Heart Disease Prevention

1. Eat your Vegies
Researchers have found that men and women that added a couple of servings of whole grains, nuts, beans,and tofu to their diets each day for a month lowered there LDL cholesterol by nearly 30 %.

2. Fight Cholesterol with the right Fat 
A group of 17 Ausie men with high cholesterol swapped macadamia nuts for 15 % of the calories in their diets, and their total cholesterol droped by 3 and 5%, while their HDL-good cholesterol rose by nearly 8%. Macadamia nuts are the best source of monounsaturated fat.

3. Run indoors on Hazy polluted days
Researchers in Finland found that exercising outside on hor and hazy days when air pollution was worst cut the ozygen supply to the blood, making it more likely to clot.

4. Avoid second hand smoke
Researchers in Greece found that people who were exposed to cigarette smoke for just 30 minutes three times a week had a 26 % greater risk of developing  heart disease than people who were rarely exposed to secondhand smoke.

5. Engage in Strenuous Exercise like swimming and hiking
UK research has found that people who burn just 50 calories a day in strenuous activities are 62% less likely to die of heart disease than people who burn nearly seven imes as many calories during less active exercises like walking and golfing.

6. Meditate for 20 minutes a day
Thomas Jefferson University researchers have found that this down time may reduce anxiety and depression by more than 25 %. Research has also found that patients with coronary artery disease who had the most mental stress were 3 times more likely to die during the period of study than those with less stress.

7. Drink Cranberry Juice
University of Scranton scientists found that volunteers who drank three 8 ounce glasses a day for a month increased their HDL – good cholesterol levels by 10%, enough to cut the risk of heart disease by 40%

8. Eat Breakfast
In a study of 3900 people, Harvard researchers found that men and women who ate breakfast every day were 44% less likely to be overweight and 41% less likely to develop insuline resistance, both high risk factors for heart disease

9. Walk for ½ Hour Daily
People who walked an extra 4,000 to 5,000 steps each ay lowered their blood pressure by an average of 11 points according to the University of Tennesee.

10. Eat Whole Grain Cereal
A study of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reports that 2 servings of whole grain cereal a day can reduce the risk of dying of heart disease by nearly 20%.

11.Make lots of friends
According to research from the University of Chicago, lonely people have a harder time dealing with stress and are at greater risk of  heart disease than people with a wide circle of friends.

12. Slash the salt now
A 20 year study of the Journal of American Medical Association found that overweight men with the highest sodium intake were 61% more likely to die of heart disease than those with lower salt intakes. Mrs. Dash is a great alternative to salt.

13.Double the Tomatoe Sauce
The lycopene in tomatoe sauce prevents harmful buildup of cholesterol on artery walls.

14. Eat a Grapefruit a day
Eating a grapefruit a day or drinking 8 ounces of -not from concentrated - juice can reduce arterial narrowing by 46%, lower your bad cholesterol level by more than 10%, and help lower your blood pressure by more than 5 points.

15. Eat Garlic
In addition to lowering bad cholesterol and helping fight off infection, eating garlic may help limit damage to your heart after a heart attack or surgery. 16. Beans are a good for the Heart
Beans are a great source of homocysteine-folate and bad cholesterol lowering. Researchers have found that people who ate four or more servings a week had a 22% lower risk of developing heart disease .

17. Wash your Hands often
German researchers studied 570 people for an average of 3 years and found that those with the most antibodies (from fighing infection) in their systems also had the most significant clogging of their arteries, hearts, necks, and legs. Use liquid soap as germs may live on bars.

18. Lift weights Harvard researchers found that lifting weights for just 30 minutes a week is enough to reduce your risk of heart disease  by 23%.

19. Skip the french fries and bad trans fatty acids
In a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the exercise and nutritional habits of 80,000 women were recorded for 14 years. They found that the most important correlate of heart disease was the women’s dietary intake of fods containing trans fatty acids, mutated forms of fat that lower good HDL cholesterol, and increase bad LDL cholesterol. One of the worst foods is French fries.

20. Snack on Nuts instead
Harvard research has found that men who replaced 127 calories of carbohydrates – that is about 14 baked Lays potato chips – with 1 ounce of nuts decreased their risk of heart disease by 30%.

21. Rinse and brush
Rinse your mouth with Listerine and Brush with Colgate Total toothpaste. This should reduce oral bacteria, which can decrease your risk of heart attack by 200 – 300% according to U of Buffalo research.

22. Pour on the Olive Oil
Men whose diet include as much as 2 ounces of Olive oil a day have an 82% lower risk of having a fatal heart attack than men who consume little or none. Olive oil is rich in monounsaturated fats-known to hinder the oxidation of bad LDL cholesterol into its artery – clogging form.

23. Lower your Blood Pressure under 120/80
If your blood pressure is high – more than 140/90 – knocking 20 points off the top number and 10 points off the bottom number can cut your risk of dying of heart disease in half.

24. French Red Wine versus German reds
According to the American College of American College of Cardiology, French red wine has up to 4 times more artery protecting enzymes than German reds.

25. Go fish
The American Heart association recommends eating fish at least twice a week. If not try taking a fish oil supplement instead. Besides lowering blood pressure and clearing plaque from arteries, 1 to 2 grams of fish oil improves the blood flow and helps maintain regular heartbeat.

26. Add Flaxseed to your diet
Flaxseed and Flaxseed oil is a natural source of omega 3s.

27. Take a baby Aspirin a day
Researchers at the University of North Carolina found that regular baby aspirin consumption cut the risk of coronary heart disease by 28% in people who had never had a heart attack or stroke, but were at heightened risk. For maximum impact on blood pressure, take a low dose aspirin before bedtime.

28. Fortify with Folic Acid
A study published in the British Medical Journal found that people who consume the recommended amount of Folic acid daily had a 16% lower risk of heart disease than those whose diets are lacking in this B vitamin. Good sources of Folic acid include…asparagus, broccoli, and fortified cereal.

29. Choose Dark Chocolate – Cocoa
Cocoa contains flavonoids that thin the blood and keep it from clotting. One of the good fats in dark cocoa is oleic acid, which is the same healthy monounsaturated fat found in Olive oil.

30. Get your daily B Vitamins
A study at the Cleveland clinic found that men with diets low in B vitamins were more than twice as likely to develop heart disease as men with higher levels of B vitamins in there system.

31. Potassium is good for health
Slice a banana on your cereal, bake a sweet potato or yam, cook some spinach. Studies show that not getting your daily 3,500 milligrams of potassium can set you up for high blood pressure. Other good sources include raisins, tomatoes and papayas.

32. Increase fiber intake 
Eat bran cereal or take fiber supplements like Metamucil 15 minutes before eating each meal. It has shown to help slow the digestive process of highly processed starchs and sweets. Diets high in foods that quickly raise blood sugar may increase heart disease risk.

Exercise for a Healthy Heart

How Do I Get Started?
Before starting an exercise program, talk to your doctor about:

Medication changes.

New medications can greatly affect your response to exercise; your doctor can tell you if your normal exercise routine is still safe.

Heavy lifting.

Make sure that lifting or pushing heavy objects and chores such as raking, shoveling, mowing, or scrubbing aren't off limits. Chores around the house can be tiring for some people; make sure you only do what you are able to do without getting tired.

Safe exercises.

Get the doctor's approval before you lift weights, use a weight machine, jog, or swim.

What Type of Exercise Is Best?

Stretching:

slow lengthening of the muscles. Stretching the arms and legs before and after exercising helps prepare the muscles for activity and helps prevent injury and muscle strain. Regular stretching also increases your range of motion and flexibility.

Cardiovascular or aerobic:

steady physical activity using large muscle groups. This type of exercise strengthens the heart and lungs and improves the body's ability to use oxygen. Aerobic exercise has the most benefits for your heart. Over time, aerobic exercise can help decrease your heart rate and blood pressure at rest and improve your breathing.

Strengthening: repeated muscle contractions (tightening) until the muscle becomes tired. For people with heart failure, many strengthening exercises are not recommended. (See below)

What Are Examples of Aerobic Exercises?
Aerobic exercises include: walking, jogging, jumping rope, bicycling (stationary or outdoor), cross-country skiing, skating, rowing and low-impact aerobics or water aerobics.

How Often Should I Exercise?
In general, to achieve maximum benefits, you should gradually work up to an aerobic session lasting 20 to 30 minutes, at least three to four times a week. Exercising every day or every other day will help you keep a regular aerobic exercise schedule.

What Should I Include in My Program?

Every exercise session should include a warm-up, conditioning phase and a cool-down.

Warm-up.

This helps your body adjust slowly from rest to exercise. A warm-up reduces the stress on your heart and muscles, slowly increases your breathing, circulation (heart rate) and body temperature. It also helps improve flexibility and reduce muscle soreness. The best warm-up includes stretching, range of motion activities and the beginning of the activity at a low intensity level.

Conditioning.

This follows the warm-up. During the conditioning phase, the benefits of exercise are gained and calories are burned. Be sure to monitor the intensity of the activity (check your heart rate). Don't over do it.

Cool-down.

This is the last phase of your exercise session. It allows your body to gradually recover from the conditioning phase. Your heart rate and blood pressure will return to near resting values. Cool-down does not mean to sit down! In fact, do not sit, stand still or lie down right after exercise. This may cause you to feel dizzy or lightheaded or have heart palpitations (fluttering in your chest). The best cool-down is to slowly decrease the intensity of your activity. You may also do some of the same stretching activities you did in the warm-up phase.

What Is the Rated Perceived Exertion Scale?
The Rated Perceived Exertion (RPE) scale is used to measure the intensity of your exercise. The RPE scale runs from 0-10. The numbers below relate to phrases used to rate how easy or difficult you find an activity. For example, 0 (nothing at all) would be how you feel when sitting in a chair; 10 (very, very heavy) would be how you feel at the end of an exercise stress test or after a very difficult activity.

Daily Health Task Lists

Just like brushing your teeth, healthy habits should be cultivated on a daily basis. The following is a guide to daily tasks:

1. Activity should be a daily occurrence. Walk, run or jump for a minimum total of 20 minutes a day.

2. Protect your skin. Sun block should be applied on face, neck, arms and hands even in the dead of winter. It protects against climatic toxins too. Moisturize skin daily.

3. Eat fruits, vegetables, grains, low-fat dairy products and small amounts of protein. Avoid sweets and other processed foods.

4. Meditate or spend a minimum of five minutes daily in quiet time.

5. Find your spiritual self. Discover what inspires you, raises your level of consciousness, motivates you, and satisfies your soul.

6. Exercise your brain. Read, study, solve problems, and learn new skills. As does the body, the brain atrophies with lack of use.

7. Hug somebody.

Dr.Deviprasad Shetty, (Famous Heart Specialist) answers Queries of Wipro guys

Here was a chat, arranged by WIPRO for its employees, with Dr.Deviprasad Shetty, Narayana Hrudayalaya (Famous Heart Specialist) Bangalore.The transcript of the chat is given below. Useful for everyone.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Qn: What are the five thumb rules for a layman to take care of his heart?

Ans:

1. Diet - Less of carbohydrate, more of protein, less oil

2. Exercise - Half an hour's walk, at least five days a week; avoid liftsand avoid sitting for a longtime

3. Quit smoking

4. Control weight

5. Control blood pressure and sugar

Qn: Is eating non-veg food (fish) good for the heart?

Ans: No

Qn: It's still a grave shock to hear that some apparently healthy persongets a cardiac arrest. How do we understand it in perspective?

Ans: This is called silent attack; that is why we recommend everyone pastthe age of 30 to undergo routine health checkups.

Qn: Are heart diseases hereditary?

Ans: Yes

Qn: What are the ways in which the heart is stressed? What practices doyou suggest to de-stress?

Ans: Change your attitude towards life. Do not look for perfection ineverything in life.

Qn: Is walking better than jogging or is more intensive exercise requiredto keep a healthy heart?

Ans: Walking is better than jogging since jogging leads to early fatigueand injury to joints .

Qn: You have done so much for the poor and needy. What has inspired you to do so?

Ans: Mother Theresa, who was my patient.

Qn: Can people with low blood pressure suffer heart diseases?

Ans: Extremely rare

Qn: Does cholesterol accumulates right from an early age (I'm currentlyonly 22) or do you haveto worry about it only after you are above 30 years of age?

Ans: Cholesterol accumulates from childhood.

Qn: How do irregular eating habits affect the heart?

Ans: You tend to eat junk food when the habits are irregular and yourbody's enzyme release for digestion gets confused.

Qn: How can I control cholesterol content without using medicines?

Ans: Control diet, walk and eat walnut.

Qn: Can yoga prevent heart ailments?

Ans: Yoga helps.

Qn: Which is the best and worst food for the heart?

Ans: Best food is fruits,chapathi's(without oil) worst are oil.

Qn: Which oil is better - gingili, groundnut, sunflower, saffola, olive?

Ans: All oils are bad; the so-called best oil company has the largestmarketing budget. try to consume less oil while cooking.

Qn: What is the routine checkup one should go through? Is there anyspecific test?

Ans: Routine blood test to ensure sugar, cholesterol is ok. Check BP,Treadmill test after an echo.

Qn: What are the first aid steps to be taken on a heart attack?

Ans: Help the person into a sleeping position, put an aspirin tablet underthe tongue with a sorbitrate tablet if available, and rush him to acoronary care unit since the maximum casualty takes place within the firsthour.

Qn: How do you differentiate between pain caused by a heart attack andthat caused due to gastric trouble?

Ans: Extremely difficult without ECG.

Qn: What is the main cause of a steep increase in heart problems amongstyoungsters? I see people of about 30-40 yrs of age having heart attacks andserious heart problems.

Ans: Increased awareness has increased incidents. Also, edentarylifestyles, smoking,junk food, lack of exercise in a country where peopleare genetically three times more vulnerable for heart attacks thanEuropeans and Americans.

Qn: Is it possible for a person to have BP outside the normal range of120/80 and yet be perfectly healthy?

Ans: Yes.

Qn: Marriages within close relatives can lead to heart problems for thechild. Is it true?

Ans : Yes, co-sanguinity leads to congenital abnormalities and you may nothave a software engineer as a child

Qn: Many of us have an irregular daily routine and many a times we have tostay late nights in office. Does this affect our heart? What precautionswould you recommend?

Ans : When you are young, nature protects you against all theseirregularities. However, as you grow older, respect the biological clock.

Qn: Will taking anti-hypertensive drugs cause some other complications(short / long term)?

Ans : Yes, most drugs have some side effects. However, modernanti-hypertensive drugs are extremely safe.

Qn: Will consuming more coffee/tea lead to heart attacks?

Ans : No.

Qn: Are asthma patients more prone to heart disease?

Ans : No.

Qn: How would you define junk food?

Ans : Fried food like Kentucky, McDonalds, samosas, and even masaladosas.

Qn: You mentioned that Indians are three times more vulnerable. What is the reason for this, as Europeans and Americans also eat a lot of junk food?

Ans : Every race is vulnerable to some disease and unfortunately, Indians are vulnerable for the most expensive disease.

Qn: Does consuming bananas help reduce hypertension?

Ans : No.

Qn: Can a person help himself during a heart attack (Because we see a lotof forwarded emails on this)?

Ans : Yes. Lie down comfortably and put an aspirin tablet of anydescription under the tongue and ask someone to take you to the nearestcoronary care unit without any delay and do not wait for the ambulancesince most of the time, the ambulance does not turn up.

Qn: Do, in any way, low white blood cells and low hemoglobin count lead toheart problems?

Ans : No. But it is ideal to have normal hemoglobin level to increase yourexercise capacity.

Qn: Sometimes, due to the hectic schedule we are not able to exercise. So,does walking while doing daily chores at home or climbing the stairs inthe house, work as a substitute for exercise?

Ans : Certainly. Avoid sitting continuously for more than half an hour andeven the act of getting out of the chair and going to another chair andsitting helps a lot.

Qn: Is there a relation between heart problems and blood sugar?

Ans: Yes. A strong relationship since diabetics are more vulnerable to heart attacks than non-diabetics.

Qn: What are the things one needs to take care of after a heart operation?

Ans : Diet, exercise, drugs on time. Control cholesterol, BP, weight.

Qn: Are people working on night shifts more vulnerable to heart diseasewhen compared to day shift workers?

Ans : No.

Qn: What are the modern anti-hypertensive drugs?

Ans : There are hundreds of drugs and your doctor will chose the rightcombination for your problem, but my suggestion is to avoid the drugs andgo for natural ways of controlling blood pressure by walk, diet toreduce weight and changing attitudes towards lifestyles.

Qn: Does dispirin or similar headache pills increase the risk of heartattacks?

Ans : No.

Qn: Why is the rate of heart attacks more in men than in women?

Ans : Nature protects women till the age of 45.

Qn: How can one keep the heart in a good condition?

Ans : Eat a healthy diet, avoid junk food, exercise everyday, do not smokeand, go for a health checkup if you are past the age of 30 for at leastonce in two yrs. And work very hard and Enjoy urLife...

HOW TO SURVIVE A HEART ATTACK WHEN ALONE

Since many people are alone when they suffer a heart attack, without help,the person whose heart is beating improperly and who begins to feel faint, has only about 10 seconds left before losing consciousness.

However,these victims can help themselves by coughing repeatedly and very vigorously. A deep breath should be taken before each cough, and the cough must be deep and prolonged, as when producing sputum from deep inside the chest.

A breath and a cough must be repeated about every two seconds without let-up until help arrives, or until the heart is felt to be beating normally again.

Deep breaths get oxygen into the lungs and coughing movements squeeze the heart and keep the blood circulating. The squeezing pressure on the heart also helps it regain normal rhythm. In this way, heart attack victims can get to a hospital.

Tell as many other people as possible about this. It could save their lives!!

Hope none of you and your loved ones will ever need it, but still please spread it aroundYou can confirm this with any cardiologist