NOW HERE THIS -
HEALTH HINTSWell we have managed to get through Christmas but we still have a lot of it behind us! and with the winter we loose our exposure to the sun’s rays. This has an effect upon our health, including the reduction in time that the body has togets enough vitamin D. It turns out that vitamin D deficiency is actually quite common in the winter.
Vitamin D is essential for the building of healthy bone, and a deficiency of it can reduce bone strength in time. Vitamin D seems to be important for muscular health, therefore widespread aches and pains can be caused. And we all know the winter blues - season affective disorder (SAD) – Vit D could help fight that, as well as mounting evidence that vitamin D is important for protection from both cancer and heart disease.
So the answer is - throughout the winter get more, perhaps by an increase our intake of vitamin D. Oily fish is relatively rich in vitamin D, or to be more direct - cod liver oil. it provides, cod liver oil contains vitamin D, omega-3 fats that may help protect against a range of ills including depression, dementia, arthritis and heart disease.
Adults should take a teaspoon of cod liver oil (5 mls) each day throughout the winter.
THE HEART AND ITS PROBLEMS IN MODERN LIFE
How the Heart Works
The function of the heart is to maintain circulation of the blood by pumping it around the body. Its thick muscular walls enclose four chambers, the right and left atria and the right and left ventricles.
The right and left sides of the heart are separated from each other by the septum and valves ensure that blood flows only one way. The main arteries carry blood from the left ventricle to all parts of the body with each heart beat. The main veins return blood from the rest of the body to the right atrium.
Every single cell in our body relies on the supply of oxygenated blood in order to survive. Not only does the blood bring in nourishment to the body but waste products like carbon dioxide are taken away from the body tissues.
Coronary artery disease is almost epidemic due entirely to affluent living. We no longer walk sufficiently to give the heart the exercise it needs, the car has made us lazy, escalators mean that we escape from climbing up long flights of stairs.
The vacuum cleaner takes the effort out of housework, so does the washing machine. Women do not have to scrub clothes at the sink on a washing board, rather a laborious form of exercise but wonderful for the circulation of the upper body.
We eat high fat, high salt, high sugar diets that are devoid of any roughage, all a disastrous recipe for the health of our heart.
When a branch of the coronary artery becomes blocked the part of the heart wall that was previously supplied with blood from that branch is damaged, some of it irreversibly. Part of the muscle in the region that has been deprived of oxygen dies (a process called myocardial infarction) and in the following weeks the dead muscle is replaced by scar tissue.
Unlike heart muscle, this scar tissue is unable to contract, so if the area of dead tissue is large or if the person has had a number of heart attacks, the heart becomes a less efficient pump. If severe enough this can be fatal.
It takes a long time to build up enough congestion in the arteries to cause a heart attack. A heart attack in a man of 50 years of age has its origins in the process of atherosclerosis that began 30 or more years earlier.
Other events play an important part in the narrowing of the coronary arteries. When the muscle in deeper layers of the artery wall contracts (called a coronary spasm) the moderate narrowing due to the atherosclerosis may become severe enough to restrict blood flow.
Blood cholesterol and diet
The greater the amount of cholesterol in the blood the higher the risk of having a heart attack. The risk is about four times higher in a man whose cholesterol is around 7.5 mmol/l (cholesterol is measured in millimoles per litre of blood plasma) than in one whose level is around 5 mmol/l. The risk increases even more steeply in people whose cholesterol level is still higher.
Those who have the inherited disease called familiar hypercholesterolaemia have levels of 8 to 14 mmol/l and men affected by this disorder have at least a ten times greater risk of coronary heart disease than men with average cholesterol levels (around 6 mmol/l).
Therefore the lower the cholesterol levels the lower the risk.
In some rural parts of China where heart disease is rare their cholesterol levels are around 3 mmol/l. The target for most of us is a cholesterol level near 5 mmol/l.
National comparisons.
When we compare different countries we find wide variations between them in average cholesterol levels and the death rates from a heart attack vary in proportion to the average blood cholesterol level. In Scotland and Northern Ireland deaths from heart attack are about ten times more common than in Japan for example. The main reason for the differences in average blood cholesterol is the contrasting food habits in the various countries. In particular the amount of animal fat eaten in the diet is much lower in countries with low average cholesterol levels and low rates of heart disease.
There seems to be no disadvantage in having the very low cholesterol levels seen in these countries. Men and women in Japan live longer than people in Scotland and in most other countries in Northern Europe where fat intake and average blood cholesterol are higher.
Reducing blood cholesterol lessens the chance of heart attack and the further the cholesterol level is lowered, the greater the reduction in coronary disease. Although atherosclerosis may take decades to develop, lowering cholesterol for only three to five years removes most of the risk caused by having high blood cholesterol.
Smoking increases the chance of having a heart attack. It also encourages atheroscleosis in the legs and other parts of the body which can lead to other serious medical conditions. The more you smoke the greater the risk. Studies on people who have stopped the habit show that the risk of having a heart attack decreases steeply and quite soon after SMOKING
Smoking increases the conversion to LDL to a modified chemical product which has a special ability to carry cholesterol into the cells of the walls of arteries.
Smoking increases the tendency of blood platelets to stick together, leading to formation of a blood clot.
Smoking also lowers the high density lipoprotein (HDL) in the blood, lessening the protection apparently provided by this substance.
HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE
High blood pressure is a world wide condition of almost epidemic proportions. For most doctors it is the single most common chronic disorder encountered in practice.
It has been estimated that in Western countries somewhere between 15 and 20 per cent of the adult population have high blood pressure. Blood pressure usually rises with age and a blood pressure that would be considered abnormally high in a ten year old might be satisfactory in a seventy year old.
High blood pressure is relatively rare in children but very common in old age. Among young adults, men are more likely to have it than women.
Approximately 60 per cent of those with high blood pressure are unaware that they have it, as there are frequently no tell tale symptoms. In fact the majority of people with this condition have no symptoms whatsoever.
There are two components of blood pressure, when the heart is contracting the pressure is highest and when the heart is relaxing the pressure is at its lowest point. The unit of measurement used internationally in blood pressure measurement is the millimetre of mercury (mmHg). If your doctor tells you that your blood pressure reading is say 160 over 110 he will probably write this down as 160/110mmHg.
Many cases of stroke occur in people whose high blood pressure has never been treated effectively and sometimes they have never had their blood pressure measured. Similarily most doctors know of patients whose heart attacks or kidney failure might well have been avoided if they had had treatment for their high blood pressure. A major stroke can kill or it can leave a person severely incapacitated and unable to cope on his or her own.
Sometimes high blood pressure can produce symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, fatigue or nosebleeds.
Your kidneys have an important role to play in maintaining blood pressure. Renin is produced by the kidneys. Renin is an enzyme that is responsible for the formation of a very potent substance called angiotensin that constricts the blood vessels. When the vessels contract, resistance in the circulation increases and so the pressure rises. Angiotensin has a second action – it increases the release from the adrenal gland of the hormone aldosterone which controls the amount of salt and water excreted by the kidneys. More salt and water is then retained which in turn increases the volume of fluid in the circulation and the pressure.
Adrenalin – Another hormone involves in the control of blood pressure is adrenaline and its close relative noradrenaline. The amount of these hormones available to exert their effect is determined by the nervous system. It has been suggested that in many patients with high blood pressure there is an increased level of these substances but this has never completely been proved.
The kidney has a central role in blood pressure regulation because it is the source of renin, the site of action of aldosterone and it handles the body’s salt. Salt has a very controversial role in high blood pressure and one factor is that the kidney fails to eliminate as much salt as it should do, so the blood volume and the blood pressure increases.
Does high blood pressure lower life expectancy. The short answer is yes. People with untreated high blood pressure cannot expect to live as long as those with normal blood pressure, but of course the effect on life expectancy depends on the severity of high blood pressure and other factors.
The search for a cause or causes of high blood pressure has been the concern of medical researchers for many years. Indeed the pace of work seems to be accelerating year by year. There seems to be no single factor responsible for high blood pressure, but there is a tendency for high blood pressure to run in families.
High blood pressure is another important risk factor for heart attack. The higher the blood pressure the greater the chance of having coronary disease. Even mildly raised blood pressure means a measurable increase in risk, so it is important to have your blood pressure checked regularly.
Lowering high blood pressure greatly reduces the risk of having a stroke, and heart failure due to high blood pressure can largely be avoided. High blood pressure is very common after the age of 60.
Salt – Most Western populations eat three to ten times more salt that they need and if the causative role of salt in high blood pressure was definitely established a public health campaign would be aimed at reducing salt consumption.
Smoking - may cause temporary increases in blood pressure but these short lived rises are unlikely to produce sustained high blood pressure.
However smoking is one of the most serious risk factors for heart disease and stroke. Therefore people with high blood pressure who also smoke are putting themselves at grave risk.
Alcohol – It seems that moderate or social drinkers are not at risk at increasing their blood pressure.
Caffeine is known to raise adrenalin levels in the blood stream and there is a definite link with heart attacks and heavy coffee drinkers.
Obesity – Although obesity and high blood pressure are known to be related it is not known if it is the obesity itself or some associated factor that is the cause of high blood pressure. However it is clearly desirable for weight to be reduced.
Stress – Emotional stress at home or at work can cause a marked rise in blood pressure, so finding ways to reduce stress levels is recommended.
Lack of Exercise – A sedentary lifestyle has been implicated as one of the many factors contributing to heart disease.
Diet – We do need to remove saturated fat from our diet. Saturated fats are fats that tend to be hard at room temperature. Some examples of foods that are high in saturated fat are:
Fatty kinds of meat, cream, butter, whole-fat milk and cheese – baked foods like biscuits and cakes that are made with saturated shortenings, hard margarines, coconut, chocolate.
Fibre – This is highly recommended when either attempting to prevent or treat any form of heart disease. Fibre sources which gel or form a mucilaginous mass (psyllium seed, guar gum, pectin, oat bran etc.) bind bile and cholesterol in the intestines and promote their excretion. Because of this action, these water-soluble fibres have potent cholesterol lowering effects and further improve the situation by decreasing LDL levels while increasing HDL levels. In contrast the water-insoluble fibres (wheat bran) do not affect serum cholesterol levels to any significant degree. Vegetable proteins have been shown to lower cholesterol levels whereas equivalent diets containing milk protein and other animal proteins raise cholesterol levels.
Onions and garlic have been to shown to lower serum cholesterol and triglycerides significantly. Ginger has the same effect.
Vitamin C. Strong clinical and experimental evidence suggests that a chronic low intake of vitamin C can lead to elevated cholesterol levels and the accumulation of cholesterol in certain tissues. Vitamin C helps prevent atherosclerosis directly through its important roles in cholesterol and fat metabolism and through its regulation of arterial wall integrity.
Supplemental vitamin E has been shown to prevent atherosclerosis through its inhibition of the platelet-releasing action which produces a marked rise in lipid peroxides.
Magnesium offers significant protection against atherosclerosis. It has been observed that individuals dying suddenly of heart attacks have significantly lower levels of heart tissue magnesium and potassium than people dying of other causes. Magnesium contributes greatly to the strength of contraction by the heart muscle and magnesium supplementation has been found to be helpful in the management of cardiac arrhythmias and high blood pressure.
=Natural Cancer Therapy for Breast and Prostate Arrives In UK
A world famous British teaching hospital has been testing new complementary medical protocols which have improved quality of life and survival rates for cancer sufferers in Switzerland.
Barts Hospital is nearing the end of an initial study on 10 prostate patients and the programme is likely to be broadened considerably. The results so far have been very encouraging. The case studies are being undertaken by Professor Tim Oliver, Head of Oncology who intends to publish the findings.
The move follows five years of research using complementary therapy, published in the Swiss Journal of Urology, January 2005.
The pioneer is Professor Dr Ben Pfeifer, Director for Clinical Research at the renowned Aeskulap Clinic in Switzerland, a specialist in cancers including breast, lung and prostate. He works daily with a range of international patients, and in the published trials used phytonutrients and other natural compounds to achieve results among men with prostate cancer which demonstrated improved efficacy of treatment programmes, reduction in side effects, and a boost of immune function activity which destroyed cancer cells.
More than two thirds of patients experienced a fall in PSA levels of more than 50 per cent. One, with a PSA approaching 1000, and scarred lungs, is now living a fully active life, with a PSA reading which is un-measurable.
The professor, an immunologist, believes that, in time, such protocols could be routinely used on a wide range of illnesses in which the body's immune system plays a major role. The protocol entails four natural products - Curcumin Complex, ProstaSol, Imupros and BioBran.
At the heart of the protocol is BioBran, a natural supplement made by breaking down rice bran using enzymes from an immune-boosting extract found in Shitake mushrooms. The resulting compound contains a unique blend of glyconutrients such as Arabinoxylan and has been shown to be one of the most effective natural immune system supplements available today.
BioBran works by boosting the activity of the immune system's natural killer cells. These form the front line of defence against infected or abnormal blood cells. Tests1 show that it not only stimulates natural killer cell activity by more than 300%, it also increases T cell and B cell activity by 250% and 200% respectively and it is this optimisation of the immune system function that helps the body destroy cancer cells.