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The Role Of Legumes In Heart Health

We all know how a nutritious and balanced diet can help us live longer by keeping heart ailments at bay. A recent study carried out to find out the role of legumes in heart health reveals that legumes. Though it’s never been easy to know the benefits of food on an individual basis.

Five color legumes for healthy , Soy bean, Navy bean or white bean, Black beam, Red bean and Green bean,

But, recently researchers of the review called Advances in Nutrition took up the task of understanding the significance of legumes like lentils, peas and beans etc. around heart health.

Primarily, they focused on cardiovascular diseases like coronary heart disease, stroke, myocardial infarction besides looking into hypertension, obesity and diabetes. They chose cardiovascular diseases because it is one of the most common causes of mortality and even one of the most expensive ones. It is known to cause US 1 billion dollars a day.

They used the data analysis of Eurpoean Association which recently carried out a series of systematic reviews as well as meta-analysis for Diabetics study. The researchers hope that these results could be quite a help in updating the recommendations already made around the role of legumes in preventing as well as treating cardio-metabolic diseases.

The data review and comparison with people with lowest and highest intake of legumes revealed that dietary pulses that had legumes which either did or did not include other legumes did decrease coronary heart disease, obesity incidence and hypertension.

Though the researchers were able to find a positive relationship between intake of legumes in higher amounts and reduction in certain parameters related to cardiovascular risks, the conclusion they came to are muted relatively.

As per the researchers “The overall certainty of the evidence was graded as low for CVD incidence and ‘very low for all the other outcomes.”

Therefore, the co author of the study Dr Hana Kahleova said “ Americans eat less than one serving of legumes per day, on average. Simply adding more beans to our plates could be a powerful tool in fighting heart disease and bringing down blood pressure.

*Sourced from Internet

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How Much Fiber Intake For Prevention Of Diseases

A new study revealed exactly how much fiber is required for keeping the chronic conditions as well as premature mortality at bay. The objective of the study is to set the guideline for consumption of fiber besides bringing to light information around the carbs responsible for protection against non-communicable diseases as well as curb weight gain.

The author of the study namely Professor Jim Mann, of Otago University New Zealand and the author of the paper Andrew Reynolds is a postdoctoral research fellow at Otago’s Dunedin School of Medicine.

The study was carried out by Reynolds and colleagues by examination of a data that had 185 observational studies that included 135 million person-years besides 58 clinical trials that involved the participation of 4600 people. The study analysis was carried across 40 years.

As per prof. Mann, the motivation behind this study was analysis of previous reviews and meta-analysis. The scientists studied chronic condition incidences as well as premature deaths resulting from them. The conditions included cardiovascular diseases, stroke, colon cancer, type 2 diabetes, cancers such as esophageal cancer, endometrial cancer, prostate cancer to name a few.

The results of the study revealed that people who consume more fiber daily are 15-30% less prone to premature deaths or any of the aforementioned conditions. It also determined that daily consumption of 25 -29 gms of fibre is good for health. Though consumption of more than 29 gms of fibre could be even more beneficial.

Having said that, the authors cleared that the study did not present any side effects of fibre consumption but too much fibre could also be harmful particularly for people with iron and mineral deficiencies. Even consumption of whole grains in excess can lead to iron deficiency as per researchers.

Lastly, the study also found that consumption of high amount of fibre results does relate to less weight and cholesterol levels.

Prof. Mann says “ Health benefits of fiber are supported by over 100 years of research into its chemistry, physical properties, physiology and effects on metabolism.

*Sourced from Internet

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Omega 3 Fatty Acids And Health Benefits

Some of us are definitely aware of omega 3 fatty acids and their benefits. But, many of us are not aware that fatty acids are present not only in animals but plants also. The animal based fatty acids include doosahexaenoic acid (DHA) as well as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). While the animal based omega 3 fatty acids comes from fish oils, plant based come from plant sources. These sources contain alpha-lionelic acid (ALA), that can be converted into Omega-3 fatty acids of the body.

But, most of us are only aware about the health benefits of animal based fish oils with EPA and DHA. But, many of us again aren’t aware about the amount of omega 3, fatty acids that our body requires, even though there is no set standard for intake of the same.

Many experts believe and recommend omega 3 fatty acids for people suffering from cardiovascular conditions particularly higher doses for people having high cholesterol levels. Prescribed medications that are FDA approved are available for people with conditions rather than the supplements.

Omega 3 acids are recommended only for adults and children should not be given any supplements of omega 3 acids before consulting the doctor. Though natural sources of omega 3 fatty acids can be consumed by all irrespective of ages, only if you have no significant allergies around the same.

Natural Sources of omega 3 fatty acids include Cod liver, Soybeans and tofu, Walnuts, Salmon, trout, tuna and sardines, to name a few. The international organization AHA recommends adults for males and females except pregnant women to increase the intake of omega 3 fatty acids

Even avoiding the intake of omega 6 fatty acids that include eggs, meat as well as oil can help in increasing the levels of omega 3 fatty acids in blood. Balancing of omega 3 fatty acids to that of omega 6 can help you manage many health conditions in a better way and reduce the risk of certain conditions as well. As per reports people in USA consume 14-25 times more omega 6 fatty acids as compared to omega 3 fatty acids and this imbalance is not good for health, certainly.

Having said that, omega 3 fatty acids supplements should not be consumed without consulting your physician because they do have certain side effects particularly pregnant women with a diabetes risk should avoid them.

*Sourced from the Internet

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Few Good Apps For Stroke Survivors

We all know that after you get a stroke it takes a long time for your body to come back to its normal functioning. India also is under a high stroke burden already. Across the world stroke is known to be the second most common cause of death. Ischemic strokes are known to account for over 87 percent of all strokes.

Stroke impacts various parts and functioning of the body. This includes mental health issues like depression and anxiety as well as movement issues like paralysis besides issues like bowel control loss, urinary incontinence, swallowing difficulty and visual impairment.

Though if the treatment is done immediately, the chances of recovery are faster. As per a survey the people who are provided critical care within 3 hours of first symptoms of stroke, have shown less disability post 3 months as compared to those who haven’t. In today’s tech times where there are applications available for all, lets run through some of the apps to help you with health and fitness after stroke

Medisafe – This is one app that is like an assistant to you. It reminds you of your doses and tracks your intake too so that you do not miss or double up by mistake. If you are on drugs you do tend to forget your doses.

Constant Therapy – This app is designed for people that are trying to recover from stroke, aphasia or brain injury. It is loaded with 65 different task categories, over a lac different exercises and over 10 difficulty levels. It is developed by scientists at the Boston University.

Cozi – This app is able to manage multiple schedules and is an ideal solution for stroke survivors who are under the care of multiple survivors. It includes a calendar that is color coded and helps manage days with reminders for medications, appointments and more. Managing groceries is also easy as the app comes with to do lists and helps ensure that nothing is missed.

Stop, Breathe & Think – This is an app that concentrates on reducing stress which is known to be a high risk factor for strokes. The main objective of the app is to reduce stress so as to curb the risk of strokes in the future. With meditation, acupressure, meditation and breathing exercises videos it helps calm you and bring you peace from within.

VocalEyes AI – Stroke can sometimes damage the brain areas which takes care of signals from the eyes. This can affect the eyes and lead to double vision or vision loss of a part. Vocaleyes acts as the computer vision for the visually challenged. With the help of machine learning it helps users with identification of objects the are deal with on a daily basis. You need to simply take a photo and the app will tell you what it is including currency denominations, faces, emotions, text, brands and more.

Well, Technology is upgrading day by day and it has already proved to be a boon too in many ways than one.

*Sourced from the Internet

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Rehabilitation After Bypass Surgery for Diabetics

Bypass surgery or CABG (Coronary artery bypass grafting) is done to restore the blood flow in the blocked arteries by creating a bypass to the heart using arteries from other parts of the body. But, this does not mean that the patient is free from coronary heart disease. The coronary heart disease or atherosclerosis progress does not stop and the fatty material does continue to deposit on the artery walls thus turning them narrow and reducing blood flow to other sites as well.

Hence, the patient has to take help of the healthcare provider after surgery to work on the factors that lead to coronary heart disease progress and treat the existing one. The following treatments can help you cope up with the surgery and lead a healthy life post surgery.

Rehabilitation After by Pass Surgery

Medications
Usually the patient is discharged post 5 days of surgery but in case of complications they patient may have to stay longer. The patient and family members are made to understand about the medications, doses, diet and rehabilitation plan. The medications are designed to improve survival rate, decrease the risk of complications and also treat the chest pain if it reoccurs. The medications include Beta blockers, Nitrates as well as ACE inhibitors and are given based on patient’s condition. A therapy called lipid lowering therapy is generally given to all patients after CABG and is recommended to patients with normal lip levels as well. The most common medications used for lowering cholesterol levels are called Statins.

Wound Healing – The patient is given instruction around taking care of the wound before he or she is discharged from the hospital. It is very important the patient adheres to these instruction else complications could arise. The patient needs to avoid lifting heavy objects, bending or driving entirely besides fast shoulder movements like golf or tennis for atleast 6 to 8 weeks.
Alarms – If the patient develops any of the following symptoms within 14 days of the surgery, seek immediate medical assistance.

  • Rapid heart beats
  • Reddened skin, bleeding or Pus like discharge from incision
  • Fever more than 100.4 degree F

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Rehabilitation
Many hospitals have rehabilitation programs designed for people who have undergone rehabilitation. They are comprehensive and well-structured and include components of health care like stress, anxiety and depression healing, reducing risk factors and exercise.

Exercise – The intensity and period of exercises varies from patient to patient and the coronary heart disease condition as well. Initially the exercises are less and eventually they are increased. The exercise plan is devised after considering heart health, fitness level of the patient, supervised or not, limitations and more. It can start from 5 minutes a day for five days a week and go on to 20 minutes over a period of time, which includes warmup, exercise and cooling down. The cooling down phase is important as avoiding it may increase the risk of complications related to the heart.

Cardiac Risk Factors management
Healthy Diet – A dietician usually prepares a chart that needs to be followed by the patient in order to lose weight as well as reduce cholesterol levels.
Go addiction free – Addictions like smoking or alcohol can be too harmful and hence should be stopped completely in order to reduce the risk of heart attack.

Diabetes Management – People with diabetes are at higher risk of getting complications after surgery. Hence, it is vital to control blood sugar levels. This can be achieved by maintaining a healthy life style, keeping blood sugar under control, besides diabetes medication orally or insulin as prescribed.

Psychological Treatment – After bypass the patient can feel depressed, anxious and stressed. Its more common in women who undergo CABG at a young age.

Follow Ups– The doctor will tell you about the hospital visits after the surgery. Following the routine of visits set by the doctor will help you avoid any kind of recurrence of heart problems. As health improves the visits may decrease and there could be a change in the health plan.

 

Rajarajeswari hospital is one of the Best Cardiologist in Bangalore, It provides all type of cardiology services with cutting edge facilities advance cardiac

 

*Sourced from the Internet

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Post Stroke Motor Skill Recovery Made Faster – Vagus Nerve Stimulation methodology

When a person suffers from a stroke, the nerve cells in the brain die away due to blockage in supply of blood. This results in failure in motor skills because the nerves are dead and the connection between the brain and the nerves is lost. The methods that are in use bypass the damaged area of the brain and use other brain cells to handle the lost function. As there are less number of neurons to spare, the patient has to face a movement disability that is long lasting. Now, researchers at the university of Texas, Dallas have found a way out to speed up the motor skill recovery process with the help of the vagus nerve stimulation methodology.

vagus-vagal-nerve-stimulation

The Vagus nerve is responsible for controlling the parasympathetic nervous system which in turn supervises numerous bodily functions like circulation and digestion. A device is implanted in the neck to achieve electrical stimulation. VSN, has been already used for treating depression and is a well- documented technique for fine tuning the functioning of the brain. The role of the VNS is to strengthen the path that leads to the neurons that is damaged after stroke. There has been a visible increase of three fold to five fold in the engaged neuron with VNS addition to the rehab.

The study determines that if we use the approach to deal with complicated motor skills, these improvements further improve the simple movements. It is a significant step in creating guidelines for using VS for post stroke therapy as per the researchers.

The results of the preclinical study carried out by the scientists here showed that the recovery in rodents on which the vagus stimulation (VNS) couple with physical therapy experiment was carried out, doubled long term recovery rate as compared to the therapy in use in these times.

The work is already published in the journal Stroke, and the trial is already on in humans in Dallas and 15 other sites in the country. The researchers have also developed an application that can help us monitor their performance and recovery process remotely too while they use it at home for improving their upper limb motor skills.

Rajarajeswari Heart Center, part of the esteem institute, Rajarajeswari Medical College and Hospital. Was established in May 2012 as an initial non-interventional department with 2D echocardiography, Treadmill Test and cardiac consultation.

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SriDevi – A Victim of Sudden Cardiac Arrest – Know About Sudden Onset

The legendary actoress, a versatile actor, a super star, epitome of grace – Sridevi left every fan of hers across the world in shock as she made her way to the heavenly abode. Only 54 years of age, a fitness freak, one who maintained a healthy lifestyle all through her life passed away in such a shocker, all of a sudden cardiac arrest of massive nature.

It took so much time to come to terms with this saddening or heart wrenching fact and still is unbelievable because we lost her at such a young age of 54, in a film industry where actors like Salman, Shahrukh and Amir at 50 are still playing lead roles and setting the box office on fire with hundreds of crores their films rake in when they release.
Now that we know that sudden cardiac arrest can happen irrespective of aging here is a short note on what it is all about, the symptoms and treatment.

sudden-cardiac-arrest

Sudden Cardiac Arrest – It occurs all of a sudden without a clear sign. Symptoms might be there but not indicating clearly of a heart issue. In a sudden cardiac arrest case, the heart stops functioning suddenly due to some disturbance and disrupts blood flow. The blood supply to heart as a result is cut off. Sudden cardiac arrest requires prompt medical intervention in order to increase survival chances.

Symptoms – The symptoms usually are not very clear and may be underlying. This symptoms include Dizziness or fatigue, shortness of breath, heart palpitations and chest pain around 4 weeks before the attack. The symptoms vary in men and women. People who suffer from chest pain may have it secondary accompanied with primary pain of head, shoulder and neck or back.

Risk Factors
Though sudden cardiac arrest occurs out of the blue without clear signs, some risk factors responsible on a long run include diabetes, high cholesterol levels, smoking, obesity and high blood pressure to name a few. Sometimes genetics is also responsible for causing a sudden arrest to people who are fit and have no medical history of heart disease like Sridevi’s case.

Treatment – Sudden Cardiac arrest is a highly life threatening condition which can lead to death in most cases if not given immediate medical aid. You need to offer CPR as primary treatment or use a defibrillator for the same. You can even give chest compressions until the help arrives. If medical aid is provided instantly and properly, survival is possible.

Well, it’s advisable to follow a healthy lifestyle and go for a routine checkup one every year once you cross 50 years of age.

Rajarajeswari Heart Center, part of the esteem institute, Rajarajeswari Medical College & Hospital. Was established in May 2012 as an initial non-interventional department with 2D echocardiography, Treadmill Test and cardiac consultation

*source from the internet