Taking care of women's hearts
Filed under: Heart Centers Online, Research, Women Heart Health
As you may know, The Cardio Blog is being retired today. It's been an honor to write for this blog, and I hope that the information we brought to you was useful and informative. Since this will be my last post for The Cardio Blog, I thought I'd write about a topic that is near and dear to my heart (pun, lamely, intended): women's heart health. We've seen it in the headlines again and again -- women, and often their doctors, don't always prioritize their health, and this seems to be especially an issue when it comes to heart health. But the fact is that heart disease is public enemy number one for women, and we all need to better understand and deal with our risk factors.
So I'll leave you with this post from Her Daily News. In it, they talk about Heart Truth, the National Institute of Health's campaign to bring heart education to women. They also include a checklist of questions to take to your doctor, as well as a list to help you understand your own risk. Do yourself -- and your heart -- a favor today and read through the questions to determine if you need to do more to protect your health.
Thanks for reading The Cardio Blog, and don't forget to come visit us at That's Fit for all of the latest news in health and fitness!
[RESEARCH] Social inequalities in self reported health in early old age: follow-up of prospective cohort study
Objective To describe differences in trajectories of self reported health in an ageing cohort according to occupational grade.
Design Prospective cohort study of office based British civil servants (1985-2004).
Participants 10 308 men and women aged 35-55 at baseline, employed in 20 London civil service departments (the Whitehall II study); follow-up was an average of 18 years.
Main outcome measures Physical component and mental component scores on SR-36 measured on five occasions.
Results Physical health deteriorated more rapidly with age among men and women from the lower occupational grades. The average gap in physical component scores between a high and low grade civil servant at age 56 was 1.60 and this gap increased by 1 over 20 years. The average physical health of a 70 year old man or woman who was in a high grade position was similar to the physical health of a person from a low grade around eight years younger. In mid-life, this gap was only 4.5 years. Although mental health improved with age, the rate of improvement is slower for men and women in the lower grades.
Conclusions Social inequalities in self reported health increase in early old age. People from lower occupational grades age faster in terms of a quicker deterioration in physical health compared with people from higher grades. This widening gap suggests that health inequalities will become an increasingly important public health issue, especially as the population ages.
Keep your heart health a priority!
Filed under: Blogs
So The Cardio Blog is going into retirement, and since is this is my last post I wanted to take the opportunity to thank you all for reading! It's been a blast writing and reading and learning about the importance of taking care of ourselves and our heart health specifically, and of course I encourage you all to continue doing so. There are countless great resources online (even though we were voted #1!) and I thought I'd share a few that I personally like and plan to stay in touch with:A Hearty Life
The Heart Scan Blog
Mark's Daily Apple
That's Fit
Global warming and heart health
Filed under: Prevention, Daily news
Global warming is a term we're all familiar with right now, and as we look to the future of our planet, we can only wonder what effects it will have. At the European Society of Cardiology's annual meeting this week in Austria, conversations turned to the affects of global warming on heart health, and some experts are concerned.Citing the fact that hearts don't do as well in hot weather, some cardiologists feel that in the coming years we may see an increase in heart related fatalities. Others think that pollution and overpopulation (leading us all to live in cities) may be a problem. Still others think that humans may adapt, and that warmer temperatures may get people out exercising more frequently.
It's all speculation at this point, but it's interesting nonetheless. What do you think?
Heart health and family history
Filed under: Family history, Prevention
When we first applied for life insurance, my marathon running husband was shocked to find out that his premium would be twice as high as mine. The reason, according to our agent, was his strong family history of early heart disease. Though we knew that genetics play a role, we thought that a healthy lifestyle would balance things out. Not so, at least in the eyes of life insurance companies.A healthy lifestyle does have a significant impact on your heart health, but if you've been wondering just how much of a role family history plays in your personal risk of cardiovascular disease, check out this article from WebMD. It covers the basics of family history and may help initiate a conversation about prevention with your doctor.
[RESEARCH] Influence of moving to the UK on maternal health behaviours: prospective cohort study
Objective To compare health behaviours during pregnancy (smoking and alcohol consumption) and after birth (initiation and duration of breast feeding) between British/Irish white mothers and mothers from ethnic minority groups; and, in mothers from ethnic minority groups, to examine whether indicators of acculturation (generational status, language spoken at home, length of residency in the United Kingdom) were associated with these health behaviours.
Design Prospective nationally representative cohort study.
Setting England.
Participants 6478 British/Irish white mothers and 2110 mothers from ethnic minority groups.
Main outcome measures Any smoking during pregnancy; any alcohol consumption during pregnancy; initiation of breast feeding; breast feeding for at least four months.
Results Compared with British/Irish white mothers, mothers from ethnic minority groups were less likely to smoke (15% v 37%) or consume alcohol (14% v 37%) during pregnancy but more likely to initiate breast feeding (86% v 69%) and breast feed for at least four months (40% v 27%). Among mothers from ethnic minority groups, first and second generation mothers were more likely to smoke during pregnancy (odds ratio 3.85, 95% confidence interval 2.50 to 5.93, and 4.70, 2.49 to 8.90, respectively), less likely to initiate breast feeding (0.92, 0.88 to 0.97, and 0.86, 0.75 to 0.99), and less likely to breast feed for at least four months (0.72, 0.62 to 0.83, and 0.52, 0.30 to 0.89) than immigrants, after adjustment for sociodemographic characteristics. There were no consistent differences in alcohol consumption. Among immigrants, for every additional five years spent in the UK the likelihood of mothers smoking during pregnancy increased by 31% (4% to 66%) and they were 5% (0% to 10%) less likely to breast feed for at least four months.
Conclusions After immigration, maternal health behaviours worsen with length of residency in the UK. Health professionals should not underestimate women’s likelihood of engaging in risky health behaviours because of their ethnicity.
The truth about women and heart disease
Filed under: Women Heart Health
Although breast cancer seems to be getting a lot more press lately, the biggest threat to women's health today is actually heart disease. And although men are more often thought of when picturing a heart attack victim, the truth is women are actually more likely to both have heart disease and they're more likely to die from a heart attack in the weeks immediately following than men are. The Mayo Clinic has a handy quiz for women regarding the truth on a variety of health topics, heart disease and breast cancer included, and it's interesting to read the explanations after you take it because some of the answers are surprising!
Know Your Numbers
When you are trying to lose weight, focus is usually on the pounds you weigh, the pounds you have already lost, the pounds you have still to lose, your measurements and possibly your body fat percentage. However, your goal should not just be about losing weight and inches, it should be about leading a healthier live.
If you are going to improve your health, then it’s good to know where you are right now. After all, you cannot know where you are heading if you don’t know the starting point. There are some health numbers that everybody should know.
1. Cholesterol levels. Not just the total but the HDL (the good one) and LDL (the bad one) numbers too.
2. Blood Pressure. If untreated, high blood pressure can lead to stroke, heart failure and kidney disease.
3. Homocysteine. A blood test can measure the amount of this amino acid in the blood. Too high and you are at an increased risk of alzheimer’s, arthritis, cancer, heart disease and strokes. This is a very important health (or should it be lack of health) statistic.
If you do not already know these numbers, why not make an appointment with your health practitioner. A good diet and regular exercise can make a big difference. Medication may not be necessary.
As part of my goal setting project earlier this year, I found out my numbers. My cholesterol and blood pressure results were good but my homocysteine level was slightly raised. I made some changes to my diet and took supplements as recommended by “The H Factor” book written by Patrick Holford and Dr James Braly. I can thoroughly recommend this book if you care about your health, and that of your family.
Isobel Whytock 1Stop-Weightloss.com
[RESEARCH] Fifty years of violent war deaths from Vietnam to Bosnia: analysis of data from the world health survey programme
Objective To provide an accurate estimate of violent war deaths.
Design Analysis of survey data on mortality, adjusted for sampling bias and censoring, from nationally representative surveys designed to measure population health. Estimated deaths compared with estimates in database of passive reports.
Setting 2002-3 World health surveys, in which information was collected from one respondent per household about sibling deaths, including whether such deaths resulted from war injuries.
Main outcome measure Estimated deaths from war injuries in 13 countries over 50 years.
Results From 1955 to 2002, data from the surveys indicated an estimated 5.4 million violent war deaths (95% confidence interval 3.0 to 8.7 million) in 13 countries, ranging from 7000 in the Democratic Republic of Congo to 3.8 million in Vietnam. From 1995 to 2002 survey data indicate 36 000 war deaths annually (16 000 to 71 000) in the 13 countries studied. Data from passive surveillance, however, indicated a figure of only a third of this. On the basis of the relation between world health survey data and passive reports, we estimate 378 000 globalwar deaths annually from 1985-94, the last years for which complete passive surveillance data were available.
Conclusions The use of data on sibling history from peacetime population surveys can retrospectively estimate mortality from war. War causes more deaths than previously estimated, and there is no evidence to support a recent decline in war deaths.
Exercising Mind And Body
I’ve recently purchased a CD set called “The 5 Forces of Wellness” by Dr. Mark Harman. It’s made me realise that the food we eat has such a majorimpact on the quality of our health. Being healthy is not just amount being free from disease now, it’s about leading a full and active life and laying the foundation for preventing diseases in the future. By completing the questionnaires in the accompanying workbook I’ve gained a powerful insight into the current state of my health. The series helps you understand how you got where you are and what you can do to change things (sometimes in conjunction with your physician or other medical practitioner).
I realise my lifestyle has got me where I am today. If I want to be healthy, not just control my weight, then I have to make changes to my lifestyle. The person who has to take responsibility for my health is ME, not my physician.
I’m more determined than ever to focus on eating healthy, nutritious food. Preparing my own meals is a major key. Processed food should be the rare exception not the norm.
I thoroughly recommend the CD. I’m sure it will help you achieve not just weight loss but will inspire you to make changes to your lifestyle that will have a big impact on improving the quality of your health.
Don’t think you’ve got time to listen to an eight CD set? Follow my example and listen to a CD as you walk outdoors on on the treadmill. Forty five minutes will be up before you know it. Exercise your body and your mind. You’ll feel doubly virtuous!
Isobel Whytock 1Stop-Weightloss.com