Unhealthy Eating

Researchers from Imperial College London said that taking a low dose-statin — a pill designed to lower cholesterol — could offset the increased risk of a heart attack after eating a cheeseburger and a milkshake.

Unhealthy Food

Although the drugs don’t cut out the health risks of fatty foods completely, they could be offered in fast-food restaurants alongside unhealthy condiments such as ketchup and mayonnaise, the researchers suggest.

But the British Heart Foundation warned that the drugs should not be considered a “magic bullet” against the risk of heart attacks and strokes, which kill about 140,000 Britons a year.

Darrel Francis, who led the latest research at the National Heart and Lung Institute at Imperial, said: “Statins don’t cut out all of the unhealthy effects of burgers and fries. It’s better to avoid fatty food altogether.

“But we’ve worked out that in terms of your likelihood of having a heart attack, taking a statin can reduce your risk to more or less the same degree as a fast food meal increases it.”

The number of British adults taking cholesterol-lowering statins has doubled to six million in the past five years despite concerns that they are being over-used and have unpleasant side-effects.

Mostly the drugs are prescribed by a doctor, to patients at particular risk of a heart attack or stroke, to reduce the amount of unhealthy “LDL” cholesterol in the blood.

But one statin, simvastatin, is already available in low doses (10mg) over the counter at pharmacies without a prescription. Doctors are divided on the benefits of the drugs for otherwise healthy people, however.

The Imperial College researchers point out that the cost of the tablets has fallen sharply in recent years, from about £40 a month to £1.50 a month.

Dr Francis said yesterday that it was “ironic” that people are free to take as many unhealthy condiments in fast food outlets as they like, “but statins, which are beneficial to heart health, have to be prescribed”.

“Everybody knows that fast food is bad for you, but people continue to eat it because it tastes good,” he said. “We’re genetically programmed to prefer high-calorie foods.

“It makes sense to make risk-reducing supplements available just as easily as the unhealthy condiments that are provided free of charge. It would cost less than 5p per customer — not much different to a sachet of ketchup.”

Previous research has shown a clear link between total fat intake and blood cholesterol, which is strongly linked to heart disease. Recent evidence suggests that trans fats, which are found in high levels in fast food, are the component of the Western diet that is most dangerous in terms of heart disease risk.

In a study to be published in the American Journal of Cardiology this week, Dr Francis and colleagues analysed data from a large cohort study to quantify how a person’s heart attack risk increases with their daily intake of total fat and trans fat.

They compared this with the decrease in risk from various statins, based on a meta-analysis of seven randomised controlled trials.

The results showed that most statin regimes are able to compensate for the relative risk increase from eating a cheeseburger and a small milkshake.

“When people engage in risky behaviours like driving or smoking, they’re encouraged to take measures that minimise their risk, like wearing a seatbelt or choosing cigarettes with filters,” Dr Francis added. “Taking a statin is a rational way of lowering some of the risks of eating a fatty meal.”

A very small proportion of regular statin users experience significant side effects, with problems in the liver and kidneys reported in between 1 in 1,000 and 1 in 10,000 people.

The Imperial researchers said statins have among the best safety profiles of any medication, but they said studies should be conducted to assess the potential risks of allowing people to take statins freely, without medical supervision.

A warning on the packet could emphasise that no tablet can substitute for a healthy diet, and advise people to consult their doctor for more advice, Dr Francis said.

However, the idea has practical drawbacks, including that restaurants or food chains may require a license from medicines regulators before they could distribute medication.

Professor Peter Weissberg, Medical Director at the British Heart Foundation added: “The suggestion that the harmful effects of a junk food meal might be erased by taking a cholesterol-lowering statin tablet should not be taken literally,” he said.

“A junk food diet has a wealth of unhealthy consequences beyond raising cholesterol. It can cause high blood pressure through too much salt, or obesity through eating meals loaded with calories. These are all risk factors for life-threatening health problems such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes and stroke.

“Statins are a vital medicine for people with — or at high risk of developing — heart disease. They are not a magic bullet.”

Almost everyone eats too much salt and this can have grave consequences on out health.  Salt has been shown to raise blood pressure readings increasing the risk of stroke and heart disease.

Q. I worry that I eat too much salt. How do I wean myself off it while still enjoying my food — and making sure I get enough salt for good health?

A. We need only 1.4g of salt a day to keep body fluids balanced, allow nerves and muscles to work properly and to stay in good health. Given that the average Brit eats about 9g a day, a deficiency is the least of your worries.

So how do you cut down to 6g a day, a level that experts say will help to lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of stroke and improve bone and kidney health? The first approach is to go cold turkey, swapping all salty versions of foods for those with much less. For example, having two Shredded Wheat, which contain no salt, in place of a 50g bowl of Special K will save 1g, having a couple of crispbreads (with just a trace of salt) instead of a 22g pack of sour cream and chives rice cakes another 0.6g, and having home cooked lean mince instead of a burger another 1.9g. Within a couple of weeks, your taste buds should be accustomed to low-salt eating.

The easier approach is to wean yourself off more gradually, particularly if you are trying to change your family’s habits too. A good place to start is by understanding where our salt intake comes from. Most, 35 per cent, is from foods such as bread and breakfast cereals. This always surprises me as you would think that things such as crisps were bigger contributors, but we tend to eat breakfast cereals and bread more regularly and in biggish amounts, hence the larger contribution.

The food industry has been lowering salt in bread and breakfast cereals, so cutting back is getting easier. Also, some brands have less than others. Two Oatibix, for example, have 0.2g compared with 0.5g for a 50g bowl of Shreddies.

Generally, bran flakes, high-fibre bran cereals, fruit and fibre, frosted cereals and cereal hoops have a lot more salt than porridge, salt-free muesli, puffed wheat and Shredded Wheat-type cereals.

With bread, opt for loaves with less than 1.1g of salt per 100g (0.4g per slice) and remember that speciality breads, such as ciabatta, olive and sundried tomato, tend to contain the most salt.

Meat products such as bacon, burgers and sausages supply 26 per cent of our salt, 9 per cent comes from products such as ready-made salads, vegetable dishes and chips, and 8 per cent from milk and milk products, such as cheese.

When it comes to meat and fish, plain cuts are virtually salt free while those made into products such as kievs, ready meals and pies or that have been smoked will be high in salt. If you are a cheese- lover, ricotta, Cheshire and Wensleydale are usually lower than Feta, Roquefort, cheese strings and cheese spreads.

The rest of our salt comes from home cooking and the salt we add at the table. Cutting back requires discipline and making the most of spices. Add cinnamon and honey to roast carrots, or a dash of lemon juice and black pepper to steamed vegetables. Use more plants, flowers, herbs and spices, such as ginger, garlic and chilli, in cooking and opt for balsamic vinegar instead of other salad dressings to make your salt-lowering ambitions more palatable.

This patented product will allow all computer users to monitor their blood pressure at their computer by simply opening an access cover on the top of their mouse which otherwise functions as a standard optical mouse.

In addition to checking for high blood pressure other medical parameters including blood glucose will eventually be available as well. These devices will go a long way to permit physicians, HMO’s (health maintenanace organisations) and other medical institutions to monitor our health over the internet.

Ki Fit

The subject of lifestyle changes and how it affects blood pressure is frequently asked about on many blood pressure patient information pages – advice about healthy eating and low salt, low fat diets along with encouragement to eat more vegetables and omega 3 oils all intended to help lower blood pressure and improve heart health.

Ki Fit is a small portable device worn on the arm and is being promoted as a way to see the calories burn doing everyday things like shopping and making love. Nothing to do with the popular game Wii Fit but as comments reveal the arrival of calorie counting games is on the horizon.

The interest in Ki Fit illustrates how important it is to simply get up and move – whether that’s going for a walk around the shops or going to an exercise class. Keeping a food diary is useful too (apparently people often ‘forget’ what they’ve eaten if they don’t write it down). Anything that helps to motivate people to become fitter, lowering their blood pressure and being generally healthier is a good idea in my book.

A quote in support of Ki Fit from Ken Way, a sports psychologist:

“When people strive for outcome goals, usually to get fit or lose weight, they only have one or two variables to test their success: jumping on a pair of scales, or arbitrarily taking their blood pressure,” he says. “If they get negative results, they either give up or carry on with a regime that probably isn’t suited to their individual needs.

Comments and reviews about the Ki Fit

Not sure why it’s airheaded to want to know the best ways to stay fit and healthy – but if so, count me in…

As most similar devices have been based on pedometers, it’s interesting to hear of a new piece of technology which gives you so much more information. And, obviously, that shopping and sex can burn calories. Even if that ‘s vain and shallow.

If being interested in sex makes you vain and shallow then that means the entire adult population is vain and shallow. Seems a bit unlikely.

Just looked at the Ki Fit site and the price is £99.99 plus 11 monthly payments of £16.41. That comes to £280.50. Kind of slimming for my bank account… and that is just the STANDARD version…

Personally I would rather spend it on an Xbox 360 Kinect or PS3 Move and exercise by gaming… Mind you, can’t have sex with your consoles yet.

Sex and shopping?? Ridiculous suggestion,…..how in tarnation can one shop with ones trousers/shorts around ones ankles?…….Preposterous!

Anyway,……..can you imagine the hue and cry from patrons of our illustrious shopping malls?………….Nah,……….I’tll never catch on,…..stick with the gym!

Just make sure you’re not consuming empty calories after or in between the shop (sugary drinks, etc.). Not worried about my weight, but wish there was a cellulite monitor! I doubt a round of shopping or sex could reduce that considerably enough.

Imagine the fun you could have working out the calorific values for each idea in the Kama Sutra… You could then have a traffic light guide to the book, and Government-sponsored positions ..  . whay hey!

Oh, I wish I’d looked after me teeth,
And spotted the perils beneath

Risk of Heart Disease

People who fail to brush their teeth twice a day are putting themselves at risk of heart disease, research suggests.

From this report via the BBC Health News

The Scottish study of more than 11,000 adults backs previous research linking gum disease with heart problems.

The researchers said more work is needed to confirm if poor oral health directly causes heart disease or is a marker of risk.

A charity added that oral hygiene was just one factor in good heart health.

It is known that inflammation in the body, including in the mouth and gums, has an important role in the build up of clogged arteries, which can lead to a heart attack.

But this is the first time that researchers have looked at whether the frequency of teeth brushing has any bearing on the risk of developing heart disease.

If you don’t brush your teeth, your mouth can become infected with bacteria which can cause inflammation

Judy O’Sullivan British Heart Foundation

Data, published in the British Medical Journal was collected on lifestyle behaviours, such as smoking, physical activity and oral health routines.

Participants were also asked how often they visited the dentist and how often they brushed their teeth.

Then nurses collected information on medical history and family history of heart disease, took blood pressure and blood samples.

Overall, six out of 10 people said they visited the dentist every six months and seven out 10 reported brushing their teeth twice a day.

Over the eight-year study there were 555 “cardiovascular events” such as heart attacks, 170 of which were fatal.

Taking into account factors that affect heart disease risk, such as social class, obesity, smoking and family history, the researchers found those with the worst oral hygiene had a 70% increased chance of developing the condition compared with those who brush their teeth twice a day.

Those with poor oral hygiene also tested positive in blood samples for proteins which are suggestive of inflammation.

Cause and effect

Study leader Professor Richard Watt, from University College London, said future studies will be needed to confirm whether the link between oral health behaviour and cardiovascular disease “is in fact causal or merely a risk marker”.

Judy O’Sullivan, senior cardiac nurse at British Heart Foundation, said: “If you don’t brush your teeth, your mouth can become infected with bacteria which can cause inflammation.

“However, it is complicated by the fact that poor oral hygiene is often associated with other well known risk factors for heart disease, such as smoking and poor diet.”

She added: “Good personal hygiene is a basic element of a healthy lifestyle.

“But if you want to help your heart, you should eat a balanced diet, avoid smoking and take part in regular physical activity.”

Professor Damien Walmsley, scientific adviser to the British Dental Association, added it was still unclear whether there was a definite cause and effect between oral hygiene and heart disease.

“Whatever the true position is, we can say with certainty that if people brush teeth twice a day with fluoride toothpaste, visit the dentist regularly and restrict sugary snacks to mealtimes; that this will go a long way towards keeping the teeth and gums in a healthy state for life.”

Salt increases blood pressure in 30 percent of the population that does not have high blood pressure. Salt does not increase blood pressure readings in 70 percent of the population that does not already have high blood pressure.

Data suggest that less-well-educated groups, and blacks, are more likely to have high blood pressure than are other groups. This may be related to the higher incidence of obesity, and the lower incidence of balanced diets, in the high-blood-pressure groups.

Government want to control everyone’s salt intake because the groups most at risk are also the groups least likely to take the advice to manage their high blood pressure by cutting down on salt.

There is a difference between wanting to provide information about salt content on menus or controlling salt in packaged foods, verses “control everyone’s salt intake”.

You are always free to tip the salt shaker as heavily as you want. Don’t complain about the nanny state if you can’t even be bothered to season your food to taste.

For many years it has been suspected that those who work in a garden every day or spend significant time tending plants and growing flowers indoors tend to have fewer problems with health, lower blood pressure and a reduced incidence of heart attacks and strokes.

Research has indicated that even looking at nature can result in a fall in blood pressure within five minutes and lower our stress hormones.

However, it does not necessarily mean that those who have gardening as a hobby will never succumb to heart attacks and strokes. Gardening certainly reduces stress; so those who are genetically prone to such diseases, in all likelihood, might get a less severe or a milder version of the disease.

Feel Good Gardening

Gardening also boosts endorphins, the feel good happy chemicals. Other research showed that  that daily gardening has long term benefits for safe blood pressure levels in turn reducing  the risk of heart disease and stroke more efficiently than aerobics or swimming.

For more information about how gardening has been shown to be good for stress and general health see this article – Green for get-up-and-go. Gardening can reduce your risk of stroke, heart disease and even dementia

Various reports about lack of connection with others canmake us both unhappy and is bad for the wellbeing of your body, research finds – http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/7473166/Loneliness-increases-your-blood-pressure.html – with blood pressure being recorded as increasing especially for people whofelt lonely and isolated.

Though this study did find an association between blood pressure and loneliness, it was a relatively small effect.

Researchers found that there is a corelation between loneliness and increases in blood pressure over time. This link had to be proven to be independent of age and other factors such as smoking and obesity.

Living alone did not necessarily mean people were lonely – some people appeared to have busy lives and a good social network but still felt lonely, which put them at higher risk of rising blood pressure.

The huge increase in online connection through high speed internet, mobile broadband and texting  is one of many examples where although people have ‘freinds’ they can still feel lonely

Previous research has suggested that individuals who feel alone are twice as likely to developing dementia as those who experienced little loneliness.

Walking, even if only for a brief period through a pleasant environment such as a park, around a cricket field or any open space, by a river, by woodland or whatever is personally relaxing is a an excellent way of clearing mental cobwebs. Focusing on the pleasantness of the scenery and enjoying the moment maximizes the stress relief that can be obtained.

All the usual suspect were paraded but we did like the comment posted by James Best in response to Katy Watkinsons cheery #11

Number 11. Cut down on the Alcohol. Alot of people are drinking far too much and using it as a self medicating short fix, it does seem to be the one demon that is stopping alot of people performing and properly doing so.

James simply replied:

You are aged 50, you have been made redundant, you can’t keep up the mortgage payments on your house, your wife blames you for all the problems and you have teenage children living at home. Somehow I don’t think deep breathing or a walk in the park are likely to have much effect. In fact a large scotch might just make you feel better!

You can really help your blood pressure and general health by working regular aerobic exercise into your routine but this doesn’t mean you have to start training for a marathon.

Alternative to the London Marathon

Recently we noticed this interesting fundraising page promoting one of Bob’s charity fundraising event Not running the London Marathon as a reaction to not being allocated a place in this years London Marathon. It is hoped that this concept will be seen as a solution for all fundraisers who are disappointed each year when they fail to be selected for the event.

Running or Walking – Just do it!

This approach is certainly one way to do your bit for fundraising and still get the benefits of excercise without jostling with sweaty runners and bumping into Rhinos

With the growing conciousness of the carbon footprint far flung elaborate organised charity events leave there is more interest in local sponsored walks and running events which are both green and healthy.