Tips to prevent heart Disease

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Though certain of us are born with a genetic tendency for
Heart disease, that doesn't mean it's inevitable. There are many
Ways you can prevent the inception of heart disease — and keep it from
Deterioration if you have been diagnosed with a definite heart concern.
Here are a few time-tested heart-disease prevention strategies to initiate:

1. Sleep Well
Researchers at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., are investigating the
connection between sleep apnea and heart disease. Preliminary results indicate
that swings in blood pressure and dips in oxygen levels associated with sleep apnea
could make your arteries more prone to damage. If you suspect that you have sleep
apnea (symptoms include snoring loud enough to disturb your sleep or that of others,
shortness of breath that wakes you up, abnormal daytime sleepiness, or periods of
stopped breathing during sleep), see your doctor about treatment.

2. Eat more fiber
The American Heart Association recommends having a a small amount of meatless
Meals each one week and increasing the amount of fiber and entire grains
In your diet. There are lots of ways to puzzle this out. Registered dietitian Jill
Nussinow suggests consumption "whole grains, such as oatmeal, barley, quinoa,
Brown rice, beans and lentils, nuts, and seeds, in moderation; as well as soy
Products, if you tolerate them, and fruit. Remember, plant foods
Contain fiber, and creature foods don't. Conversely, animal foods contain cholesterol,
And plant foods do not."

3. Nutritional Supplements
Stephen Sinatra, MD, a cardiologist and assistant clinical professor at the
University of Connecticut, advises his patients to take targeted nutritional
supplements. "I love magnesium, fish oil, and coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10). Those are
probably my three top nutrients. Not only to prevent heart disease, but if you
already have it, they'll help stabilize the plaque [on your blood vessels]. At
least a gram or two of fish oil [1,000 to 2,000 milligrams (mg)], at least 100 mg
of CoQ10, and about 200 to 400 mg of magnesium per day — that's in addition to the
healthy nutrients you get through your diet."

4. Glass of Wine
Recent studies have shown that resveratrol, a substance found in red wine, may help ease the sort of inflammation that affects heart health. Red wine also contains the same sort of heart-healthy antioxidants found in dark chocolate.It may also raise levels of HDL (known as the "good cholesterol") in the blood. So, enjoy a glass — but with a caveat: If you drink more than one or two glasses, you'll end up canceling out the benefits.

5. Maintain a Healthy Weight
"In terms of heart disease, everything goes in the wrong direction when you're
overweight," says George P. Rodgers, MD, a cardiologist in Austin, Texas.
"But when you lose the weight, that all starts to correct itself: Blood pressure
comes down, glucose comes down, HDL ["good" cholesterol] goes up.
All the good things start to happen when you lose weight. And it doesn't
have to be a ton of weight; it could be a matter of losing 15 pounds."

6.Count Your Steps
Pedometers are practically a fashion statement these days,
which is a good thing for heart health! Joanne Larsen, a registered
and licensed dietitian with extensive clinical experience in nutrition
counseling, says: "If you wear a pedometer that counts steps, aim for
10,000 steps a day." Not meeting your goal? Go for walk breaks instead
of a snack breaks at work, and take the stairs whenever possible.

7.Get More Exercise
The American Heart Association recommends 30 minutes of exercise
six times a week. Make it fun by going to a class at the gym or by getting a
friend to work out or walk with you. That way, you're more likely to be consistent.
And if there are days when fitting in even half an hour seems impossible,
break it into shorter intervals — a 10-minute walk in the morning, another
at lunchtime, and then 10 minutes at night.

8. Read Labels
"Sometimes the full-fat version of a food is actually better for you
because the low-fat or nonfat versions often have a similar calorie level,
but way more sugar," Nussinow says. "Other times, products may be lower in
calories but have a lot more sodium. It's usually better to have smaller amounts
of the real food, especially with peanut butter. People should be reading labels
because they often aren't buying what they think they are."

9. Stop Smoking
Smoking damages the cells that line the arteries and increases your blood pressure and heart rate; it is one of the worst heart health offenders. And the effects of secondhand smoke can be almost as damaging, which means that your cigarette habit may even be putting the health of the people around you at risk. Talk to your doctor if you need help kicking the habit. The good news? Five years after quitting, your heart attack risk goes down to that of a nonsmoker.

10. The Mind-Body Connection
"People who see the world optimistically — who see the cup as half-full — [typically] do not get heart disease, as opposed to people who are more pessimistic, who worry all the time, who live in fear — these are the people who have hormonal responses that lead to heart disease," Dr. Sinatra says. So, if you find yourself feeling angry or stressed out, do something relaxing, like taking a long walk or joining a yoga class. The benefits will be physical as well — giving you even more to feel good about!

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Weight loss medication safety tips

Weight-loss medications should be used only by patients who are at increased risk of health problems because of their weight. They should not be used for "cosmetic" weight loss. If you are considering long-term drug therapy for obesity, consider the following areas of concern and potential risks:

• Image via Wikipedia

• Development of tolerance. Most studies of weight-loss medications show that a patient's weight tends to level off after six months of taking a particular drug. This may mean that the medication has reached its limit of effectiveness.
• Potential for dependence or abuse . Although this is not likely with non-amphetamine appetite-suppressant medications, be cautious when taking these if you have a history of drug abuse or alcohol.
• Side effects. Because weight-loss drugs are used to treat a condition that affects millions of people, many of whom are basically healthy, potential adverse side effects that may outweigh the benefits of treatment are of great concern. Most side effects of these medications are mild and usually improve with continued treatment. Rarely, serious and even fatal outcomes have been reported.
• Reluctance to view obesity as a chronic disease. Weight-loss medications are not "magic bullets" or a one-shot fix for a chronic disease. They should be combined with a healthy eating plan and increased physical activity.

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Natural Vitamins and Supplements: Do You Really Need Them?

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Natural supplements? I can do without them, so do I really need to take them? This argument is at the forefront of many peoples’ minds as they start down the road to better health.

Here is why. Most people base their health on how they feel. So they don’t see the need for vitamins and supplements. Just because you feel fit and healthy, does not mean you do not need vitamins and or supplements.

The problem is when it suddenly strikes - an illness, a health problem, a sign of old age, weakness - we then begin to search for a dietary or herbal supplement to help us get out of the hole we have unfortunately dug for ourselves. When we could have been maintaining our health, by taking a few vitamins and supplements daily. Few would deny the logic of taking at least one multivitamin each day. It’s not like vitamin supplements are hard to get, or dangerous in any way.

Nutritional deficiency is almost impossible to avoid in these modern times. With our busy lifestyle, the ever-tempting convenience of fast food, it is now very difficult to enjoy excellent daily nutrition. For most, it is not practical to maintain a vitamin count on each meal to ensure we get our necessary vitamins.
That being said, health supplements should not replace proper nutrition. Nutritional supplements are just that, supplements. They work by complementing your diet to make sure you get the right nutrients that you need. In a perfect world we would get all our vitamins from the foods we eat. But unless you eat a significant amount of raw foods each day, you most likely not even coming close to the amount of nutrition you need to stay healthy.

So the answer to wither or not you need natural vitamins and supplements is, YES! So take a multivitamin supplement daily, it’s the least you can do to give back to your body. Do it for yourself, do it for your family but most of all just do it


Natural Vitamins and supplements

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Natural Supplements and Vitamins for Better Health

Natural health supplements and vitamins are on the rise as people are constantly being bombarded with high levels of stress and anxiety. Stress can manifest itself in many forms; physical, mental or environmental. Stress places an enormous strain on our physical and mental health. It can affect not only our ability to think straight, but also our digestive system, adrenal glands and heart. Natural health supplements can help!

Before we can find the right natural health supplements and vitamins to help our body combat stress, we must first examine stress. Stress is simply natural forces from the outside world which affect our individual being. How our bodies respond to stress has a big factor on how we handle stress and our health. This is where natural health supplements and vitamins can help. Symptoms of stress can include sleep disturbance, muscle tension, headache, gastrointestinal disturbances, and fatigue. Emotional and behavioral symptoms that may accompany stress include nervousness, anxiety, overeating, loss of energy or enthusiasm, and sudden mood changes. Of course none of these symptoms are solely caused by stress as they can all be related to other medical and or psychological issues. Research has also shown that people under stress have a greater tendency to engage in unhealthy behaviors, such as excessive use /or abuse of alcohol, drugs, cigarette smoking, as well as making poor nutritional choices.

Can Natural Health supplements and vitamins help you?

A better question would be, “Are you prone to stress?”

Stress comes in many forms and affects people of all ages. There is no cookie cutter method to determine or predict stress levels in individuals. Example being, you don’t have to have a job that is known as being stressful to experience workplace stress, just as a parent of one child may have a higher level of stress than a parent of many children. If it were that easy then the simple answer would be, just eliminate stress. Since it is not that easy, vitamins and supplements are needed to help our bodies combat the effects of stress. Natural health supplements and vitamins are a must for a healthy lifestyle. To be healthy you must eat healthy. As eating tends to take a back seat to our stressful lives supplements help to give our bodies the nutrition it needs to combat the toll that stress has on our body.

Research has however shown that whenever a stressful situation arises, a domino effect occurs. First, stress limits the blood supply going to the stomach, this in turn hampers the digestive system and a temporary shutdown of our immune system may follow. Being overwhelmed with stress for an extended period may cause us to experience fatigue and exhaustion. As it may not be possible to avoid stress factors in our lives there is help available. Natural herbal supplements, known for their relaxing properties can assist in combating the harmful effects of anxiety and stress. Natural Supplements that are known to assist the body in combating the damage stress causes your body are.

· Jujube Seeds

· Magnolia Bark

· Potassium

· Magnesium

· Valerian Root

· Melatonin

· Vitamin B complex contains Vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, B6 and B12 are all essential vitamins for the nervous system

These herbs can be incorporated together to make a powerful formula.Natural health supplements and vitamins can help you as you strive to live a healthy life.

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Natural Health Supplements and Vitamins

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