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Facts About Weight – And Why You Shouldn’t Believe Myths

Facts About Weight – And Why You Shouldn’t Believe Myths

The most important fact about weight is that overweight people get a bad rap, often erroneously. They are assumed to be lazy, or averse to exercise. They are believed to be overeaters, without self-discipline − or doomed by fat genes. They are also seen as people who are out of touch with reality, and ignorant that excess weight can cause serious diseases. This is needless and harmful stereotyping.

Overweight people usually suffer a lot because they may be genuinely trying to lose weight but they don’t realize it can be a tug of war. They lose some weight, and soon their bodies fight them to add the weight back. Why is this so?

Many people soon discover this “metabolic rate” dilemma when trying to lose weight. Metabolic rate refers to the rate at which your body burns the food and fat it consumes to create energy. To lower weight, you do exercises or eat certain foods to raise your metabolic rate.

But when you lose weight, the body’s metabolism slows down. So, in a way, your weight loss success becomes the cause for slowing down any further weight loss. The weight and fat then begin to reappear. And the cycle goes on and on. People often call it the “yo-yo weight loss effect”.

How do you escape this “yo-yo cycle”? Read on 


3 facts about weight and its relationship to metabolic rate

There are 3 interesting facts about how your metabolic rate can be increased – and you can thereby hope to reach your ideal body weight without the “yo-yo effect” 


Your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is quite important for weight problems

Healthline states, “Basal metabolic rate is the number of calories your body needs to accomplish its most basic (basal) life-sustaining functions.”

Why is BMR key to body weight? Because it shows how active or inactive your everyday daily life is. The more generally active you are, the more calories you burn without additional exercise. Therefore, you must aim for an active movement-oriented life to lose weight.

Having more muscle raises your metabolic rate and weight loss

Physical fitness coaches always include muscle-building and weight training during exercise routines. The more muscle you have, the more calories your burn. In your body, your legs have the most muscle area 
 so the more you exercise using your legs, the more calories you can burn.

Mayo Clinic advises that if your body weight is composed more of fat than muscle, you must consciously build up your muscles in addition to just burning calories by movement.

Eating protein-rich food boosts your metabolism and aids weight loss

You burn calories even to digest food. Of all the food types – carbohydrates, fats, and proteins – it’s the proteins that burn the most calories during digestion.

According to a paper published by the National Library of Medicine, US, increasing protein intake boosts metabolism by roughly 15 to 30 percent. So, all in all, eat more proteins to lose weight.

 

Myths about weight − and the facts to replace them

There are a number of us who have wrong ideas about weight loss. The first step to losing weight is to lose these erroneous beliefs.

 

Myth 1: “If I exercise a lot, I can eat almost anything because I am burning it all.”

The fact:

To lose weight, you need to burn more calories than you consume. You can’t do that, though, unless you count calories and keep track of your intake and output. Medical News Today has a table that shows a “healthy calorie deficit” between intake and output of calories, calculated by age and gender.

What should your calorie deficit be? WebMD states, “A good rule of thumb for healthy weight loss is a deficit of about 500 calories per day. That should put you on course to lose about 1 pound (approximately 0.45 kgs) per week. This is based on a starting point of at least 1,200 to 1,500 calories a day for women and 1,500 to 1,800 calories a day for men.”

 

Myth 2: “Drinking a lot of water can increase my body weight. I should take diuretics.”

The fact:

Water can increase metabolic rate and burn more calories. This is contrary to how people think they can reduce their weight by taking diuretics. What are diuretics? They are medications that rid the body of water (usually prescribed for some other illnesses by doctors). Often, they are misused by those who want to lose weight. But this kind of water-weight loss is not the same as healthy weight loss due to reduced body fat or body mass.

A novel finding in a study published by Oxford Academic says, “Drinking 500 ml of water increases metabolic rate by 30% in both men and women. The increase in metabolic rate was observed within 10 minutes after completion and reached a maximum of 30–40 minutes after water drinking. The effect was sustained for more than an hour.” Hydration seems to help in weight control.

 

Myth 3: “Body weight is a genetic handover. Whatever you try, you cannot fight your genes.”

The fact:

Research does indeed show that your genes can lead to weight issues. But, here’s the fact. You are not fated to be fat just because your parents are; you can fight genetics with proper diet and exercise. There’s one gene that’s now getting a lot of attention, called FTO. WebMD claims scientists found that people with this gene have a 20% to 30% higher chance of obesity. If a cause has been found, the cure may hopefully not be far behind.

Besides genetics, your environment, lifestyle, and healthy choices may also significantly affect how much you weigh. One interesting theory is that obesity may run in families both because of genetics and the family habits inculcated around diet and exercise. What your parents teach you about healthful habits may be as crucial as the hereditary tendencies they pass on to you.

 

Assessing your risk for weight-related diseases

Ailments like cholesterol, diabetes, hypertension, obesity − or a family history of heart disease − can all have a multiplicative effect on our hearts. If you are overweight or obese, you will only compound your health and heart risks if you have any of these ailments. Plus, beware of the silent stress symptoms below:

  • You smoke a lot or drink too much alcohol without self-control
  • You have a lonely, sedentary lifestyle, often digitally-addicted
  • You feel silently worried about most things, including your weight
  • Your work and relationships don’t gel with your personality type

The wise saying goes, “When you have a weight problem, don’t just ask what you are eating. Ask what is eating you.”

 

The 6 unbeatable weight loss best practices

Just do these 6 things every day without fail, and your weight will drop away naturally over time 


  • Eat healthfully, keeping track of calories – and get the right calories into your body (i.e., more lean proteins).
  • Exercise for at least 30 minutes daily with muscle building routines for the legs. Don’t focus only on upper body muscles.
  • Stay stress-free. Learn yoga, meditation, breathing exercises, and mindful living. Don’t fret about being fat. It’s solvable.
  • Keep your body well hydrated. Drink lots of water (as plain water) – not as water in tea or coffee or juices or fizzy drinks.
  • Check your health for other illnesses like hypertension, diabetes, cholesterol, and heart disease. Tell the doctor about your genetics.
  • If you have genetic ailments, teach your children early on how to eat and exercise healthfully to stave off any premature diseases.

 

In summary 


There is a deep connection between body weight and metabolic rate. Often, they work at cross-purposes and defeat your good intentions to reduce weight. But despite this, it’s imperative to follow a proper diet and exercise to lose weight and reduce the risks of many weight-related ailments. All these ailments eventually lead to heart disease.

Blow away the myths in your mind about weight, and learn the facts. Assess the risks of your weight and stress on your health and heart. Most of all, be conscious and responsible about your weight issues. By doing so, you will treat your heart responsibly.

Categories
Cholesterol

Reasons For Cholesterol: The Top 8 To Be Aware Of

Reasons For Cholesterol – The Top 8 To Be Aware Of

The reasons for cholesterol levels being high for some people can be diverse. Primary among them are hereditary causes. Other contributing factors have a lot to do with our lifestyles today.

Our lives have become vicious spirals. We begin with inactivity, poor diet, and poor sleep. Then stress builds up. This stress exacerbates any inherited ailments, like cholesterol. Ultimately, there is an external and internal manifestation and impact of high cholesterol levels. We have no recourse but to get on to medications for life.

Besides, we all also fail to realize that no disease is an isolated one. For example, ailments like cholesterol, diabetes, hypertension, obesity − or a family history of heart disease − can all have a multiplicative effect on our hearts.

Many of us don’t realize that any genetic ailment we may carry from birth may worsen if we live health-negligent lifestyles. Here are 8 factors why our cholesterol levels may rise.

 

1. Hereditary factors

Cholesterol is a waxy substance created by the liver or found in certain foods. The body needs some cholesterol to build cells and make vitamins and other hormones in the blood. Excess of the wrong type of cholesterol is the problem because it usually clogs the arteries and obstructs blood flow.

The cholesterol called “low-density lipoprotein” (LDL) is the bad cholesterol. However, the “high-density lipoprotein” (HDL) is the good cholesterol that drives out the bad cholesterol in the body.

If either of your parents has inherited a cholesterol problem, the chances are that you may have it too. Genetic issues usually involve cholesterol not being processed correctly in the bodies of affected people.

It may surprise you that cholesterol levels may also be an ethnic trait. The Indian Heart Association says, “For any given level of cholesterol, heart disease risk among South Asians is double that of other ethnic groups. South Asians tend to have low HDL (good cholesterol) levels which puts them at markedly increased risk for heart disease.”

 

2. Being inactive

People who spend their lives sitting down or lying down the whole day are at a high risk of high cholesterol. Inactivity is a silent cholesterol-inducer. On the other hand, an active life can lower triglycerides and also help you maintain your weight.

How does inactivity of the body increase cholesterol? WestMed Family Healthcare says, “When you don’t get enough exercise, your body doesn’t produce enough HDL cholesterol and can’t keep up with removing deposits of bad cholesterol from your vascular system.”

According to another medically-reviewed article in WebMD, an enzyme that usually turns harmful LDL cholesterol into good HDL cholesterol drops by 95% when you sit for too long. Therefore, you must take frequent activity breaks if you have a sedentary job and try to stand up at least every 30 minutes − or take a 5-minute walk every hour.

Far from being lightly active, Mayo Clinic advocates some vigorous exercise to control cholesterol. They say, “Exercise can improve cholesterol. With your doctor’s OK, work up to at least 30 minutes of exercise five times a week or vigorous aerobic activity for 20 minutes three times a week.”

 

3. Being overweight

 

Person on weighing scale

 

 

 

Obesity, which means excess body weight beyond allowed limits for age and gender, can be another cause of high cholesterol. Besides damaging your social life, it increases “triglycerides,” which further cause blockages.

Triglycerides are a type of fat found circulating in your blood. If they are not used up as energy by bodily activity, they too start accumulating, hardening your arteries, and adding to your overall cholesterol problems.

In a medically-reviewed article, WebMD says,” Every 10 pounds you’re overweight causes your body to produce as much as 10 milligrams of additional cholesterol daily. Losing weight can help significantly lower cholesterol and your chances of heart disease and diabetes.”

Being overweight or obese raises cholesterol because it changes how your body makes and manages lipoproteins, including cholesterol and triglycerides.

 

4. Smoking and alcohol

Cigarette smoking plays a significant role in your cholesterol level. It lowers the level of good cholesterol as well as your lifespan.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one-third of all deaths from cardiovascular disease are caused by smoking. One of the significant risk factors for heart disease, particularly among younger people, is being a smoker.

Heart UK also classifies alcohol as a negative influence on cholesterol. They say, “Drinking alcohol raises the triglycerides and cholesterol in your blood. If your triglyceride levels become too high, they can build up in the liver, causing fatty liver disease. The liver can’t work as well as it should and can’t remove cholesterol from your blood, so your cholesterol levels rise.”

 

5. Age and gender

Both age and gender can impact cholesterol levels significantly. The level of cholesterol naturally begins to rise as you turn 20. This keeps rising until the age of 60-65, in both genders.

Women appear to have low cholesterol levels before menopause. But after menopause, women can have a higher cholesterol level than men. Due to improper knowledge, many women believe cholesterol is a male disease. According to Hopkins Medicine, “Approximately 45 percent of women over the age of 20 have a total cholesterol of 200 mg/dl and above, which is considered elevated — but a survey by the American Heart Association found that 76 percent of women say they don’t even know what their cholesterol values are.”

During pregnancy, women’s bodies use cholesterol to help the fetus grow. That’s when cholesterol levels may rise to 50% in the second and third trimesters. They can stay high for about a month after birth. However, this temporary spike usually doesn’t harm the mother or baby. But if a pregnant woman already has high cholesterol, her doctor will strictly monitor her cholesterol levels as a precaution.

High cholesterol in children can be passed on from parents to children or caused by diet.

 

6. Diet

 

Healthy diet of fruits and vegetables

 

 

A report from Harvard Health has identified 11 cholesterol-lowering foods that actively decrease cholesterol levels. Among such foods are oats, barley, and whole grains, beans, eggplant (baingan) and okra (bhindi), nuts, vegetable oils (canola, sunflower), fruits (mainly apples, grapes, strawberries, and citrus), soy and soy-based foods, fatty fish (particularly salmon, tuna, and sardines) and foods rich in fiber.

The same report also lists foods that are bad for cholesterol levels. These include red meat, full-fat dairy products, margarine, hydrogenated oils, and baked goods.

Here’s something you may not know. If you are habituated to drinking unfiltered coffee (like espresso), Medical Health Today writes that the oily compounds in the beans called diterpenes seep into your body and can raise LDL cholesterol.

A high sugar diet can also add to cholesterol and be disastrous for diabetes. Healthline cites research by the Journal of the American Medical Association that says people who consumed more added sugars had lower “good” cholesterol, or high-density lipoprotein (HDL) 
 and this often causes the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) to be disproportionately high.

 

7. Medications

Some medicines can increase the level of triglycerides and cholesterol. That’s why you should never be tempted to pop pills on your own without proper examination by a doctor and a customized prescription.

Certain drugs may have an unexpected effect on your cholesterol. Experts say these could include birth control pills, retinoids, corticosteroids, antivirals, and anticonvulsants.

Some blood pressure medicines, such as diuretics and old forms of beta-blockers, can also raise your cholesterol. Many new alternative drug formulations may work better for your cholesterol, so consult your doctor.

Another way medications may affect cholesterol levels is when your doctor prescribes statins (the best drugs for cholesterol), but you are either slack about taking your medications or haphazard on your timings. Statins, according to the NHS, are indispensable to cholesterol treatment. You cannot afford to take them lightly or miss doses at random. If you’ve missed a dose, replace the missed dose – or it can be difficult to adhere to the prescription. If you’ve missed many doses, consult your doctor so he can advise you correctly.

 

8. Stress

Stress and illness are mutually-reinforcing. For instance, did you know chronic stress can induce high cholesterol levels? Research shows that stress substantially raises your risk for LDL cholesterol and lowers HDL cholesterol.

That’s because stress hormones, such as cortisol and adrenaline trigger changes that may lead to higher blood sugar and inflammation. Over time, this may cause your liver to pump out more cholesterol and blood fats called triglycerides, according to a medically-reviewed article in GoForward.

Stress can also cause poor sleep, causing insomnia, and other sleep-related disorders. One study paper titled, “Associations of Usual Sleep Duration with Serum Lipid and Lipoprotein Levels” says participants who slept fewer than five hours per night had raised triglyceride levels and reduced “good” HDL cholesterol.

Stress is responsible for the subtle flow of causality towards serious ailments like high cholesterol – where one stressful experience causes another, and another, and so on 
 till it creates a flow-blown ailment. Stress can be mitigated, though, by increasing bodily exercise activity on the one hand, while also calming the mind through rituals like meditation, deep breathing, taking life easy as it comes, and becoming less excitable.

 

In summary 


Knowing what factors contribute most to raising your cholesterol levels is important because, without adequate knowledge, you cannot address the problem.

Talk to your doctor about all these factors if they are affecting your lifestyle. It will help your doctor show you ways to change the way you live. Treating cholesterol seriously is also a way to treat your heart responsibly.

 

Categories
Cholesterol Lets Be Aware Prevention Share

Cholesterol Myths & Facts: Knowing 10 Truths Can Save You

Cholesterol Myths & Facts, Knowing 10 Truths Can Save You

 

Cholesterol is one topic on which myths and facts are available in plenty 
 but many people have them all mixed up.

For example, some don’t know the difference between cholesterol and fat and often speak of both interchangeably. Some others may know terms like “good cholesterol” and “bad cholesterol”, but they may not know which type of cholesterol is contained in the foods they consume.

Besides this, there is another important reason we all need to understand cholesterol better. Cholesterol, and other ailments like diabetes, hypertension, or obesity − or a family history of heart disease − can all have a multiplicative effect on our hearts.

Considering that cholesterol is among the most prevalent medical problems, we owe it to ourselves to separate fact from fiction. Here is a list of the 10 most common myths about cholesterol and the facts to know.

 

Myth 1: All cholesterol – any cholesterol – is bad for you

Fact:

Some types of cholesterol are bad for health while others are essential for good health.

Cholesterol is a fatty substance that is made in the liver. It is found in some foods too. It has value to the body because it helps build cells and make vitamins and other hormones. But, as Heart.org explains, too much of the wrong cholesterol type can pose a problem.

LDL cholesterol (or Low-Density Lipoprotein) is the “bad cholesterol” that can build up on the walls of your blood vessels as plaque and block blood flow. On the other hand, HDL cholesterol (or High-Density Lipoprotein) is the “good cholesterol” that can help flush out the LDL from your bloodstream.

So, your body needs more HDL cholesterol and less LDL cholesterol.

Closely connected to cholesterol are “triglycerides”. They are a type of fat (lipid) found in your blood. If they are not used up as energy by bodily activity, they too start accumulating, hardening your arteries, and adding to your overall cholesterol problems.

 

Myth 2: I would be able to feel the ailment if I had high cholesterol

Fact:

Unfortunately, unhealthy cholesterol levels show no outward signs or symptoms. You may not even know you have a problem unless it hits such a high level that it manifests as a heart attack or stroke. That’s why doctors insist it is crucial to check your cholesterol levels regularly.

CDC.gov says healthy adults should check their cholesterol every 4 to 6 years. Mayo Clinic recommends cholesterol screenings every 1 to 2 years for people between 45 and 65 years, and yearly tests for those above 65 years.

 

Myth 3: I cannot do anything to change my cholesterol levels – if it’s there, it’s there

Fact:

The truth is that you CAN do a lot to help decrease your cholesterol levels. You have to balance your diet, and exercise regularly. You have to stop smoking because it hardens your arteries. Most importantly, you must study your family history of cholesterol-related problems because a large part of cholesterol issues involve genetics.

If you suspect you could have a hereditary tendency towards cholesterol-related ailments, talk to your doctor as early in life as possible. It can help to monitor or keep off the increase of cholesterol as soon as it is detected as a potential problem.

 

Myth 4: I don’t need statins or other medicines – I can manage my cholesterol with diet and exercise

Fact:

This is one of the most harmful myths to believe. Doctors have a hard time explaining this to patients who think only very high cholesterol levels need medical interventions. On the contrary, as soon as doctors say so, cholesterol patients must start taking “statins” (a group of medicines that can help lower the LDL cholesterol in the blood).

Other cholesterol control forms – like diet and exercise – can be in addition to medication. But they cannot take the place of prescribed statins. Please take in this message with extreme seriousness. Talk to your doctor and if he asks you to start taking statins, waste no time and get going.

 

Myth 5: Eating foods with a lot of cholesterol will not make my cholesterol levels go up

Fact:

This myth goes wrong in two ways. Firstly, you cannot buy and eat cholesterol from a store. Cholesterol is often hidden in some form of fats in other food products your buy and consume. So you may not know if you are eating a lot of cholesterol or not.

Secondly, if your dietician says certain foods are high in LDL cholesterol (like foods made with trans-fats), it’s better to reduce eating them. If there are other foods rich in HDL cholesterol (like some nuts or Omega-3 fatty acids), your dietician may recommend eating more of them. But either way, don’t overdo anything. Moderation, even with a good diet, is the key.

In general, wholesome home-cooked food is always better than ready-processed bought food or eating out. You know what is going into the food as ingredients, and you can control the balance of every meal with a good assortment of whole grains, pulses, fresh vegetables, nutritious fruits, essential nuts, healthful condiments, and cholesterol-lowering fats and oils.

 

 

A healthy diet consists of all important food groups

 

Myth 6: I am a healthy weight, so it cannot be that I have high cholesterol

Fact:

This myth suggests people’s typical inability to differentiate between fat (obesity) and cholesterol. As we said before, cholesterol does not manifest outwardly as body weight, flab, or body fat.

Cholesterol becomes an issue for those people whose bodies cannot process cholesterol efficiently. For example, a person can be born with a genetic inability to process cholesterol optimally. That person may have a normal body weight and trim appearance on the outside 
 but inside the body, the cholesterol processing systems may perform sub-optimally. Regular tests are essential to locate and treat cholesterol imbalances.

 

Myth 7: Children don’t need to worry about cholesterol

Fact:

Children can have high cholesterol levels, just like adults. This is especially true for those children who may have inherited high cholesterol levels from one or both parents. Such children can be prone to premature heart attacks or strokes.

Further, all parents must always be careful of what their children eat or what ailments their bodies may silently carry. An increasing number of hereditary disorders go unnoticed in children, only to blow up when they are young adults.

Talking to your children about active exercise, and making home food enjoyable are ways to teach good lifestyle habits. Children alone cannot exacerbate their latent cholesterol problems unless parents give in to their demands for unhealthy goodies. Parents should beware of acting as enablers.

 

Children don't need to worry about cholesterol

 

 

Myth 8: I take my prescribed statins regularly, so I can eat whatever I want

Fact:

Isn’t this the way we all kid ourselves? We think just because we are on good medications, we can thereafter leave the medicines to work, and we can go about our old happy-go-lucky lifestyles even after being diagnosed with a serious disease. Unfortunately, you can’t just hope the statins prescribed for your cholesterol need no other corrective actions from you.

As any good doctor will tell you, the job of the statins is to lower the bad LDL cholesterol in your system, but they can’t help you much if you pile in more and more of the LDL via unhealthy food. You can help the statins work effectively if you act responsibly and control your intake of bad cholesterol foods. According to the Cleveland Clinic, exercise reduces triglycerides, raises HDL, and has a slight lowering effect on LDL too. So exercise also helps statins work better.

 

Myth 9: I’m under 40 and a woman, so I don’t need to have my cholesterol checked

Fact:

It’s a pervasive myth that only men get cholesterol-related ailments more than women, especially if they are around 40 years or older. That belief doesn’t seem to be validated by research.

Dr. Robert Greenfield, a board-certified cardiologist, lipidologist, and internist at Memorial Care Heart & Vascular Institute, California, says that women − especially after menopause − lose the protective effects of estrogens. He quotes a CDC research showing that in people of the 40-59 age group, the prevalence of high total cholesterol was 10.5% in men and 12.1% in women.

He believes that women of that age group begin to accelerate their risk of heart disease and develop the same risks as men. He sums it up neatly when he says, “Heart disease is an equal opportunity employer.”

 

Myth 10: If the nutrition label shows no cholesterol, the food is heart-healthy

Fact:

Food labels are notorious for the nutrition information they hide behind jargon. There are consumer complaints galore on the Net, and especially on social media, on how people fell for food labels of certain processed foods that said cholesterol levels were low while they were not.

A lot of this angst may also be because people cannot understand what they read on food labels. Usually, labels list a breakdown of fats like this: Total Fat, Saturated Fat, Trans Fat, Polyunsaturated Fat, Monounsaturated Fat, and Cholesterol. If you read just the cholesterol content of the food and it looks low, you may mislead yourself.

MyDoc.com says saturated and trans fats should be as low as possible, even at zero. They raise your total and LDL cholesterol. Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats are better for you and can be eaten in moderation. Read the ingredients list further down the label 
 if you see words like “margarine”, “shortening”, “hydrogenated”, or “partially hydrogenated”, steer clear of the food. These clog your arteries.

 

In summary 


One of the smartest ways to tackle your cholesterol problems is to be able to correct your beliefs. After that, you’ll find that good knowledge steers you in the right direction towards improving your health.

Cholesterol, as we said, has a direct bearing on your heart. Treat your cholesterol early and with good care − and you’ll treat your heart responsibly too.

 

Categories
Diabetes

Yoga Asanas For Diabetes (With Pictures)

Yoga Asanas For Diabetes With Pictures

Yoga asanas are a very ancient, tried-and-tested set of poses that help improve overall well-being, reduce stress, lower blood pressure, and enhance mobility.

In managing diabetes, yoga can help cultivate balance and poise. Balance is essential in controlling blood sugar levels, which otherwise would go up and down with every stress or excitation of your nervous system.

Adding some simple yogic postures to your daily exercise regime can aid the diabetes treatment that your doctor prescribes. But, as with any exercise, start only after consulting your doctor and an experienced yoga practitioner.

 

4 key benefits of yoga for people with diabetes

Of all the benefits of yoga for people with diabetes, 4 key areas are of greater importance 


1. Yoga can keep stress levels really low despite disease

Stress is one of the most debilitating factors affecting the mind and body. It can cause an imbalance in blood sugar levels. Stress also produces other related issues such as hypertension, insulin resistance, and increased risk of cardiovascular diseases. People with diabetes further worry about their state of health constantly, which only adds to the condition.

Practicing yoga creates a very soothing, therapeutic effect on the mind and body, says Diabetes UK. The stillness and peaceful breathing attained in many postures effectively decrease stress levels. By reducing stress, your body gets a better chance to respond to medications faster and aid in its own healing.

2. Yoga can help both your diabetes and your heart

Diabetes is one of those conditions, for example, that can affect the heart if seriously neglected. Similarly, other ailments like hypertension, obesity, or cholesterol – or if you have a family history of heart disease – can all have adverse and multiplicative effects on your heart.

With yoga, this spiral of negativity that affects your heart is reversed. Yoga is both an exercise as well as a mind-care system. It works on the body and its organs at the same time that it also works on the state of mind. Since most diseases like stress, hypertension, obesity, or cholesterol – and even diabetes – involve a mutually-enabling vicious spiral of downward health, yoga arrests this cycle.

3. Yoga can help reduce the effects of neuropathy

One of the main complications of diabetes is neuropathy. It starts with a tingling of nerves under the foot or in the palms of the hands, but if neglected, it can turn into nerve damage. Unknown to people living with diabetes, these symptoms may not be restricted to the outer limbs of the body but also affect the internal systems due to nerve impairment.

A medically reviewed article in EverydayHealth.com mentions that practicing yoga for about 30 minutes every day has been seen to help patients with neuropathy symptoms. Yoga helps the nervous system by helping improve nerve conduction. It also helps boost the body’s metabolism, regulates hormonal levels, and balances glucose levels. All this, in turn, also helps reduce further damage to nerve health.

4. Yoga can give the whole body and mind a “reset”

Tara Stiles, the yoga expert, and teacher (who features in Dr. Deepak Chopra’s works), shows us in a YouTube video how yoga can give the whole body and mind a reset. She says that instead of counting the benefits of yoga one by one, it’s the overall “reset” that yoga gives the body that helps with recalibrating all body systems.

The human body and mind are inseparable from each other. They are mutually reinforcing. When all parts of the body and mind are in healthy tandem, they produce excellent health, happiness, and an eagerness to live well. This in itself helps psychologically retard diseases of imbalance like diabetes. Because the human body cannot be reset in parts, yoga is perhaps the only system that gives your body’s “operating system” a holistic reset.

 

8 yoga postures that can help people with diabetes

The following 8 yogic postures (or asanas) are not only beneficial for people with diabetes but also easy to do for beginners. Those with a bit of practice can aim to hold these postures for more prolonged durations after they get into the correct positions.

All yogic postures require inhaling whenever there is a slight backward bend of the body − and exhaling whenever there is a forward bend. But once you get into the final position, you should resist the temptation to hold the breathing to hold the posture. Breathing must be steady, calm, easy, long, and fluid in the pose.

Note: Various experts recommend the following yogic postures for diabetes patients. The explanations of how to do these asanas are compiled/adapted from YogaJournal.com and ArtofLiving.org, to whom we would like to give credit.

But there is always a caveat − please read these for information, but learn to do them correctly with practical training from a certified yoga professional.

1. Padmasana (Or Lotus Pose)

 

Padmasana (Or Lotus Pose)

How to do it:

Sit with legs stretched out in front of you while keeping the spine erect.

Bend the right knee and place it on the left thigh. Make sure that the sole of the foot points upward, and the heel is close to the abdomen. Now, repeat the same step with the other leg.

With both the legs crossed and feet placed on opposite thighs, place your hands on the knees in the shown mudra position.

Keep the head straight and spine erect. Hold and continue with long gentle breaths in and out.

2. Balasana (Or Child Pose)

Balasana (Or Child Pose)

 

How to do it:

Come to your hands and knees. Spread your knees wide, keeping the tops of your feet on the floor with the big toes touching.

Bring your belly to rest between your thighs and root your forehead to the floor. Relax the shoulders, jaw, and eyes.

There are several possible arm variations. You can bring your arms back alongside your thighs with the palms facing upwards (as shown above). Or you can stretch your arms in front of you with your palms toward the floor.

Stay as long as you like in this fetus-like position, relaxing with the steady inhales and exhales of your breath.

3. Urdhva Mukha Svanasana (Or Upward-Facing Dog Pose)

Urdhva Mukha Svanasana (Or Upward-Facing Dog Pose)

 

How to do it:

Lie flat on the ground with your stomach on the floor. Your feet must face downwards, and your arms must be placed beside your body.

Gently fold your elbows. Place your palms under your shoulders and closer to your floating ribs. Press your palms firmly on the floor and gently lift your knees, hips, and torso off the mat.

Keep your arms firm and your elbows straight. Broaden your shoulders and look up. Ensure that your knees don’t touch the floor.

Put pressure on your toes by curling them inwards and pressing them on the floor before extending them outward. Hold the pose for as long as it feels good, breathing easily. Exhale and release.

4. Paschimottanasana (Or Seated Forward Bend Pose)

Paschimottanasana (Or Seated Forward Bend Pose)

How to do it:

Press your heels away from your body with legs outstretched. Press your palms or fingertips into the floor beside your hips.

Keep your front torso long, exhale and lean forward from your hips. Lengthen the spine to fold toward your legs without rounding your back.

Walk your hands out along the outside of each leg as far as they will go. If you can reach them, hold the sides of your feet with your hands. If you are holding your feet with your hands, bend your elbows out to the sides and lift them away from the floor.

Stay in the pose as long as comfortable and breathe easily. Exhale as you release the position.

5. Dhanurasana (Or Bow Pose)

Dhanurasana (Or Bow Pose)

 

How to do it:

Lie on your belly. Press all your toes into the floor and bend your knees, keeping the toes active.

Grab the outer edges of your ankles with your hands and flex your feet firmly. Lift your rib cage and shoulders toward your ears.

Lengthen your tailbone and kick your legs back into your hands as you hold on firmly. Then lift your head and heart. Gaze forward.

Press down through your thighs to lift your chest. Stay raised for till you are comfortable while breathing steadily. Release the position in reverse order, slowly.

6. Uttanpadasana (Or Leg Raise Pose)

Uttanpadasana (Or Leg Raise Pose)

 

How to do it:

Lie in a supine position with your back on the ground. Both your feet and knees should be kept together, and your breathing should be normal.

While breathing in, slowly raise the legs to a 90-degree angle from the floor without jerking. Do not raise the shoulders from the ground.

The upper body, arms, and face are to be relaxed. Do not bend the knee or lift the lower body or buttocks from the floor. During the final position, your legs should be kept straight with the toes pointed to the ceiling.

Relax and breathe normally. Don’t let your legs flop hard to the ground when releasing the pose. Bring them down slowly.

7. Sethubandhasana (Or Bridge Pose)

Sethubandhasana (Or Bridge Pose)

 

How to do it:

Lie on your back with your knees bent, your legs and feet parallel, and hip distance apart. Move your feet closer to your buttocks.

Press down firmly through your feet and inhale as you raise your hips, lifting from the pubic bone rather than the navel.

Clasp your hands under your back with elbows on the floor. Broaden your collarbones and get on top of your shoulders. Breathe normally and hold for as long as comfortable.

To finish, exhale, release your hands, and lower your hips to the floor. Allow your back to return to rest on the floor gently.

8. Sarvangasana (Or Shoulder Stand Pose)

Sarvangasana (Or Shoulder Stand Pose)

How to do it:

Lie on your back with hands by your side. With a single movement, lift your legs, buttocks, and back so that you come up high on your shoulders. Support your back with your hands.

Move your elbows closer towards each other, and move your hands along your back, creeping up towards the shoulder blades. Keep straightening the legs and spine by pressing the elbows down to the floor and hands into the back.

Your weight should be supported on your shoulders and upper arms, not your head and neck. Keep the legs firm. Point the toes up. Press your chest toward the chin.

Keep breathing deeply and stay in the posture for as long as you are comfortable. Come out of the pose by first lowering your knees to your forehead. Bring your arms down to your sides and gently ease your torso to the ground.

 

In summary 


Diabetes care involves many angles of treatment – diet, medications, and exercise – and yoga as part of the exercise regimen helps immensely.

Remember, caring for your diabetes is also a way to care for your heart. If you are diabetic, treat your body and mind responsibly. And thereby, treat your heart responsibly too.

(DISCLAIMER: We have done our best to include accuracy, reliability, and the pro and cons of yoga. But we would like to recommend that readers satisfy themselves on all these issues independently also, and get the proper guidance of a yoga guru/expert, especially at the initial stages of learning these asanas. There is no liability on Sun Pharma and Sun Pharma does not guarantee results.)
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Diabetes Lets Feel The Scare

Diabetes Care Plan: The 4 Key Factors To Include

Diabetes Care Plan The 4 Key Factors To Include

Diabetes care planning should not be done only when facing an emergency, when your doctor absolutely insists you reconsider several aspects of your health.

Good diabetes control planning should be done pro-actively so that your lifestyle naturally supports more positive health − especially if you have a genetic leaning towards diabetes.

A comprehensive care and management system is an absolute must for children, young adults, and the elderly with a hereditary disposition towards diabetes.

What must a robust diabetes care plan contain? Read on 


 

Should your diabetes care method change if you have Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes?

According to Diabetes UK, the main difference between Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes is that Type 1 diabetes is a genetic condition that often shows up quite early in life.

On the other hand, Type 2 diabetes is mainly related to lifestyle. It develops over time and with more significant neglect.

The critical thing to remember is that both types of diabetes are equally serious 
 but if you have either of these conditions, you need to take the same proper steps to manage it.

 

How can diabetes care help your other health issues, including your heart?

Diabetes is one of those conditions, for example, that can affect the heart if seriously neglected. Similarly, other ailments like hypertension, obesity, or cholesterol – or if you have a family history of heart disease – can all have multiplicative negative effects on your heart.

So, it’s always important to get help from your doctor to monitor if you are suffering from such ailments and assess the risk to your heart. It’s then time to devise a proper care plan to keep all such conditions under control so that they do no damage to other organs of the body like your heart.

 

The 4 keys factors to include in a diabetes control and care plan

Your diabetes care plan must consist of diet, medications, tests, and exercise. Let’s examine them one by one to understand how these can be planned for our daily lifestyles.

 

The first key for diabetes care: Changes needed in your daily diet

See our answers to typical queries from most people with diabetes 


 

Changes needed in your diet for managing diabetes

 

1. What are the basic principles behind healthy eating for diabetics?

Your diet is essential in diabetes care because it can help you control your blood sugar (glucose), manage weight, and prevent heart disease risk factors, such as high blood pressure and high blood fats.

When you eat extra carbohydrate-rich calories and fat, your body creates an additional unhealthy rise in blood glucose. If blood glucose isn’t kept in check, it can lead to high blood glucose levels (also called hyperglycemia) that could affect your nerves, kidney, and heart.

2. What are the right foods to eat and the wrong ones to avoid?

You have to make every calorie count by choosing nutritious foods. Eat more of these types of food in your diet:

  • Healthy carbohydrates: These are found in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, and legumes (such as pulses, beans and peas).
  • Fiber-rich foods: Look for these in fruits, vegetables, nuts, whole grains, legumes, and pulses.
  • Foods with good monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats: These can help lower your cholesterol levels. You can include nuts, olive oil, or foods that contain Omega 3 fatty acids. But keep even these fats at a minimum.

Foods to avoid would be:

  • Saturated fats or trans fats: Saturated fats are found in high-fat dairy products and some animal proteins. Trans fats are found in processed snacks, baked goods, and margarine.
  • Cholesterol sources: These are found in high-fat dairy products and high-fat animal proteins, egg yolks, liver, and other organ meats.
  • Sodium-laden foods like salty snacks: You must aim for less than 2,300 mg of sodium a day 
 that is about one teaspoon. Your doctor may recommend even less if you have high blood pressure.

3. Why do doctors insist we eat at regular times of the day?

A good diabetes care diet would usually be based on regularly eating three meals a day. This helps you better use the insulin your body produces or gets through a medication.

Haphazard eating times can not only suddenly raise or lower your glycemic levels and make you feel very uncomfortable, but they can undo the excellent choices you make in picking the right foods to eat.

 

The second key for diabetes care: Taking recommended medications

Your doctor is the best person to evaluate your diabetes levels and recommend the right drug prescription. But most people have queries about medicine, so it would be good to address these three main ones.

 

Diabetes management

 

1. Once you start on diabetes medications, can you ever stop?

Many people who take medicine daily for diabetes often wonder if they can ever stop. They hope that if their blood sugar numbers are good and they are committed to a healthy lifestyle, their doctors may say medications can be discontinued.

Unfortunately, diabetes is a progressive disease, as Dr. Robert Gabbay, MD, PhD, Chief Medical Officer of the Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston says. So, although many people have reached a level where they could stop medications, doctors often advise them not to. Or, even if they temporarily stop medications, they may find they have regressed and have to go back to drugs at some point.

2. Do diabetes medications have side effects?

According to WebMD, you may sometimes have nausea, gas, bloating, diarrhoea, Vitamin B12 deficiency, and an upset stomach. These problems usually go away in a few weeks, as your body gets used to the medicine. It may also help to take the drugs with food.

Tell your doctor if you are taking any other medications so that he will know how to adjust the side effects caused by the combination of medicines you have to take.

3. What will happen if you miss taking your diabetes medications?

According to Healthline, medication adherence is of critical importance for people with diabetes. Missing a dose can cause a rise in your blood glucose levels, leading to severe complications over time.

Missing one dose isn’t likely to be a very serious problem. But missing several doses can lead to hyperglycemia (high blood sugar). That is not a good sign.

 

The third key for diabetes care: Regular testing and monitoring

Most diabetics know they should get regular diabetes control and care tests, but they usually have these main queries 


 

How do I know if I am pre diabetic?

1. What are the regular tests for diabetes?

Your doctor will have you take one or more of the following blood tests to confirm the diagnosis or to see that your diabetes is under strict control:

  • The A1C Test: This measures your average blood sugar level over the past 2 or 3 months.
  • Fasting Blood Sugar Test: This measures your blood sugar after an overnight fast (not eating).
  • Postprandial Glucose Test: This test is done to see how your body responds to sugar and starch after you eat a meal. (It is taken usually two hours after a meal.)
  • Glucose Tolerance Test: This measures your blood sugar before and after you drink a glucose-rich liquid.
  • Random Blood Sugar Test: This measures your blood sugar at the time you’re tested. You can take this test at any time and don’t need to fast (not eat) first.

2. How often should you have a blood test for diabetes?

Doctors say it would be ideal to have these checks every three months when newly diagnosed, then every six months once you’re stable. But never be tempted to do these tests on your own.

Your doctor has to see the results to compare them with previous ones to check the progress or status of your ailment.

3. Which test for blood sugar diabetes can be done daily at home?

Remember, blood sugar testing can be done at home using a blood glucose meter. The meter helps measure the amount of sugar in a small blood sample, usually from your fingertip, that you place on a disposable test strip.

But your meter has to be correctly calibrated, or you’ll be getting wrong readings. Get a new device when doubtful about its calibration. Don’t try to tinker with the settings of the old one.

 

The fourth key for diabetes care: Maintaining an exercise regimen

Exercising regularly is essential for people with diabetes because it can help you manage your blood sugar levels and body weight. But of all the exercises, the best ones to do are those with low-impact (that is, exercises that do not add injuries to other parts of the body due to over-exertion).

Here are a few typical queries that people ask − and their answers 


 

1. What is the best exercise for diabetes?

Undoubtedly, walking is the safest and most effective exercise for people with diabetes to follow as part of the care plan. Spending about 30 minutes in brisk walking, at least four to five times each week, is a great way to increase your physical activity.

Walking is also a pleasurable activity outdoors, in gardens and parks, inhaling fresh air. You will find that if it feels too strenuous sometimes, you can lower your walking speed to maintain the regularity of your exercise without giving it up altogether.

2. When is the best time for people with diabetes to walk?

If you’ve set yourself a quota of about 30 minutes of walking a day for exercise, doctors would probably advise you to take a 15-minute walk after every meal.

A study by the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services shows that moderately-paced 15-minute walks after meals work as well at regulating overall blood sugar in adults as a 30-minute walk once a day. Walking after every meal has an added benefit: it helps lower post-meal blood sugar for three hours.

3. How much should people with diabetes walk?

DiabetesJournals.org recommends this: “A good starting target is to walk at least 1.2 miles/day or 30 min or 2,400 steps/day.”

Start with less and then make small incremental additions to the amount of walking you do. Don’t try to do too much because that’s the surest way to halt your exercise if your body feels like it’s being pushed too hard.

 

In summary 


  1. Know that diabetes is a progressive disease, so have a clear diabetes care plan and don’t be tempted to deviate from it.
  2. Always get your doctor’s advice to devise your diabetes care plan and regularly monitor if your regimen is working.
  3. All parts of the diabetes care plan are equally important – diet, medications, tests and exercise. So give them all a place in your daily lifestyle.

 

Taking care of your diabetes also is a way to take care of your heart. Fill your heart with loving care. Show your heart some love. Treat your heart responsibly.

 

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Diabetes Lets Feel The Scare

Pre Diabetes Symptoms (Tingling Nerves Is One Of The Many)

Pre Diabetes Symptoms – Tingling Nerves Is One Of The Many

Pre diabetes symptoms – tingling nerves especially – often send out the first signs of alarm in people. Indeed, they are an uncomfortable feeling, but they are just one of the many observable symptoms of pre diabetes. There may be many others you haven’t noticed.

Incidentally, many people get one message wrong. They think pre diabetes is just a sign to be careful that you may get full-blown Type 2 diabetes soon. They don’t realize that pre diabetes itself, if it prolongs, can cause irreversible damage to the body.

Are you too taking pre diabetes a little lightly, and only worrying about tingling hands and feet, when there are many other things to be careful about? Here’s a primer for you 


 

What is pre diabetes?

Pre diabetes (also often spelt as prediabetes) usually indicates that you have higher-than-normal blood glucose levels. It’s not as high as in Type 2 diabetes yet. But without immediate lifestyle changes, both adults and children with pre diabetes are at risk of progressing to Type 2 diabetes.

Other names for pre diabetes include borderline diabetes, hyperglycemia (which means “high blood sugar”), glucose intolerance, impaired glucose tolerance, or impaired fasting glucose.

 

How is pre diabetes different from Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes

There are two major types of diabetes: Type 1 and Type 2. People with Type 1 diabetes are usually born with it 
 that is, their bodies cannot produce insulin at all. Type 2 diabetes, on the other hand, is a condition that gradually develops over time.

Pre diabetes is the early chronic condition that begins to show signs of diabetes. It slowly evolves into Type 2 diabetes if you don’t try to slow its progression.

 

What actually causes pre diabetes?

The exact cause of pre diabetes is still unknown. Experts believe that in people with diabetes, family history and genetics may be the cause. The risk factors are apparent, though. The bodies of people with pre diabetes are not able to process sugar (glucose) properly anymore. The pancreas slows down the secretion of insulin into the blood.

As a result, sugar builds up in your bloodstream instead of fueling your cells. This can happen in either of two ways – either your pancreas may not make enough insulin, or your cells may show signs of insulin resistance and not allow as much sugar in.

 

How do I know if I’m pre diabetic?

You can do a quick blood sugar test at any time, of course.

 

How do I know if I am pre diabetic?

 

But for more accurate results, your doctor may recommend a fasting plasma glucose test. If your blood sugar is less than 100 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL), the results are normal. But if your blood sugar is 100 to 125 mg/dL, pre diabetes is indicated. And if your blood sugar is 126 mg/dL or higher, your doctor will confirm you have full-scale diabetes.

Other tests can also confirm a negative situation – high blood pressure, low HDL levels, high triglycerides, high blood sugar levels, increased waist size, and weight gain (to the point of obesity). A combination of three or more of these symptoms is often called Metabolic Syndrome and can affect not just your diabetes but also your heart.

Everything in our bodies is ultimately connected. Ailments like hypertension, obesity, diabetes, or cholesterol – or a family history of heart disease – multiply the chances of future heart attacks.

 

What does pre diabetes tingling feel like?

You may experience pre diabetes tingling in your feet or your palms. Patients usually say this tingling feels like pins and needles.
Sometimes, it may even feel like your skin is too hot or cold or alternating between them.

Occasionally you may have a loss of sensitivity. There may be such numbness that you may not know where your feet are while walking. Wobbly walking is often the result.

At other times, you may feel like you’re wearing socks or gloves when you’re not.

Some sufferers say they feel sudden, sharp pains like an electrical current passing through their hands and feet. Or they get a stinging sensation as if they are grasping a sharp-edged metal object. This often causes them to drop items they are holding, even if these are things with smooth shapes.

 

The symptoms (and dangers) of pre diabetes

Since most people start with the common symptoms of feeling a persistent tingling, burning, or numbness in the hands and feet, let’s begin by discussing that.

Dr. Michael Polydefkis, a Professor of Neurology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, has conducted research among 62 people, including 52 with tingling and pain in their hands and feet. This condition is medically known as neuropathy.

Here is what he found: “Over three years, those with pre diabetes had damage over the entire length of small sensory nerve fibers, rather than just at the longest ends first. The findings challenge the current understanding of pre diabetes-related nerve damage.”

In other words, pre diabetes can severely impair your nerves over time, if unattended. This type of nerve damage is often not reversible. But there are ways to slow the growth of pre diabetic neuropathy, and reduce symptoms and the risk of more harm.

Pre diabetes has also been linked with long-term damage to your heart, blood vessels, kidneys, and eyes, even if you haven’t yet progressed to Type 2 diabetes.

Pre diabetes could also be linked to unrecognized (silent) heart attacks.

 

Other common signs of pre diabetes

Another likely sign of pre diabetes is darkened skin on some parts of the body, usually your neck, armpits, and groin.

Undiagnosed pre diabetes can also show early signs of more mature symptoms of diabetes like increased thirst, increased urination, increased hunger, and blurred vision.

 

How to make pre diabetes your friend

 

How to make pre diabetes your friend

 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says a pre diabetes diagnosis is “your chance to prevent Type 2 diabetes.”

There is no sure way to tell how fast you could progress from pre diabetes to more critical Type 2 diabetes. But the important thing is to get to a doctor at the earliest signs of any symptoms. Tests will prove or disprove your fear of having pre diabetes or Type 2 diabetes.
Those who find out they have pre diabetes, and take their diagnosis as a warning to make lifestyle changes (like reducing sugar in their diet, and exercising more), can definitely avoid the damages of pre diabetes and slow down the possible advancement towards Type 2 diabetes (and cardiovascular diseases too).

 

Pre diabetes care – initiatives to take

Doctors always emphasize that people with pre diabetes can prevent or delay the onset of Type 2 diabetes with lifestyle factors. These include simple changes you can make:

  • Make good dietary choices by reducing red meats, carbs, and sugar
  • Maintain healthy body weight and waist size by regular exercising
  • Avoid or quit smoking, and limit your alcohol consumption
  • Get enough quality sleep, and learn to manage stress in your life

Some alternative therapies that improve blood flow and reduce the chances of muscle wasting are massage, acupuncture, or chiropractic therapy.

Another option is Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (or TENS). The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) has approved this as a treatment for painful diabetic neuropathy.

 

In summary 


  1. Stay watchful of pre diabetes indicators, especially if you have a family history of diabetes. Get to a doctor with promptness for confirmatory tests.
  2. Get your doctor’s advice on managing neuropathy (tingling nerves) or any other early complications of diabetes that cannot be cured but can be contained.
  3. Change to a healthier lifestyle of better food habits and exercise. Manage stress and aim to give up addictions.

 

Whether you’re young or old, it pays to monitor yourself often and lower your risk of diabetes in a proactive way. And thereby, you’ll treat your heart responsibly too.

 

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TMT Test Means Treadmill Test 
 It Gauges Heart Stress

TMT Test Means Treadmill Test 
 It Gauges Heart Stress

 

TMT Test means a Treadmill Test. It is a medical acronym for a heart test done using a treadmill.

Have you ever wondered how far your heart can go if it is put to higher and higher levels of stress? More and more youngsters are falling prey to heart attacks because they think external body fitness and heart fitness are the same things. They are not.

Moreover, whether young or old, if you are a patient with other ailments like hypertension, obesity, diabetes, or cholesterol – or you have a family history of heart disease – the chances of future heart attacks get multiplicative.

Doctors normally ask patients to go through the Treadmill (TMT) Test, if there is either a suspicion of heart ailment or even regularly as part of the Annual Health Check-Up Plan.

If you have doubts about the process and what it will take, we’ve put together the answers for you.

 

1. What is a TMT (Treadmill Test)? Why is a TMT test required?

A treadmill test (TMT) is a form of cardiac stress test. Your doctor will ask you to walk (or later, even run) on a treadmill, and the difficulty level will be gradually increased. Your heart signals will be monitored as you do this activity.

The idea is to help your doctor determine how far your heart can go before it begins to suffer an abnormal rhythm – or the blood flow to your heart drops.

In short, it helps your doctor know how much stress your heart can take.

 

2. Are even children prescribed a TMT test?

Children who are in high-heart-risk families, or those with congenital heart defects, may be put under TMT stress tests 
 but doctors will be very careful to set test limits to match the age group and heart conditions of such children.

More and more hospitals are indeed offering TMT tests to children. The University of IOWA Stead Family Children’s Hospital in the US even has a very reassuring YouTube video to show kids and their parents how a TMT test is done.

Adults too could benefit from watching this short, simple and clear video.

 

 

3. Is TMT and ECG the same? What about TMT and ECHO tests?

A Treadmill Test (TMT) is generally done to find the stress on the heart. On the treadmill machine, the patient is asked to walk or run, and the readings are taken.

An ECG (Electro Cardio Graph) test is quite different. Electrocardiography is the recording of the heart’s electrical activity over time via skin electrodes.

While a TMT test gauges the level of stress your heart can take, the ECG studies your overall heart rhythm to spot weaknesses in different parts of the heart muscle, which reflect abnormal rhythms of the heart.

Both TMT and ECG however cannot measure the pumping ability of the heart; for this, doctors have to depend on ultrasound-based echocardiography (also known as the ECHO tests).

 

4. What is a normal TMT test? What is abnormal?

For adults, the maximum predicted heart rate is generally expected to be 220 minus your age. So, for example, if you’re 40 years old, the maximum predicted heart rate is 220 – 40 = 180.

For treadmill testing, doctors will try to check if your heart can sustain at least 85 percent of the predicted maximum heart rate.

 

 

If you are unable to do that much activity – or you feel strain, chest pain, breathlessness, cramps, or other clear discomfort – your test will be stopped for abnormality. The maximum level up to which your heart can go will be noted.

 

5. How is TMT test done? What are the stages of a stress test?

The “Bruce Protocol” is a standard used in TMT testing and is comprised of multiple exercise stages of three minutes each.

You are asked to begin walking on a treadmill at a slow pace (under 2 mph). Every few minutes, the speed and steepness of the treadmill is then increased, making you work harder. The goal is to see at which point you’re too tired or out of breath.

  • Stage 1 is performed at about 1.7 mph and a 10% gradient.
  • Stage 2 is performed at about 2.5 mph and a 12% gradient.
  • Stage 3 is performed at about 3.4 mph and a 14% gradient.

 

6. How many minutes do you have to walk or run for TMT? Is a stress test hard?

Your doctor may look to see if your heart can do at least 85% of its maximum heart rate for about 9 minutes or so.

But the doctor may also further see if you can stay on the treadmill as long as possible to evaluate maximum effort.

Those over age 70 must be able to exercise for much less time (as decided by the doctor), but must still attain 85% of the predicted maximum heart rate.

Doctors will never make it so hard that a TMT test impairs your heart. That’s why you must always insist on a Specialist/Cardiologist being present during your test – and not just a nurse or technician.

 

7. Can you drink water before a stress test? Can you drive home after a stress test?

The general rule most doctors follow is this: Nothing to eat or drink 6 hours before the test. You may drink water in any amount. You must avoid all products that contain caffeine for at least 24 hours before the test.

Your doctor may usually also forbid you from driving yourself home after a stress test. So go prepared.

 

8. Can a TMT test detect artery blockage?

Although the typical TMT tests are not of much use in identifying the smaller plaques in our body, stress tests can be reasonably good at detecting severe blocks.

Cardiologist Benico Barzilai, M.D. at the Cleveland Clinic, says, “Stress tests can detect when arteries have 70% or more blockage. This severe narrowing is what causes severe chest pain called angina.

But normal results from a stress test do not rule out the possibility of a future heart attack. This is because plaque can still rupture, form clots and block an artery.”

 

9. Is a positive test serious? What about a negative test?

Positive TMT tests usually mean that a patient is showing changes of a lack of adequate blood supply to the heart (also called angina) after some workload. In medical terms, doctors may refer to the patient’s heart as having “ischemic heart disease”.

But having either positive or negative results on a TMT test needn’t always be perfect. Sometimes, doctors may get false positives or false negatives that need to be evaluated against other tests on the heart.

 

 

As always, the doctor is the best judge on how to analyze results as positive or negative, given all the other evidence of the condition of a patient’s heart.

 

10. How long is a TMT test valid? And what is the usual cost?

A TMT Test is usually valid for up to 4 months from the date it was taken.

At the time of writing this article, the price of a TMT test in India is claimed to be around INR 1200 (plus or minus price variations at different hospitals).

Results will be usually available within 4-6 hours to patients – or even earlier to the doctor.

 

In summary, the wrong thing to do would be to go to a TMT test in a state of fear, not knowing what to expect. Be as relaxed as you can be, enjoy the treadmill exercise, and learn more about yourself and your heart with a good doctor beside you. Treat your heart responsibly.

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Anxiety, Heart, Panic: A Fearful Circle (But Manageable Too)

Anxiety, Heart, Panic: A Fearful Circle

 

Anxiety, heart, and panic … have you noticed how people always refer to these three conditions as if they were all the same thing?

You must have heard sufferers say, “I’m having an anxiety episode. I’m panicking. My heart’s racing towards an attack!”j

That’s natural because these three conditions are indeed interconnected. But there are also fine differences between them.

It helps to know how to tell one type of attack from another … without confusing the signals.

It also helps to know that the whole fear-driven vicious circle is possible to calm down and manage.

 

1. What is an anxiety attack and how is it caused?

Anxiety is the most natural response of the body to danger. Our bodies are naturally made to show us signals when we are presented with imminent threats.

For example, our hearts beat faster, our breathing gets heavier, our muscles tighten, our nerves are on sharp alert, and our minds are overactive. This, according to the expert psychiatrists is called the “fight or flight response”. In the face of lurking alarm, our bodies get ready to either stay and fight the hazard – or flee from it.

In olden times, when people faced life in the wild amidst real danger, these signals of anxiety alerted them to save themselves from wild animals or other natural perils. But the modern world has no such dangers, right? So why do we then have anxiety symptoms?

That’s because many of us see ordinary life challenges as “perceived threats”. Our bodies then create the same “fight or flight response” signals even for sillier things like work deadline fears, or life changes like relocations. Sometimes, even good life events like an impending wedding or a promotion can create anxieties.

 

2. What kinds of people get more anxiety in their lives?

Two kinds of people are more prone to anxiety in their lives.

One group, as we saw earlier, is those who see every small challenge or change in life as “dangerous” or “highly negative”. Life, as we know, never goes 100% smoothly at any time. When you take every setback, minor and major, as a threat your anxiety can go sky-high.

The second group of anxiety sufferers is those who have OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). These are people who are extreme perfectionists, always wanting life to follow a certain pattern. Even a slight change of order can create high levels of anxiety in them to set right the “disorderliness”.

 

3. How is an anxiety attack different from a panic attack?

 

 

A panic attack is a more aggressive kind of anxiety attack. In an ordinary anxiety attack (called Generalized Anxiety Disorder), we would feel tight and stressed, with fast heartbeats and raw nerves. In a panic attack (also called Panic Disorder), things get so stressful that we find it difficult to breathe.

We suffer what doctors call “hyperventilation” – or very short, shallow, and fast breathing that sometimes leads us to faint. Our stomachs begin to churn, our mouths go dry, and we feel as if we are suffocating from lack of oxygen. It’s as if something is tightening our chests unbearably.

Hyperventilation is not a shortness of oxygen, as we think 
 but because our breathing is shallow and rapid, there’s an over-intake of oxygen and a lack of enough balancing carbon dioxide.

An age-old trick that doctors prescribe is to breathe into a paper bag, held tight to our faces, for a short while. We thus briefly breathe in the carbon dioxide we are breathing out – and we rebalance the carbon dioxide levels in our lungs.

 

4. How do anxiety or panic attacks affect the heart?

The relationship between anxiety, panic, and heart disease is a vicious cycle, where anxiety and panic affect the heart and vice versa – as demonstrated by this graphic from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

 

CDC diagram of interrelationship

Click on the image to expand.

Image courtesy: Centers For Disease Control and Prevention

According to CDC, people with depression, anxiety, or stress, over a long period, may experience certain physiologic effects on the body, such as increased heart rate and blood pressure, reduced blood flow to the heart, and heightened levels of cortisol. Over time, this can lead to calcium buildup in the arteries, metabolic disease, and heart disease.

On the other hand, after heart disease sets in, those with anxiety and depression may also increase their smoking, inactive lifestyles, or fail to take prescribed medications, because they may have fewer healthy coping strategies for stressful situations.

One more thing about the heart 
 if you are a patient with other ailments like hypertension, obesity, diabetes, or cholesterol – or you have a family history of heart disease – the chances of future heart attacks get multiplicative.

 

5. When is an anxiety or panic attack serious enough to call the doctor?

It’s often wrong to try and evaluate if you are having an anxiety or panic attack, or a heart attack, just by trying to gauge your heart rate. There is no standard anxiety heart rate, panic heart rate, or heart attack heart rate. Your doctor is the best judge because there are so many other variables to consider besides heart rate.

The best thing to do is to monitor the situation. An anxiety attack or panic attack may go away on its own after a while. But if the problem persists for a long duration or recurs too frequently, you may be better off visiting a doctor to see if your heart is involved or impacted.

The signs to take seriously are when you also have shortness of breath, dizziness, chest pain, or a fainting episode, along with excessive sweating. If you have a doubt, it’s always better to get a medical clearance that all is well with your heart. That’s one worry less, and that always helps!

 

6. How do specialists diagnose and treat anxiety?

If you feel you have an anxiety disorder or a panic disorder, get your doctor’s referral to a good psychotherapist. Your therapist may recommend an approach that combines some anxiety-relieving medications and some behavioral counseling.

You may be encouraged to try Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, where you are taught to identify automatic negative thoughts and replace them with positive ones. One other method is called Exposure Therapy where you are made to face the anxiety-causing problems often – to stop fearing them anymore.

Other treatments could include relaxation exercises, biofeedback, and meditation.

 

7. How can you calm yourself and prevent anxiety from impacting your heart?

If you’re cleared medically and feel capable of handling your anxiety yourself, there are some excellent self-care ideas you can try to calm your mind and body.

  • Get some regular exercise. When you rid your body of excess nervous tension through active physical movement, your mind will stop racing out of control.

 

 

  • Avoid interactions with those who are argumentative. Don’t let anyone wear you down with too much intellectual squabble.
  • Spend lots of time with Nature. The scenes, scents, and sounds of life around will take your mind away from itself, where it tends to wallow in its miseries.
  • Focus on sensory pleasures. Savor the taste of food. Inhale the aroma of cooking. Hear the sounds of the street outside. Pet your puppy’s warm fur. Fill your eyes with the beauty of the sunset.
  • Learn to take life easy. As wise people say, “Don’t take everything to heart.”
  • Don’t always live in your mind overwhelmed by thoughts. Live amongst things outside of yourself.

Free yourself from the old negative anxious or panicky thoughts and greet each new day with a fresh mindset, eager to live. Show your heart some love.

Categories
Care

Low Aerobic Exercise: Weight Loss (Without Pain Or Strain)

Low Aerobic Exercise for Weight Loss Without Pain Or Strain

Low aerobic exercise? What does that mean? Let us explain 


There’s a chance that to lose weight you’re trying workouts that are very hard. In fact, so hard that your knees, back, shoulders, and ankles are under great strain.

It’s a mistaken idea people often have that exercise has to be extremely energetic, vigorous intensive – and painful – to be effective. And that makes people push themselves at an unbearable pace to “burn calories fast” through high-intensity exercise.

But most of us who are not trained athletes can’t keep up such intense workouts, day after day. Also, such“stop-start” exercising is what makes our weight loss and fitness programs unsuccessful.

There is a smarter, less injurious way to exercise – and that’s by doing “low aerobic exercise”. You will be able to do your exercises without strain and pain. And it will all be easy to do as a daily habit.

Your excess weight will fall off by regular working out, without giving up –  rather than by trying to push yourself to breakdown levels.

Want to know more about low aerobic exercise? Read on!

 

Low aerobic exercise: Why should you try it?

We all know that an important part of exercise is aerobic capacity. Aerobic means “with air”. In other words, exercises that make us breathe in deep, and raise the heart rate, help burn those unwanted calories.

Exercise also helps with other ailments like hypertension, obesity, diabetes, or cholesterol – or if you have a family history of heart disease. Remember, the chances of future heart attacks get multiplied when you are unable to control these other diseases as well.

While any exercise works for weight loss and your heart care, it can only do so if the exercise regimen is consistent and can be continued, not just for the short term but as a long term habit. That’s the best way to lose calories and keep them away for good.

Low-impact aerobic fitness exercises are the answer to injury-less, regular, and yet effective weight loss.

Low aerobic exercise is also often called by various other names – such as low intensity exercise, low impact exercise, low intensity cardio, low impact cardio, low impact aerobics, and so on. The idea is the same whatever the name. Do the exercise, but control the harmful overload of strain on your skeletal frame, muscles, and body.

 

Benefits of low aerobic exercise: why is it good?

Even if your weight loss and ideal fitness level are more gradually achieved, there are huge benefits to low aerobic exercises:

  1. You can still burn calories at a fairly consistent pace, provided you do low aerobic exercises as long-duration exercises (say half-an-hour to one-hour workouts) and consistently over time.
  2. Your exercises are less likely to lead to injury or burnout caused by working out at high body-discomfort levels.
  3. After exercise you will still have enough energy left in your body to continue with your daily work, instead of crashing down on the bed for the rest of the day.
  4. You are more likely to stick with these pleasant (and non-painful) exercises that you enjoy.
  5. You will probably burn more calories in the long run with low aerobic exercise because you are more likely to keep at the exercise habit.
  6. Low aerobic exercises also increase the production of endorphins (happy hormones), which act as natural painkillers – and can improve your mood to relieve symptoms of depression.
  7. Many low impact exercises also train your body in the key area of balance and poise, along with losing weight. Focusing on your slow movements through exercises like tai chi, yoga, and pilates will improve body alignment and you’ll look less bulky.
  8. Low-intensity aerobic exercises also calm your nervous system so you’re ready for a great night’s sleep after working out.

What is the ideal low aerobic heart rate zone?

 

According to the Cleveland Clinic, low-intensity cardio training is when you work out between 50%–60% of your maximum heart rate for a steady 30 minutes or more.

Monitor your heart rate zone with a smartwatch.

At this level of intensity, you can sustain the workout for a longer period of time – and build your endurance and training load progressively.

 

How do low-intensity aerobic exercises work?

According to the American Council on Exercise (ACE), during lower intensity exercise, your muscles rely on energy production from a combination of oxygen, carbohydrates, and fats. Your body learns to use these energy sources more efficiently, allowing you to work out for longer stretches of time.

Further, according to a paper published in the Strength & Conditioning Journal low-intensity aerobics also helps to strengthen your “slow-twitch” muscle fibers. These slow-twitch muscle fibers are the ones used by your body for sustained, smaller movements and postural control. The use of these muscle fibers allows maximum oxygen uptake during low aerobic exercise.

 

How do you know if you’re doing low aerobic exercises correctly?

 

Monitor your heart rate with a smartwatch

 

 

Experts say you should be able to hold a conversation while completing a low-intensity cardio workout. You shouldn’t be gasping and out of breath completely.

Trainers also say that in low aerobic exercises, one foot must stay on the ground at all times. When both legs lift up, you pound back to the ground straining a lot of joints and bones.

 

 

How can you “turn up the burn” with low aerobic exercise?

Indeed, you can burn more fat and calories as a part of your low intensity cardio routine. How?

Change up your routine often. The human body quickly adapts to your workout. As it adapts it becomes more efficient, thus burning fewer calories even though you are doing the same workout at the same level of exertion. So, change your mode of exercise every now and then.

How much must you exercise when doing low aerobic workouts?

Typical recommendations for low aerobic exercise include at least a 20-30 minute workout between 3-5 times a week.

People who can increase their low aerobic exercise sessions to 40-60 minutes, 5-6 times a week, report even better results. But you have to very gradually increase the exercising time.

What are some great low aerobic exercises to try?

Finding the right low aerobic exercise routine is typically dependent on your personal preference, and may involve a process of trial and error. Here are some excellent ideas 


1.  Low aerobic workout routines (if you like a sequenced regimen)

Here are two popular physical activity routines from YouTube to try 


a. Fun, low impact workout for TOTAL beginners

 

b.15 Min Low Impact Aerobics – Quiet Cardio Workout for Beginners with No Jumping – Easy Exercises

2.  Other home-based low aerobic exercise activity

  • Pilates done with a focus on posture perfection
  • Yoga asanas accompanied by deep breathing, and mindfulness
  • Low impact cardio with light-to-moderate hand weights
  • Treadmill walking at a moderate but steady pace
  • Stair-climbing with slow step by step pacing
  • Gentle rowing aiming for duration and not speed
  • Step aerobics done with low stepping platforms
  • Ballroom dancing or any other form of gliding dance moves

 

3.  Outdoors-based low aerobic exercise activity

  • Walking at a brisk but not overly fast pace
  • Cycling with rhythmic pedaling movements
  • Tai chi done in a slow, focused manner with deep breathing
  • Hiking on low-grade terrain for longer distances
  • Rock climbing with usage of controlled muscle strength
  • Swimming with graceful arms and legs coordination
  • Skating or rollerblading (if you know how to stop when you need to!)
  • Golf – a great exercise if you skip the golf-cart rides and walk the course

 

Lose that excess weight. Treat your heart responsibly. Do exercise, but without any pain or strain that delays results. Good luck!

Categories
Prepare

Happiness And Your Heart: They Need Each Other (To Thrive)

Happiness And Your Heart They Need Each Other To Thrive

Happiness and your heart are like the classic chicken-and-egg situation.

Great philosophers have often declared that where there’s no heart there’s no happiness. Research now hints at the fact that where there’s no happiness there’s no heart.

Happiness and your heart support each other. And it’s not just philosophical belief, it’s a medically proven fact.

Wherever you are in this cycle, the good thing to know is that you have the power to make it all positive. It’s all in your hands, so read on 


 

What is happiness? A doctor-cum-philosopher’s answer 


Everybody knows what happiness feels like, but it’s actually hard to define. While medical science can now tell us what happiness can do for our health – and especially our hearts – we often have to look to the philosophers to explain to us what such a vague idea as “happiness” means.

Deepak Chopra, M.D., one of the finest examples of a medical specialist who is also a philosopher, probably has the best explanation. He says: “Real happiness is when you are happy for no reason at all …”

But like any doctor, he too agrees that happiness is a great support to heart health, just as heart health is a great support to happiness.

Moreover, as doctors will tell you, ailments like hypertension, obesity, diabetes, or cholesterol – or if you have a family history of heart disease – can all multiply the negative effects on your heart. So, if you have such ailments, you need to give your heart more care by keeping your mind as happy as you can.

 

Can we measure happiness? 5 ways scientists are trying to 


It may sound like a difficult idea to actually measure happiness but researchers and psychologists these days are trying to find some ways. A lot of research on happiness-measuring seems to be checking out 5 factors – like biology, behavior, positivity, readiness to interact with others, and self-esteem.

Scientists are interested in seeing if high levels of such factors can directly connect with a high level of happiness.

 

3 interesting research findings on happiness and your heart

 

interesting research findings on happiness and your heart

 

There appears to be a lot of interest in the medical world in the area of studying happiness and its medical value (especially, its impact on heart health).

Here are glimpses of just some of the interesting research findings we have in this area 



1.  Happy people are 22% less likely to develop heart disease

Karina W. Davidson, Ph.D., lead researcher at Columbia University Medical Center, (talking to WebMD.com) says that “ 
the happiest people are 22% less likely to develop heart disease than people who fall in the middle of the negative-positive emotional experiences scale.”

In fact, she says, people with the most negative emotions have the highest risk of heart disease, and people who score highest for happiness have the lowest risk.

She has also tried to pinpoint some of the factors why she believes happiness may affect heart health:

  1. Happy people appear to have healthier lifestyles – they sleep well, eat better, smoke less, and get more exercise.
  2. Happiness may be helping people produce positive chemical changes and lesser stress hormones – all good for the heart.
  3. Genetics may also be a cause – there may be some connection between those who are happier by birth and are heart-healthy too.

2.  Happy people have less risk of a heart attack despite heredity

Lisa R.Yanek, MPH, of Johns Hopkins University, has published a paper in The American Journal of Cardiology, which finds that happy people have less risk of a heart attack — even if their family history puts them in the high-risk category.

Her happiness research study indicates that having a bad attitude can even affect the length of your life because negative emotions are connected to developing cardiovascular disease.

On the other hand, the good news she gives is that happy people have significantly lower chances of heart attacks and other cardiac problems. She measures happiness by levels of positive emotions, cheerfulness, and life satisfaction. Interestingly, she finds that happiness can be increased if people make an effort to be happier. For example, smiling can help improve mood and reduce stress.

3.  Happiness protects the heart by reducing blood pressure

Sophie Bostock, Ph.D., in a paper published in PubMedCentral, a highly respected database from the US National Institutes of Health, says happiness protects the heart by reducing blood pressure, which is a major risk factor for heart disease.

Her study of over 6,500 people over the age of 65 has found that positive well-being is linked to a 9% lower risk of high blood pressure and less strain on heart muscles.

 

2 encouraging research findings on happiness being in your control

 

encouraging research findings on happiness being in your control

 

If you believe happiness cannot be artificially created, you could be wrong – because there is again some research that says happiness can be self-created and controlled 


1.  Negative people can become happier and help their heart

Bertram Pitt, MD, the Professor of Medicine at the University of Michigan (talking to WebMD.com) explains the findings of his study on happiness and heart health. He says that previously experts believed some people were by nature happier than others. But research increasingly shows that it is possible for negative people to become happier and help their hearts by focusing on acts like these:

  1. Expressing gratitude more often.
  2. Looking at things more optimistically.
  3. Doing more acts of kindness.
  4. Learning to mindfully experience joyful events.
  5. Forgiving others and forgiving themselves.
  6. Training themselves to sleep and eat better.

 

2.  40% of our happiness may be under our control

Sonja Lyubomirsky, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Riverside has authored the bestseller book “The How of Happiness: A Scientific Approach to Getting the Life You Want”.

Her research has made her discover that up to 40% of our happiness may be under our control. Happiness levels, she believes, can be increased through dropping grudges, building relationships, enjoying happy events, practicing kindness, expressing gratitude, exercising regularly, and getting enough sleep.

 

5 simple tips to keep your heart ticking with happiness 


 

1.  Don’t cut back on a good night’s sleep.

Sleep is a very essential part of health. The stress of having many late nights can rob both your happiness and your heart health.

2. Add some laugh time to your calendar.

If you aren’t naturally joyful, join a laughter club in your neighborhood. The heart-health advantages of laughter (or even just smiling) are too good to miss.

3.  Keep your body moving in activity.

Being idle or lazy never kindles joy. On the contrary, activity – any activity – perks you up. It revs up your blood circulation and gets your mind, heart, and body together for performance of tasks.

4.  Give your body the right fuels it needs.

Eating wholesome food is one way of showing your heart that you care about its health. Your heart will brim over with happiness and energy.

5.  Be grateful and give more than you receive.

Almost every scientist seems to have found that an attitude of gratitude, and getting pleasure in giving to others (more than you receive), creates a great sense of self-satisfaction and happiness.

As we round up, read this 


The Unicode Consortium has said that the two most used emojis are the “Face With Tears Of Joy” and the “Red Heart”. Fill your heart with loving care. Smile. And keep sharing your happiness!

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