Heart Disease Prevention - Does Gender Difference Affect Heart Disease?

A women’s heart and some of its interior chambers, for instance, is usually smaller and the walls that divide some of these chambers are thinner. Men and women behave differently to stress, too. Because of these differences, women have risk factors and symptoms differ from that men have, and this will affect the treatments and outcomes of some common heart diseases.

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https://www.howtopreventheartdisease.com/does-gender-difference-affect-heart-disease.html

Heart Disease Prevention - Would Using Opioids Raise Heart Disease Risk?

Opioids are specifically used to alleviate severe pain caused by temporary medical conditions like broken bones or post-operative pain, or pain associated with severe end-stage medical problems, especially terminal cancer. They tend to be very effective in these situations, but these drugs are high addictive and they can cause serious medical problems including heart disease. Click the following link for more information:

https://www.howtopreventheartdisease.com/would-using-opioids-raise-heart-disease-risk.html 

Heart Disease Prevention - Can Fish Oil Prevent Heart Disease?

Numerous studies on fish oil indicated that its omega-3 fatty acids may help manage blood pressure, reduce triglycerides and the chance of abnormal heart rhythm, lower the likelihood of heart attack and stroke, and lessen the risk of sudden cardiac death in patients with heart disease.

Find out more at:

https://www.howtopreventheartdisease.com/can-fish-oil-prevent-heart-disease.html

Heart Disease Prevention - Can Eating Chocolate Prevent Heart Disease?

Being one of the most popular sweet treats in the world, chocolate is made from cocoa. Interestingly, it also happens to be one food that is rich in antioxidants. For years, numerous studies have reported that antioxidants found in cocoa may help prevent heart disease.

https://howtopreventheartdisease.com/can-eating-chocolate-prevent-heart-disease.html

Heart Disease Prevention - Will Hysterectomy Raise Heart Disease Risk?

Many factors can cause a person to develop heart disease, for instance, high blood pressure, diabetes, smoking, and binge drinking. But a study also suggested that women who undergo a hysterectomy are at greater risk for heart disease and other health issues, even if they keep their ovaries. 

Find out more at:

https://www.howtopreventheartdisease.com/will-hysterectomy-raise-heart-disease-risk.html

Why Keeping Healthy Weight Is Important For Hypertension Prevention?

Hypertension or high blood pressure is a risk factor for a number of chronic diseases including heart disease, stroke, diabetes and kidney disease. So if one can keep his or her blood pressure in check, the risk of getting these diseases can be minimized.

At the AHA (American Heart Association) meeting on September 14, 2017, a new research paper was presented indicating that healthy weight (measured as a body mass index less than 25 kg/m2) maintained throughout life  is important to help keep blood pressure in check, and it is more so than 4 other health behaviors studied! The other 4 behaviors are: never smoking; up to 7 alcoholic drinks weekly for women and up to 14 for men; 150 minutes or more moderate to vigorous physical activity per week and eating a healthy diet, based on adhering to the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) eating plan.

4,630 participants of the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults Study were assessed for the study. They were 18 to 30 years old in 1985 and 1986 at the onset of the study. During the 25-year follow-up, researchers measured blood pressure and health behaviors 8 times, until participants were in middle age. They found participants who maintained a healthy body weight were more likely to have normal blood pressure as they grew older. They were 41 percent less likely to have an increasing blood pressure as they aged.

Maintaining physical activity or eating a healthy diet were not associated with changes in blood pressure during the 25-year period. Never smoking and maintaining no or moderate alcohol consumption were associated with less of an increase in blood pressure by middle age. However, people in the study who maintained at least 4 health behaviors were 27 percent more likely to have a normal blood pressure from early adulthood through middle age. But the researchers said that a larger study is required to confirm these because they may have been a chance finding.

Weight may contribute to high blood pressure in a number of ways, according to health experts. When one gains weight, the heart has to work harder because the weight has a compressive effect on the blood pressure. As one ages, the blood vessels stiffens and this may produce cardiac problems. For people who do not gain weight, the stiffening will be less, and keeps blood pressure lower. This may prevent more serious outcomes.

Undoubtedly, the findings provide evidence that having a normal body weight is very important in maintaining a normal blood pressure from early and into middle adulthood. While the other 4 behaviors were not as closely related to changes in blood pressure over time, they may still play an paramount role since they can help in weight management.

Heart Disease Prevention - Not All Anginas Are Same!

Angina is chest pain or discomfort that occurs when the heart muscle does not receive sufficient oxygen-rich blood. It is not a disease but a symptom of an underlying heart problem, usually coronary heart disease. This usually happens because one or more of the coronary arteries is narrowed or blocked. Click the following link for more details:

https://howtopreventheartdisease.com/not-all-anginas-are-same.html

Why Is The Blood Sugar Level High In Morning?

Diabetes, whether Type-1 or Type-2, is a risk factor for a number of diseases including heart disease, stroke and kidney disease. Managing and controlling the blood sugar level within the healthy range is, therefore, very important for all diabetics. It is not uncommon for some doctors to advise their diabetic patients to measure at home their blood sugar regularly using a blood glucose monitor. Sometimes, certain group of patients may find that their blood sugar readings are noticeably high in early morning. This is properly due to either dawn phenomenon or Somogyi effect, the two common causes for such phenomenon.

Usually occurs between 3 and 8 am, the dawn phenomenon is a natural rise in blood sugar because of hormones secreted at night that trigger the liver to dump sugar into the blood to help prepare for the day. While everybody experiences these natural changes in hormone levels, the body of people with diabetes may not adjust appropriately. For healthy people, the body can just make more insulin to balance everything out, so they do not even notice that is happening. For diabetics, however, the fasting blood sugar reading can go up since the body may not have enough insulin to counteract those hormones. This can lead to higher-than-normal blood sugar at the start of the day.

While the dawn phenomenon happens naturally, the Somogyi effect occurs as a result of poor diabetic management. Taking too much insulin or not having enough food before bed can cause a condition called hyperglycemia, also known as low blood sugar. The body will then release stress hormones like glucagon and epinephrine, to raise the sugar level causing blood sugar to elevate in the morning. That is why Somogyi effect is also known as reactive hyperglycemia. It is thought to be more common in people with Type-1 diabetes than Type-2 diabetes.

To determine what cause the hike in blood sugar level, doctor may ask the patient to check the blood sugar levels between 2 am and 3 am for several nights in a row. If the blood sugar is consistently low during this time, the Somogyi effect might be the cause. If the blood sugar is normal during this time period, then the dawn phenomenon is more likely to be the cause. Some additional clues that the Somogyi effect may be the cause include nightmares, restless sleep and overnight sweating as these are all signs of low blood sugar levels. Some patients with Somogyi effect may also experience difficulty waking up in the morning.

Some research scientists also recommend checking blood sugar levels for several nights specifically between 3 am and 5 am using a continuous glucose monitoring system (CGM). Making use of a CGM enables one to get the information without having to wake up for it. These monitors potentially help identify patterns and severity of high and low blood sugars. In fact, many healthcare practitioners are now offering loan of CGM for a few days.