Battling Heart and Stroke

When I was growing up in an Asian country in the Pacific, the daily fare was rice, fresh fish, vegetables, and fruit. That was before the fast food invasion. Several decades, the daily diet has drastically changed - burgers, pizza, fries galore.

This is happening all over as globalization proceeds in a very fast pace. With lifestyle changes come changes in diet and physical exercise with consequences on our health. Below are some examples of how lifestyle changes are adversely affecting the cardiovascular health of once primarily healthy populations. More →

Stroke in babies? No. that can’t be. When we think of stroke, we know the risk factors involved: excess weight, bad nutrition, excessive alcohol consumption, lack of exercise, and cigarette smoking. So how can babies suffer from stroke?

Apparently, stroke in children is not that common but not that rare, either. The risk of stroke from birth till the18th year of life is 10.7 per 100,000 children per year.

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Looking forward to your second Olympics weekend? Be aware, though, that watching stressful sports events might just not be good for your heart. Happy reading!

CVD healthcare watch

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You’d think that because you are a nonsmoker, you are safe from the adverse effects of cigarettes. Actually it all depends on your environment.

It’s called secondhand smoking or passive smoking - and it happens when nonsmokers inhale cigarette smoke in the surroundings - in places such as restaurants, bars, and other public places where smoking is still allowed.

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Every year, over 700,000 people in the US suffer from stroke. According to the American Stroke Association, stroke is the number 3 cause of mortality in the US, after heart diseases and different types of cancer.

Those who are lucky to survive this monster can end up with after effects that would include paralysis, speech or language impairment, vision problems, behavioural changes, and memory loss.

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Had a bad day at the office? What about getting a cat to de-stress? Owning a cat may even benefit your heart, according to a 20-year “feline lifeline” study by researchers at the University of Minnesota Stroke Center.

Examining data on 4,435 adults, the researchers found that the relative risk of death from heart attack was 40 percent higher for those who had never owned a cat. Specifically, 3.4 percent of cat owners died from a heart attack during the course of the study versus 5.8 percent of non-owners.

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Part I: The Health Benefits of Alcohol - “Eat, drink and be healthy”

Drinking alcohol has been linked to a wide range of health effects, ranging from the very good to the very bad. A post in June reported on the adverse effects of heavy drinking on cardiovascular health. On the other hand, light to moderate drinking has been shown to have long lasting beneficial effects. The only problem is how to determine the boundary between healthy and unhealthy alcohol consumption. Some researchers are concerned that recent reports about the health benefits of alcohol may mislead people to drink more than they should, thereby doing more harm than good to their health.

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Having problems with your hearing? Maybe it is time to check your stroke risk.

A nation-wide research study in Taiwan based on health insurance records indicates that sudden loss of hearing might be an early sign of risk to stroke. In fact, this symptom may be able to predict the actual stroke two years before it happens.

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A recent survey by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) showed 46% of Americans have basic or below basic level of health literacy. I am sure that many countries in the world have the same health literacy problems.

When in doubt, where do you turn to for health information? To your health care provider, of course.

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Is there a link between dementia and ministrokes? This seems very likely, according to researchers who conducted studies on several people with dementia or cognitive impairment.

What is dementia?

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