Improve Your Health

Relieve Your Aches and Pains

It's difficult to stay healthy in  this fast moving, highly competitive world. The constant mental bashing of politics, the rush of getting somewhere on time, the constant pressure of getting a promotion, keeping up the demand of others, the problems of "eating out', the poisons found in our polluted air water, and simply the many hazards of our civilization that are slowly taking away from our health. Note that many of the luxuries of "the good life" present hidden hazards that are more dangerous than the most potent germs and viruses.

For example, heart disease is the nation's #1 killer, and it's caused primarily by poor eating habits and the lack of exercise. Over-stimulation of the nervous system by frantic living, tobacco and vape smoking, and drugs, also compounds abuse to the heart. The common cold is responsible for more lost wages than any other ailment; likely caused more by a lowered resistance than by germs. There are many diseases that occur because of the body's inability to fight them off or because of a breakdown in the body's mechanism, all because of poor living habits. Back trouble is second only to heart trouble as a leading cause of chronic disability among persons who must work for a living. Most of this disability can be attributed to back injuries caused by weak muscles, bad working postures and/or improper lifting techniques.

If you don't make a special effort to take care of yourself and to control your personal environment, you're almost certain to suffer from illness and/or aches and pains - head to toe. And, if you don't know how to utilize natural self-help techniques in relieving your symptoms and raising your resistance, you may suffer the fate of those chronically ill persons who spend fortunes on drug medications and doctor bills. Many persons think there is a pill for every ailment, and that they need only to see a doctor to rid themselves of aches and pains. So very wrong! Most of those people never regain their health, and many turn to excessive use of drugs for temporary relief of symptoms.

It's never too late to make changes in your life .... BE SMART - DO IT NOW!

"A healthy attitude is contagious, but don't wait to catch it from others."

Walking Cuts Blood Pressure

Thirty minutes of walking three times a week may be enough to help lower blood pressure and start
you on the path to better health.

A study shows that even a little bit of weekly exercise is enough to lower blood pressure and improve overall fitness. The results showed that 30 minutes of walking three times a week, even if it was broken into 10-minute walks throughout the day, was enough to have a healthy effect on blood pressure as well as measurements around the waist and hip.

National guidelines recommend that people exercise at least 30 minutes a day on most days of the week to maintain optimum health. But few people achieve that goal, citing lack of time as the biggest obstacle.Researchers say these results may help motivate people to fit in even a little exercise here and there to benefit their health.

Even a Little Exercise Helps
In the study, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, researchers invited 106 healthy but sedentary civil servants to take part in an exercise program for 12 weeks. About a third were told to briskly walk for 30 minutes, five days a week. Another third were told to briskly walk for 30 minutes a day, three days a week; the remaining third were told not to change their sedentary lifestyle at all.

The participants wore pedometers to monitor their walking, and researchers measured their blood pressure, blood cholesterol, weight, hip and waist size, and overall fitness before and after the study.
The results showed systolic (the top number) blood pressure dropped, and waist and hip measurements shrunk significantly, in both the three-day-a-week and five-day-a-week exercise groups.

Systolic blood pressure dropped by 5 points among those who exercised three days a week and by 6 points among those who exercised five days a week.

Waist and hip measurements fell by 2.6 centimeters and 2.4 centimeters respectively among the three-day-a-week exercisers and by 2.5 centimeters and 2.2 centimeters among the five-day-a-week exercise group.

No changes were found in the sedentary group.

A decrease of a few points in blood pressure and a few centimeters in the waist and hips is enough to significantly reduce the risk of death due to heart disease. They say the study shows even moderate exercise below the recommended levels can still have benefits.

Screening Athletes For Heart Defects

Almost weekly we read of another young athlete that suddenly collapses and in far too many cases dies of a "heart attack". The following are excerpts are from various articles including:  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1994446/

Example: "Shane del Rosario has died, nearly two weeks after suffering a heart attack, the UFC announced Monday. The 30-year-old Del Rosario, a professional MMA fighter since 2006. Official Statement: Shane Del Rosario had a catastrophic cardiovascular collapse at home on Tuesday morning. He was brought to the hospital in full cardiac arrest. Del Rosario’s management team released a statement saying doctors were looking at the potential that the fighter had a rare heart condition known as Long QT Syndrome that typically goes undetected until there’s a problem.

The goals of evaluating individuals for exercise and sports participation is crucial. The most important reason to screen for heart disease is to prevent sudden, unexpected death. Heart disease may also lead to sudden incapacity which may result in injuries, and pre-existing heart disease may be exacerbated by exercise. It has been estimated that there are 5 million active athletes at the high school, university, professional and master's levels in the United States.1 The sudden death rate among high school athletes is 1:100–200 000; among marathon runners 1:50 000; and among recreational joggers 1:15 000.2 Thus, athletic sudden cardiac death is a rare event.

“Sudden cardiac deaths in competitive athletes continue to be highly visible, compelling emotional events with significant liability concerns. These catastrophes are frequently subjected to intense public scrutiny largely because of their occurrence in young otherwise healthy-appearing individuals, including elite participants in collegiate and professional sports”

CAUSES OF SUDDEN DEATH IN ATHLETES
In athletes above the age of 35, especially men, the most common cause of sudden death is atherosclerotic coronary artery disease. In younger individuals atherosclerotic coronary artery disease is much less common and other diseases predominate. The most common cause of sudden death in young athletes is hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The second most common is coronary artery anomalies, and the third is abnormal left ventricular hypertrophy.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SCREENING
Ideally screening should be done pre-participation by a physician trained in this activity, but other well-trained healthcare workers are acceptable as long as they do not have a conflict of interest. Screening should be done yearly just before training for the sports activity begins. The evaluation should include a history of symptoms suggestive of heart disease, a family history of premature death or specific cardiac diseases, and questions about substance abuse. The physical examination should include blood pressure, femoral pulses, auscultation of the heart in the standing position and inspection for Marfan syndrome features. There should be a low threshold for delaying clearance to play to evaluate further suspected cardiovascular disease.

I currently suggest and strongly recommend that each patient/athlete consult with a cardiologist regarding the above concerns. The heart matter can only be found with the special testing. One day all athletes will be required to comply with examinations including ECG, echocardiography and referral to a cardiologist.

Better to be healthy and safe ... than to ignore a hidden problem.