How are you going to stay healthy this winter/flu season. It is not too late to get vaccinated! The flu season runs through at least March or April. The vaccine is also available in a nasal spray form this year. It has been shown that people who get vaccinated every year have better long-term immunity. And you cannot get sick from the vaccine, you can get symptoms is you are sensitive to one of the proteins but that is all. You never know where the flu is lurking so it is best to keep your distance (about an arms length) between you and others. At home and at work keep surfaces clean. Don’t rub your eyes or wipe your mouth, these are the main routes of entry for the flu bugs. Exercise regularly and get plenty of sleep. Research has found that when postmenopausal women do moderate exercise (like walking) for 45 minutes a day 5 days a week, their risk of getting a cold is cut by about a third. Getting enough sleep has the same effect. Your body uses the time to repair damaged tissue and boost immunity. Avoid secondhand smoke! It will damage your respiratory system making your body more vuneralbe to infections. These are step we should follow all of the time, not just during the flu and cold season. For more information on Staying Healthy and eating right, visit my website at http://www.familymatters2me.net.
Need to Know Tips:
Trim Down Your Fast Food Orders
Everyone knows fast food is not good for you,
but sometimes in these busy times there’s no other option.
Follow the tips below, and you can drive through
with your conscience a little clearer:
Ways to get the most out of your Fast Food Meal:
* Look up nutrition info online before you go so you can plan your meal or if you go inside they usually have it on the tray inserts.
o A grilled chicken sandwich has more calories (570) than a quarter pounder with cheese (510).
* Say no to combo meals, even if you might save some money. They are larger and full of empty calories.
* Say no to “Do you want fries with that?” (Large fry has 570 calories) Try a baked potato, a fruit cup or some vegetables instead. If you must (which you don’t), get a small fry. Eat them one at a time to savor them.
* Try the side dishes as a main meal, like chili, soup, or baked potatoes. Watch the cheese and sour cream.Order you meal from the kids menu. They are smaller and there are usually healthier sides (fruit cups and carrot sticks) and drinks (milk or real fruit juice).
* Try just eating a salad, but watch out for the dressing, that’s where the calories are!
* Drink water or diet soda. Avoid the sweet teas, coffees and regular sodas.
* Order special sauce on the side and use very little, it does not need to ooze out the sides.
* Ask for ketchup, mustard and salsa. NO mayo or creamy dressings.
* Remove the top slice of bread or bun to save on calories.
* Avoid anything crispy, crunchy, breaded or fried. The grilled or roasted sandwiches have 80 to 90 less calories.
* Stay away from the specialty or limited edition menu items. They usually have high-calorie extras like bacon, cheese or creamy sauces.
Go to my website at www.familymatter2me.net for more healthy eating tips and exercise guides.
Filed under: Health | Tags: carbohydrates, Health, healthy eating, weight loss
Good Carbs, Bad Carbs
Winter is soon approaching. The slowing down of summer activities and the fear of craving hot high-calorie foods to fight the cold is now on our minds. Don’t think that giving up carbohydrates is the way to go to maintain or lose weight. There is a huge carbohydrate myth out there that people must eliminate carbohydrates to lose weight. Carbohydrate reduction in some cases can help you lose water weight and can also assist your body in drawing from fat stores for energy. Short term these appear to most people as being positive results. Beware, eliminating carbohydrates for an extended period of time can have adverse health effects and could ultimately compromise your health and energy level. Here are some reasons not to jump on the no carbohydrate train.
- Constipation: Low carbohydrate and low fiber diets can lead to constipation. Many carbohydrate foods provide bulk and fiber. Those include grains and fruits and vegetables, which not only provide essential vitamins but also help keep you regular. The rule of thumb is the average adult should have one to two bowel movements per day for optimal health.
- Colon cancer risk: Many carbohydrates come with fiber. A decreased amount of fiber and an increased amount of protein can increase your risk ofcolorectal cancer. These fibrous grains, fruits and vegetables add bulk to the intestines and serve as a scrubbing brush so to speak, keeping the intestinal wall strong and free from deposits. The lack of this fiber can cause the muscle of the intestinal wall to weaken and form pockets known as diverticulitis. Simply put, food particles can get caught in these pockets and cause infection and pain.
- Higher risk of osteoporosis: Improper protein intake can increase calcium excretion in the urine and could have a long-term risk of osteoporosis.
- Breath and Body odors: A low carbohydrate or no carbohydrate diet creates ketoacidosis where your body burns protein for fuel instead of carbohydrates. This ketosis can cause ammonia-like odor while sweating and a sour breath smell if allowed to continue.
- Gout and or kidney stones can form with an over consumption of protein. the high level of proteins can prompt an over production of uric acid and if allowed to continue for an extended period of time can result in kidney stones or gout.
- Eliminating carbohydrates impairs muscle strength and endurance and will result in poor athletic performance.
- Aside from all the nutrients provided from carbohydrate sources, carbohydrates provide energy; therefore an individual on a low or no carbohydrate diet will be more prone to energy and mood swings.
Basically maintaining a good weight is all about balance. The average female needs 46 grams of protein and the average male needs about 56 grams of protein per day. That’s about 6 to 8 servings of meat, fish, or poultry, tofu soy or low fat dairy products. Carbohydrates should be about 50% of your total calories throughout the day. Fat should be 3 servings of poly or mono-saturated fats. Eliminating any one of these nutrients is not a good practice of optimal health.
Good carbohydrates are high in nutrients, low in calories, high in fiber and digest and break down slower, leaving a feeling of fullness.
Fruits
Vegetables
Grain Products, like 100% whole wheat breads and cereals, wheat germs, bran and oatmeal
Bad carbohydrate sources are typically loaded with sugar and contain little nutritional value other then calories. They break down and metabolize quicker, causing blood sugars to spike and fall rapidly, resulting in feeling hungry and often times fatigued.
Bad Carbs Include
Donuts, pastries, cookies and basically anything with high sugar content.
Soda and many soft drinks and juices contain high sugars.
White breads, white bagels, most cold cereals for they revert to glucose after ingestion.
Most power bars and the so-called health bars are nothing more then fortified candy bars. So beware.
Read the label for sugar and fat content.
For more information on staying healthy visit my web site at familymatters2me.net
Article by Jodi Cornelio, Nutritionist, PT, MBA
Filed under: Health, Kids Korner | Tags: children's health, Health, heart disease, obesity
Why Are We Killing Our Children?
Happy Meals, Coca Cola, Lunchables, Milk, Krispy Kremes; these are the things that we “reward” our children with. We tell them that if they are good at the dentist or the doctor that we will take them out for snacks. We tell them that if they clean their rooms that they can have a cookie. We tell them that if they eat all of their dinner they can have dessert. What are we as parents thinking? This has gone on for generations and I have no doubt that it will go on for many more. What kind of message do you think this sends? Is this how eating disorders and unhealthy attitudes towards food start? I would be surprised if that were not the case! Not only are we fostering these unhealthy attitudes towards food in our children, but are we also killing them?
An article published in the American Journal of Pathology stated that all children who consume the rich western diet, i.e. the American diet, show early stages of atherosclerosis (artery damage caused by fatty streaks) by the age of 3. Let me say that again. ALL children who consume the fatty diets we give them have early stages of heart disease by the age of 3! If this is not a crime against our children, then I do not know what is!
Have you ever been out in public and seen a baby drinking a bottle with Coke in it? Or worse, have you done that yourself to your own children? Maybe people don’t understand the very real danger they are posing to their children by doing this.
We are the product of what we eat. Our children are a product of the food that we feed them. So why would you set your children up for heart disease, Type II diabetes, and even cancer? Our country is plagued by what experts are calling the ‘obesity epidemic’. How do we get fat? How do we develop disease? Are we just one of the unlucky ones if we are found to be diseased with cancer? I don’t think so.
We create the environment for disease to begin within our own bodies and those of our children. Eating fast food, drinking soft drinks, eating a diet that consists primarily of highly processed foods, not eating enough fruits, not eating enough vegetables; this is how we set the stage for disease to grow in our bodies.
If you pay close attention to the news reports, you will notice a trend.
Everyday there is new information out there about the benefits of fruits and vegetables. There is new information about the dangers of prescription drugs.
There is new information about the body’s ability to repair itself. There is
mounting evidence of what we should have already known; your body is the smartest ‘machine’ ever created.
Everyday there are millions of processes that are ongoing simultaneously in your body. You breathe without even thinking about it. With every breath, oxygen is inhaled and poisons such as carbon dioxide are exhaled. Your heart beats constantly without any help from you and supplies oxygen-filled blood to all areas of your body. You eat foods, and while the food is digested, your body takes what it needs from the food and turns it into new cells to replace the old cells that your body then excretes as waste products.
What do you want your new cells to be made of? Do you think cancer can develop if you have spent years feeding your body useless processed food? Do you think cancer can develop if you constantly bathe your insides with the insidious ingredients found in a 12 ounce can of Coca Cola?
How many years of our children’s lives are we going to squander ‘rewarding’ them with the very foods that are killing them? The foods that are creating the childhood obesity epidemic? The same foods that are giving our children adult-onset diabetes long before they are adults! To me this seems unfair.
Do we love our children enough to provide them with high quality foods, or are we just trying to give them whatever we think they will eat because we have tainted their taste buds with poisonous food.
And since when did pus become a health food and something that our children cannot live without? Were you aware that there is pus in the milk that the dairy industry insists that you should feed your children every day? And the government is ok with that. They have set the standards for the number of pus cells that can be in a glass of milk.
Are people just not paying attention when articles with titles like “McDonald’s Meat Sources to Cut Antibiotics” show up in the local newspapers? Cut antibiotics? How many of us were aware that the antibiotics given to the cows to stop infections were ending up in the hamburgers? Of course those are not the antibiotics that they are stopping. It is the ones that promote growth.
Are any antibiotics really ok? Not for my children!
Children will naturally gravitate to fruits and natural foods until, as adults,
we taint their taste buds and ruin them with processed foods. All is not lost, however, as we can get them back on a healthy path. It is never too late to begin reversing the early stages of heart disease. Your children have a right to be healthy! Don’t take that away from them!
For more information on healthy eating and exercise tips for kids and yourself go to my web site at www.familymatters2me.net
Article by Julie S. Rayburn, Lifestyle Coach for Vitality Health and Fitness.
Filed under: Health | Tags: flu, flu shot, flu vaccine, Health, influenza, vaccination
Do Flu shots help you avoid infection?
You can increase your chances of avoiding an influenza infection by getting an influenza immunization. Although it is impossible to be vaccinated against all of the various types and subtypes of influenza virus, it is possible to make and educated guess about which types may be about to descend upon us.
The educated guess comes about in the way: One considers the cynical nature of epidemics. One keeps in mind the most recently isolated influenza subtypes. The virus which caused Hong Kong flu in 1972 – a B type virus – was manifested again in 1978-79. A-type Brazil and A-Type USSR viruses are so similar that vaccination against one will afford protection against both viruses.
Usually flu shotscontain killed virus from three distinct strains, usually two A strains and a B strain. the B strain will be that sub-type most likely to be ocming around agian in its four to six year cycle. Seventy persent of those vaccinated obtain immunity to these and similar influenza virus strains for a period of three to six months.
The three main strains research indicates are most likely to be causing influenza this year, and against which the vaccine will protect you are: A/Brisbane/59/2007(H1N1)-like virus; A/Brisbane/10/2007(H3N2)-like virus; B/Florida/4/2006-like virus.
Many people commonly believe that flu shots afford protection against other virus infections. This is not so.
A flu shot will not “cause” the flu or a flu-like illness although with a small minority of patients, five percent or so, there may be a mild fever-like reaction to the shot. This reaction with fever, muscle aches, and fatigue lasts only one to two days and is mild. About one third of those vaccinated get swelling and tenderness at the site of the injection. Ifyou are allergic to egges or egg protien, you should not have a flu shot.
Who should get the flu shot? The CDC and the Advisoty Committee on Immunizatoin Practices recommend the following people strongly consider getting a flu shot every year:
Children aged 6 months to 19 years
- Pregnant Women
- People 50 years of age and older
- People of any age with certain chronic medical conditions
- People who live in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities
- People who live with or care for those at high risk for complications from flu, including:
- Health care workers
-
- Household contacts of persons at high risk for complications from the flu
-
- Household contacts and out of home caregivers of children less than 6 months of age.
Yearly flu vaccination should begin in September or as soon as vaccine is available and continue throughout the influenza season, into December, January and beyond. This is because the timing and duration of influenza seasons vary. While influenza outbreaks can happen as early as October, most of the time influenza activity peaks in January or later.
You should know this as well: If you don’t get a flu shot and you do get influenza there are two drugs available that will kill the virus and can make the illness milder. These drugs are oseltamivir (trade name: Tamiflu) and zanamivir (Relenza). (Atantadine and rimantadine have also been used in the past, but are NOT recommended for use this year because of viral resistance.) Ask your doctor about these drugs.
But get a flu shot!
For more information on staying healthy visit my web site at familymatters2me.net
Article written by Dr. Michael LaCombe
Filed under: Health | Tags: fever, flu, Health, infection, influenza, virus
Is it ‘the flu’ or just a nasty cold?
There is great misunderstanding about just what is influenza. Many viral upper respiratory infections are termed “the flu” by both patient and doctor. Anything from a runny nose, a bout of diarrhea, a week or more of dry cough and malaise, abdominal cramps, and fever are mistakenly called “the flu.” True influenza is an unforgettable illness. High fever, headache, severe muscle aching, and feeling of extreme prostration render the patient be ridden for a week or more. Other viral upper respiratory infections may cause a runny nose and sinus congestion but influenza more characteristically features a very dry nose and throat and a dry cough. There is typical central chest pain aggravated by the dry hacking cough. Without a complicating pneumonia, the fever of influenza may be gone in three to four days and the illness is over within about a week.
Influenza is caused by one particular virus, a virus having many types and designations, which have given rise to a confusing array of names: Asian flu,Hong Kong flu, Russian flu, swine flu, and others. Consider this analogy: Just as dogs may be setters, poodles, or hound, influenza viruses come in three types: A, B, and C. Within each of these types of influenza virus, there are a number of subtypes caused by chemical variations within the virus particle itself. These subtypes are designated A1, A2,ect ., as in English and Irish setters. These subtypes are named for a place of origin. For example, influenza A/Texas 77 originated in Texas in 1977. Each subtype is itself subject to variations, just as two Irish setters never look exactly alike. These variations within a subtype produce differences sufficient enough to fool antibody response “remembering” a previous influenza infection. Past influenza infection thus may not afford immunity against the next epidemic. An influenza immunization attempts to trick the body’s host defenses into thinking that the influenza has infected the body, causing the body’s defenses to produce antibodies to one or more of the influenza subtypes. In this way if the real thing comes along, the antibody-manufacturing system “remembers” and quickly springs into action.
Epidemics of A-type virus occur in cycles of about every two to four years, whereas influenza B epidemics cycle every four to six years. Very rarely does a worldwide epidemic or so-called pandemic occur. there have been three pandemics in the century. In 1917-18, 500 million people contracted influenza and 20 million people died during three waves of a pandemic caused by by an influenza A subtype. Not all the people who died in that pandemic on 1917-18 were old and debilitated; one of every sixty-seven army soldiers with influenza died of it.
There is still no cure for influenza. The illness must run its course and the body depends upon its own host defenses for ultimate eradication of the virus. Aspirin, fluids, and bed rest help the symptoms. Codeine relieves the dry cough and the chest pain. Remember: Antibioticsare of no use and may indeed be harmful by promoting growth of highly virulent bacteria within the lungs already compromised and weakened by viral infection.
A persistent fever after three or four days, a cough which becomes productive of infected phlegm, marked prostration, and a wet rattling chest, signal the development of acomplicating pneumonia, which can extremely dangerous. You should notify your doctor immediately if these symptoms occur.
For more information on staying healthy visit my web site at familymatters2me.net
Article written by Dr. Michael LaCombe
GOOD FOODS GONE BAD?
Did you know that even foods that are “Good for you” can cause problems. Here are a few to keep your eye on:
Dried Fruits – Dried fruits can exaggerate symptoms of candida and other yeast-feeding infections.
According to Jackie Keller, founder of NutriFit, “Dried Fruits are a concentrated source of naturally occurring fruit sugars that can exaggerate symptoms of candida and other yeast-feeding infections.” Candida albicans is a type of yeast-like fungus that inhabits the intestines, genital tract, mouth, esophagus and throat. Under normal conditions, this fungus lives in healthy balance in the body, however, certain conditions can cause the bacteria to multiply out of control. This can lead to a weakened immune system and an infection know as candidiasis. “There are a host of symptoms that can include constipation, diarrhea, colitis, abdominal pain, headaches, memory loss, mood swings, prostatitis, persistent heartburn, severe itching, bad breath, and kidney and bladder infections,”says Keller. Symptoms often get worse after consuming foods containing sugar and .or yeast, including all fruits and grains. How much is too much? “Everyone is different, so it is impossible to generalize, but I would think that since a normal serving size is about one ounce, having any more than twice what a serving size is supposed to be is having too much,” says Keller.
Flax Seed – Increased risk of prostate cancer.
Flax Seed has a high content of alpha-linolenic acids (ALA) has made the ancient flax seed our modern miracle food, says Gloria Tsang, R.D., of HealthCastle.com. “It offers a vegetarian alternative to provide omega-3 fatty acid and has been shown in many studies to offer heart-healthy benefits by lowering total cholesterol and low-density lopoprotien (LDL or “bad”) cholesterol levels. Flax seed may also help lower triglycerides and blood pressure and keep platelets from becoming sticky, thereby reducing the risk of a heart attack.” adds Tsang. However, a few studies have also linked high concentrations of ALA to a higher risk of prostate cancer. Until more is known, men who are not vegetarians are recommended to choose fish sources for heart-healthy omega-3s. How much is too much? As ALA is concentrated in oil form, it’s OK for men to eat the actual seeds, but until more studies are done they should completely stay away from the oil form.
Carrots – Eating too many carrots may result in hypercarotenemia.
According to Maurice A. Ramirez, D.O., a Florida based emergency room physician and founder of High Alert, “Excess beta carotene ingestion can cause yellow or orange discoloration of the skin and eyes that mimics jaundice and liver disease.” How much is too much? It depends on your size, normally. Originally this condition was seen only in infants transitioning to pureed foods. In the 1950’s, 1960’s and 1970’s parents were told to introduce only one food at a time and feed it to the baby six times a day for a week. Since the first food was carrots with the nest being sweet potatoes and the third butternut squash, by week four the child was orange. Just about the time this became a rare problem in babies, adults started using beta-carotene pills as a way to tan without sitting in the sun.
Poppy Seeds – Opiate positive drug test.
Poppy seeds come form the poppy plant, which is the source of opium and other opiate drugs. According to Ramirez, “Sub-therapeutic amounts of opiates in the poppy seeds are metabolized in the same way as larger drug doses and excreted in the urine.” How much is too much? “Contrary to popular belief, the amount of poppy seeds on a bagel or a loaf of bread will not result in a positive drug test, nor will it excuse such a result. Poppy seed strudel, if the poppy seeds are ground and sauteed in better for several hours to make the strudel paste and the eaten in large quantities, may result in a positive screening exam.”
For more suggestions on healthy foods and tips for staying healthy go to my web site at www.familymatters2.net
Filed under: Health | Tags: eat right, exercise, Health, Immune system, slep, stress
6 Ways to help boost your immune system
The season is upon us. Kids are back in school and the cold weather is on its way. Your immune system is important. I t is like having your own personal army, it guards your body against attacks from bacteria, fungi, and viruses, defending against infections and several kinds of cancer. It is smart too. It often “remembers” certain infections so it’s ready for them the next time they try to attack. But just like any other body system, your immune system can deteriorate if you don’t treat it right. In order to keep it functioning at its peak performance, so you can stay healthy, follow these six steps.
1. Eat Right
To eat just enough of the right foods when you feel hungry is easier said than done. We are tempted by unhealthy options everywhere we go, we eat for emotional reasons, or we don’t even know what the right foods are. For those of us who struggle in this area, this may take some work.
Avoid eating too much, which can lead to weight gain and harm the immune system. Research performed by scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine has shown that obesity prevents the immune system from functioning properly, increasing its vulnerability to infection. In the study, obese mice were found to be 50 percent less capable of killing the flu virus, compared to lean mice. The researchers believe that the same holds true in humans. It is just as important to know how much you’re eating as it is what foods you’re eating. Some nutrients and foods that have been found to enhance the immune system include:
* Vitamin C-rich foods, like citrus fruit and broccoli
* Vitamin E-rich foods, like nuts and whole grains
* Garlic
* Zinc-rich foods, like beans, turkey, crab, oysters, and beef
* Bioflavanoids, which are found in fruits and vegetables
* Selenium-rich foods, like chicken, whole grains, tuna, eggs, sunflower seeds, and brown rice
* Carotenoid-rich foods, like carrots and yams
* Omega-3 fatty acids, found in nuts, salmon, tuna, mackerel, flaxseed oil and hempseed oil.
You can find these nutrients in pill form, but food is always the best and most usable source of vitamins and minerals. Supplements can be shady, since no regulating body ensures that they contain what they claim to, or that they’ll be absorbed as well as nutrients you get from food.
Vegetables from the brassica family, like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and cabbage are key. According to a new study led by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, and published online in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, a chemical produced when these vegetables are eaten can stop the growth of cancer cells and boost the production of certain components of the immune system.
2. Exercise Regularly
According to the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports (PCPFS), data from numerous studies show that regular exercise reduces the number of sick days. In three separate studies cited in the June 2001 issue of the PCPFS’ Research Digest, women who engaged in 35-45 minutes of brisk walking, five days a week, for 12-15 weeks experienced a reduced number of sick days compared to the control (sedentary) group. Exercise doesn’t have to be strenuous to provide these benefits—in fact moderate exercise may even achieve a better result. A study published in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise found that upper respiratory infections were more common among athletes during heavy training. Whatever you do, listen to your body. If you’re under the weather already, take it easy until you feel better.
3. Get Enough Sleep
Deep sleep stimulates and energizes the immune system, while sleep deprivation has the opposite effect. According to authors of a sleep study published in 2001 in the journal Seminars in Clinical Neuropsychiatry, significant detrimental effects on immune functioning can be seen after a few days of total sleep deprivation or even several days of just partial sleep deprivation. According to the National Institutes of Health, the average adult needs between 7 and 8 hours a night, although some people may need as few as 5 hours or as many as 10 hours. To make sure you are getting enough quality sleep, avoid caffeinated drinks (and other stimulants), decongestants, tobacco and alcohol. Alcohol can assist falling into a light sleep, but it interferes with REM and the deeper stages of sleep, which are restorative.
4. Manage Stress
Keeping stress out of your life is nearly impossible but how you choose to react to stress can greatly impact your overall health. Sweeping problems under the rug as opposed to solving them can turn short-term stress into chronic stress, which can cause health problems. According to the National Institutes of Health, hormones (like cortisol) that hang around during chronic stress can put us at risk for obesity, heart disease, cancer, and a variety of other illnesses. These stress hormones can work in two ways, either switching off disease-fighting white blood cells or triggering a hyperactive immune system, which increases your risk of developing auto-immune diseases. So find ways to de-stress a few times per week, whether you exercise, practice yoga, meditate, or take a relaxing bath.
5. Quit Smoking
In an older but still relevant study published in the 1983 edition of the Medical Journal of Australia, immune system markers in 35 smokers were analyzed before they quit smoking and then again three months after they had quit. Compared with a control group who continued to smoke, the ex-smokers had significant, positive changes in many measurements of their immune systems. Smoking and using tobacco products contributes to a host of health problems, and this is one more you can add to your list for reasons to quit. I just quit and I love it. It took several tries but I finally did it.
6. Consume Alcohol in Moderation
Chronic alcohol abuse is defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders as the use of alcoholic beverages despite negative consequences. Besides the social and economic consequences of chronic alcohol abuse, a 1998 article in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research states that alcohol abuse can also cause lead to immunodeficiency, making you more susceptible to bacterial pneumonia, tuberculosis, and other communicable diseases. But the moderate use of alcohol (one drink daily for women, and two for men) has not been associated with negative effects on the immune system. In fact, according to a 2007 article in the British Journal of Nutrition, there is an increasing body of evidence linking health benefits linked with moderate consumption of polyphenol-rich alcoholic beverages, like wine or beer. The article states that, while heavy alcohol use can suppress the immune response, “moderate alcohol consumption seems to have a beneficial impact on the immune system compared to alcohol abuse or abstinence.” So for the time being, the advice remains: everything in moderation.
To find out the best ways to eat right and exercise, go to my website: www.familymatters2me.net
Is Menopause a threat to your heart?
Hot flashes, insomnia, and other bothersome symptoms that can accompany menopause are common. Did you know that heart disease come with the territory as well? Before menopause women have a lower incidence of heart attacks and other heart conditions than men do because of their high estrogen levels.
Estrogen helps prevent high blood pressure by keeping your blood vessels open. It also raises your HDL, or good cholesterol, which halps prevent plaque from forming in your vessels. As women get older they produce less estrogen and their risk of heart disease starts to rise.
More than half of all death in women over the age of 55 are caused by cardiovascular disease. While replacing lost estrogen through menopausal hormone therapy was standard practice for many years, government studies have since shown that hormones don’t offer the same heart protection the did at a younger age and may do more harm than good.
To find out the best way to keep your heart healthy as you age go to my website: www.familymatters2me.net
Source: Central Maine Heart and Vascular Institute
