Saturday, October 28, 2017

Heart Disease Prevention - Can Exercise Help Weight Loss?

Many people are probably unware that exercise can lead to only modest weight loss. A review of exercise intervention studies, which was published in 2001, found that after 20 weeks, weight loss was less than expected, and…

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Friday, October 20, 2017

Why Eating Eggs Might Not Raise Heart Disease Risk?


Whole egg consists of 2 main components: egg white and egg yolk. Egg white is a wonderful source of protein. Egg yolk contains not only essential nutrients like choline and lutein which are important for preserving our brain and eye health, but also important vitamins such as vitamins B2, B5, B12 and D.

But people have been told to limit intake of eggs because of high cholesterol in egg yolks. A single egg yolk has about 200 mg of cholesterol, making it as one of the richest sources of dietary cholesterol. High cholesterol is said to be a risk factor for heart disease and stroke.

In reality, dietary cholesterol and cholesterol in the blood are only weakly related. Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance that is found in all cells of the body. The body needs some cholesterol to make hormones, Vitamin-D, and substances that help digest foods. The body makes all the cholesterol it requires, though cholesterol can also be found in the food eaten (dietary cholesterol). The liver is stimulated to make cholesterol primarily by saturated fat and trans fat in the diet, not dietary cholesterol.

Eating foods high in cholesterol has very little impact on the blood cholesterol levels for most people. That is why the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2015 removed the prior recommendation to limit consumption of dietary cholesterol to 300 mg per day. In about 70 percent of the population, foods rich in cholesterol like eggs cause only a subtle rise in cholesterol levels or none at all. In the other 30 percent, these foods do cause a rise in blood cholesterol levels. 

Some evidence suggests that eggs might even be beneficial because this raises levels of HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol) that is associated with a lower risk of heart disease. Egg yolks are also rich in the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin that help eye health and protect against inflammation. Carotenoids need to be eaten with fat in order for the body to more fully absorb them, and a whole egg is the total package. Egg yolks contain a vibrant mix of saturated and unsaturated fat (about 5 grams per egg).

The risk of heart disease is influenced by the total lifestyle. It is a disease that has its root in inflammation and levels of inflammation are affected by weight, physical activity, the anti-oxidant levels in the diet and the type and amount of fats consumed.

Many huge studies that followed hundreds and thousands of people have found eating an egg a day is safe for most people. They did not find higher rates of heart attacks, strokes, or other cardiovascular diseases in people who eat up to an egg per day. A study by the University of Eastern Finland, for instance, reported that even carriers of the ApoE4 gene, which makes them highly susceptible to heart disease, egg and cholesterol intake was not linked to an increased risk of coronary artery disease. The findings were published online February 10, 2016 in the ‘American Journal of Clinical Nutrition’.

For the majority, an egg a day does not increase their risk of heart attack or stroke. But people who have difficulty controlling their total and LDL cholesterol, with diabetes, or already have heart disease, may want to be cautious about eating egg yolks and should instead choose foods made with egg whites. No more than 3 egg yolks per week is recommended.

Saturday, October 14, 2017

Heart Disease Prevention - Feet Conditions May Uncover Signs Of Heart Disease

Knowing sign of heart disease early may help one lower risk of serious complications or even death. Sometimes, the signs of heart disease can be spotted through other parts of human body. For instance, the eye may reveal signs of heart disease. Likewise, the condition of one’s feet may uncover sign of heart disease. Find out more at:


Friday, October 06, 2017

15-Minute Walk For Heart Disease Prevention

Besides diet, exercise also play an important role in keeping one fit and healthy. The general consensus is that people should have 150 minutes of moderate exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise each week. Running, swimming, or sports like basketball, football, tennis, table tennis are all good forms of exercise. But for older folks or people who are not suitable for these activities, walking can be a good way to keep fit, too.

Studies using pedometer showed that people who achieve more steps throughout the day are less likely to be overweight, and are at a much lower risk of developing diseases like heart disease, stroke, cancer, Type-2 diabetes, and more. A pedometer is a small, beeper-sized device that counts the number of steps achieved.

The benefits of walking are often ignored because it is not regarded by most people as an aerobic exercise. The definition of aerobic exercise is one that stimulates the heart and respiratory rates to pump additional oxygen to muscles. Even a slow stroll does that. The faster one walks, the more aerobic the activity. Increased cardiovascular, respiratory, and circulatory operations mean nutrients go where they must to support the exercise. Energy is expensed rather than stored, and the organs, muscles, and bones are strengthened. 

A recent French 12-year study reported that just 15 minutes of moderate daily physical activity such as walking is associated with a 22 percent lower risk of death for people over 60 years of age. The study was conducted by researchers from Jean Monnet University in Saint-Etienne, France.

Walking 15 minutes may not lead to weight loss, though. For someone who performs strength-training exercises, eats healthily and leads an active life, walking 15 minutes daily can play a role in weight loss. For people who are lack of physical activity and adopts a high-calorie diet, daily 15-minute walks would unlikely lead to weight loss. But walking 15 minutes can still help burn some calories and maintain weight, especially if walking is the only form of exercise one has. Meanwhile, walking can also strengthen muscles, lungs and heart, and improve bone density and relieve stress.

Anyway, there may by a slight advantage if one can walk for 45 minutes or more. The body replaces the burned glycogen (sugar) either through the calories one eats or through breaking down some stored fat. If one eats more calorie than the body needs, it stores it right back again as fat.

If one has difficulty to set aside 45 minutes or even 30 minutes a day for walking, he or she can begin with 15-minute walk a day. Once the 15-minute walk habit is established, he or she can then increase the duration by another 15 minutes to make it a 30-minute walk or two 15-minute walks. In this way, people can get closer to the recommended 150 minutes per week of moderate aerobic activity. 

Sunday, October 01, 2017

Heart Disease Prevention - Knowing Heart Failure And Its Symptoms

The pumping action of heart is to ensure delivery of oxygen and nutrient-rich blood to the body’s cells so that it can function normally. When the heart fails, it cannot pump as well as it should be, and the cells in the body cannot receive sufficient blood. Click the following link to find out what is heart failure and its symptoms.