crook of the elbow. As the cuff is deflated, a sound is heard as the blood courses through the artery. The first sound heard is measured and that is the systolic blood pressure. Normal systolic blood pressure is less than 120 (mm Hg). When the sound stops, the measurement is the diastolic blood pressure. Normal diastolic blood pressure is less than 80 (mm Hg).

Complications of high blood pressure are no joke. What happens is that the walls of the arteries lose their elasticity over time and the heart has to work harder to push the blood through them. Every organ and body system is therefore affected by high blood pressure. That is why treatment is so important. People sometimes want to stop taking their medications when they feel better. That is a dangerous practice with high blood pressure and can lead to life threatening problems such as heart attack or stroke.

Prevention of high blood pressure is a key to wellness. The High Blood Pressure Learning Center offers multimedia guides to preventing high blood pressure and its complications with very simple lifestyle adjustments. You may want to explore complementary and alternative therapies. The Learning Center provides talking points for discussions with your health care provider.

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The symptoms of heart failure

Just this morning me and my grandma our having discussions about heart failure, and like most people my grandma is a bit confused with heart failure and heart attacks, So I had to explain some stuffs I know, and would like to share this to everyone as well.

When you have heart attacks, one of the arteries of the heart is blocked, people have severe chest pain.When you have heart failure, the the whole muscle of the heart hasn't pump and that is the difference though however heart attacks can cause heart failure.

There is one risk that is important, though there are many. One would be hypertension so high blood pressure is one of the major risk for developing heart failure, and if you don't have symptoms of heart failure, if you have hypertension and you can't treat the high blood pressure, then you can't prevent the development of heart failure, there are other things like that of obesity.

Some people don't have any symptoms, but on the other hand there are two main symptoms, one is shortness of breath, the other one is fluid retention, so you can get fluid in your leg. One of the most important thing everyone should remember which is very common to a lot of people is at night when people had shortness of breath when they sleep and they had to get up, and then they had to sit down in bed and breathe, that is very common symptoms of heart failure, as well as fatigue.

Now how are you going to prevent this from happening, there are many therapies one would be if you can prevent blood pressure then you can reverse ore prevent heart failure, there are also medicines that you can ask from your doctor.

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Why do you need to lose some weight

Are you one of those very few people who are very much happy or let's just say satisfied with your weight? Well, Congratulations! However, weight loss still may be needed. Many people who are overweight say that they are happy with their bodies, but the fact remains that weight loss in order to achieve a healthy weight is very important. There are a number of reasons you should consider weight loss, even if you don’t mind having a few extra pounds.

First a foremost, if you are overweight, you are at risk for a number of diseases. The main health risk you will probably experience is heart disease, which can lead to a heart attack. Many heart attacks are deadly. Heart disease develops when you heart has to work extra hard to pump the blood to the body, which causes it to become fatigued. This can occur simply because you are overweight, or can be a result of high blood pressure or high cholesterol.

Along with heart disease, having high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels can also put you at risk for a stroke. Strokes occur when blood, and therefore oxygen, cannot reach the brain. This can happen due to high cholesterol. When you have high cholesterol, the fatty deposits build up on your artery walls. If a piece of this plaque breaks off and travels to the heart, it causes a heart attack, and traveling to the brain causes a stroke.

Being overweight is also bad for women who wish to become pregnant. When you’re overweight, the hormones in your body are changing, and if you don’t get the right nutrients you may find that your body does not produce the right chemicals for the hormones needed to ovulate or carry a child. Even if you become pregnant, being overweight puts you at risk for a miscarriage or health problems with the baby.

Beyond the health world, being overweight can also affect your daily life. You may find it difficult to purchase clothing in your size or you may find that the clothing that does come in larger sizes is more expensive. This is simply due to the manufacturer need more material to make the same article of clothing. Problems extend beyond shopping when doing things like visiting theme parks, where you may not be able to ride all of the rides, or using public transportation, where you may feel crowded in seats made for smaller people. Losing weight, even if you are currently happy with your own weight, is always a healthy and smart option, until you reach a normal weight.
However, weight loss still may be needed. Many people who are overweight say that they are happy with their bodies, but the fact remains that weight loss in order to achieve a healthy weight is very important. There are a number of reasons you should consider weight loss, even if you don’t mind having a few extra pounds.

First a foremost, if you are overweight, you are at risk for a number of diseases. The main health risk you will probably experience is heart disease, which can lead to a heart attack. Many heart attacks are deadly. Heart disease develops when you heart has to work extra hard to pump the blood to the body, which causes it to become fatigued. This can occur simply because you are overweight, or can be a result of high blood pressure or high cholesterol.

Along with heart disease, having high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels can also put you at risk for a stroke. Strokes occur when blood, and therefore oxygen, cannot reach the brain. This can happen due to high cholesterol. When you have high cholesterol, the fatty deposits build up on your artery walls. If a piece of this plaque breaks off and travels to the heart, it causes a heart attack, and traveling to the brain causes a stroke.

Being overweight is also bad for women who wish to become pregnant. When you’re overweight, the hormones in your body are changing, and if you don’t get the right nutrients you may find that your body does not produce the right chemicals for the hormones needed to ovulate or carry a child. Even if you become pregnant, being overweight puts you at risk for a miscarriage or health problems with the baby.

Beyond the health world, being overweight can also affect your daily life. You may find it difficult to purchase clothing in your size or you may find that the clothing that does come in larger sizes is more expensive. This is simply due to the manufacturer need more material to make the same article of clothing. Problems extend beyond shopping when doing things like visiting theme parks, where you may not be able to ride all of the rides, or using public transportation, where you may feel crowded in seats made for smaller people. Losing weight, even if you are currently happy with your own weight, is always a healthy and smart option, until you reach a normal weight.

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Evil boss = Heart Disease

I just want to share something that i think a lot of people would benefit. Especially those who are working. Few years ago, I worked with an International company that i really, really like, but there is just one problem...... my boss. Well, at first i thought it was just me, but then i found out that almost everyone i know in the company are all planning to leave because of our boss.

I've been stressed and yes i quit. but i still consider it as a great experience, but did you know that Those kind of bosses may increase the risk of heart disease of their subordinates.

I got this news that a team from Sweden have found a link between bad leadership and the risk of heart related diseases and heart attacks among (3,000) employed men.

Study shows that the effect may be cumulative - the risk went up the longer an employee worked for the same environment, same company and same boss.

This research study was published in occupational and environmental medicine.

Stressful environment

Experts said that the feeling of not valued and unsupported at work can cause a lot of stress, which often encouraged unhealthy behaviors, such as lack of sleep, smoking, drinking etc that can lead to heart disease.

Their studies has also shown that unfair bosses can drive up their employees' blood pressure, and persistent high blood pressure can increase heart disease risk.

It just shows that having a good working relationship with your manager may help to protect you against heart disease..

image courtesy of flickr.com

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Don't forget your annual check up.

Just last Saturday i went out to bring my mom to her doctor. She doesn't like to do annual check up, because she believes that you only visit your doctor if you feel something strange or your not feeling well.(So wrong) I always tell her, Its' not about that. It's more than that. I explained to her that if there's something wrong with her health it's like a given early opportunity to address her problems. So what should be checked to maintain good health?

So compute your body mass index to see if you are still within your ideal body weight.Being overweight as a young adult or even as a child will soon catch up with you in the form of many chronic conditions as you grow older.

Have your blood pressure taken. Many have access to a clinic at their workplace or even at a local health center. Hypertension maybe detected this early, and elevated BP may be even lead to the discovery of other conditions such as kidney disease.

Eye examinations should also be performed every year. This may diagnose certain eye conditions that need medical attention. You may also find an explanation for the frequent headaches you may have been having- an error of refraction. Why suffer for a long a time when just a pair of corrective lenses can dramatically improve your quality of life.

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Uncontrolled blood pressure? Avoid salt.

High blood pressure? Reduce your salt intake.Based on research studies by the American Heart Association's 62 annual fall Conference of the Council for High Blood Pressure Research in Atlanta.

People who have 'uncontrolled' high blood pressure, even though they are taking different types of medicines to lower their blood pressure, Can now actually lower it more by making some little changes in their lives and that's to avoid salt intake. Or just reduce their salt in their daily diet.

" A high-salt diet contributes importantly to treatment-resistant hypertension (high blood pressure)". Said Dr. Eduardo Pimenta of Dante Pazanese Institue of Cardiology, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Pimenta with his group made a research on the effects of "restricted-salt diet" in a 24-hour readings that was taken through a recorder that was continuously worn by their subjects,in 13 adults who has 'treatment-resistant hypertension'

The study was made in 7 days, "we were expecting blood pressure reduction with low-salt diet but the reduction was larger than we expected" Said Pimenta.

It was confirmed in the said studies that diet with higher salt can cause bigger problems in the blood vessels and fluid retention in people although they're in diuretic therapy, said Pimenta

In the low-salt diet, it was shown that there was an obvious reduction in the body fluids of the subjects. Int his research, experts clearly shown the destructive effects of too much salt in our body and the the good benefits of low salt intake.

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Healthy food to super food?

Experts gave the latest range of foods that they call super foods. This superfoods will be good to our health if consumed often. Because it prevents cancer, Heart diseases, high blood pressure and diabetes.

Super foods are blueberries, salmon, walnuts, soy, yogurt, spinach, tomatoes, garlic, hot peppers and almonds. Most of these super foods are known to prevent illnesses. But it is still important to know that taking these foods will not cure or prevent diseases immediately. But well-balanced and planned meal with will be the key to a healthy body. So super foods or just your good old healthy foods, They both need balance diet

Here are some of the simple strategies to make those Healthy foods, super effective.

1. Make sure that half of the grains that you consume are whole grains. Whole grains are very popular in preventing heart diseases, Cancer, Gastro intestinal health, Diabetes and definitely good in weight management.

2. When choosing protein-rich foods try to choose lean protein sources like fish, chicken, low-fat beef, soy at legumes. It makes you feel full without the guilt, thus making you stick to your diet. But still getting the right amounts of protein.

3. Limit your sugar and salt intake, read the label. Reading labels will let you know if you just take the right amount of sugar/ salt or not.Try to make this a habit and it will help you in the future.

4.. Try to choose calcium-rich foods, like low-fat cheese, milk and yogurt.

5. Eat fruits, Fresh fruits. There is a big difference with fruit juices in carton boxes and instant fruit juices. You can drink these juices but try to limit and get used to eating fresh ones.

Eating healthy doesn't mean you are healthy. You got to plan and balance what you eat and make those health foods super effective so Happy eating!

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Atherosclerosis: You may already have it but you don't know

Athero....what? That is the first question i asked my friend (MD) while she is trying to explain what exactly it is. Coming from the geek words athero(gruel or paste) and sclerosis (hardness). Atherosclerosis involves deposits of fatty substances, cholesterol, cellular waste products, and other substances in the artery 's inner lining. Called plaque this build up usually affects both large and medium sized arteries.

It starts as early as childhood. A slow complex disease, it often progresses as people age. In some people though the progress is more rapid and happens even in their twenty's Scientists believe that this disease begins with damage to the innermost layer artery, called endothelium.

Researchers show that males and those with family history of premature cardiovascular disease have a greater risk of atherosclerosis.Unfortunately these factors cannot be controlled. However, reducing the controllable risk factors of atherosclerosis prove to be beneficial: these controllable risk factors include:

• High blood cholesterol
• Cigarette smoking /exposure to tobacco smoke
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes mellitus
• Obesity
• Physical inactivity

knowing these factors, you should be able to control it in your own ways like lose weight, eat well-balanced diet. quit smoking, try to expose yourself to outdoor activities or engage into different sports. A healthy body should have a healthy heart, So love your heart and add more years to your life.

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