3 day heart diet

• Author: Bijoy Johnson
• Filed under: diet
• Date: Oct 10,2008

Photo by Jesse757

The three heart day diet is one of the most popular fad diets circulatng in the web today. It is variously known as the ‘3 day diet’, ‘3 day american heart association diet’, ‘Cleveland clinic 3 day diet’. It has been around since the 1980’s. People adopt this diet expecting rapid weight loss. But most of them regain most of the weight that they lose pretty soon.

3 day diet plan

The followers are asked to adhere to the diet plan strictly or else the desired weight loss will not be attained. After adopting this diet for 3 days, one should return to our normal diet pattern for 4-5 days before attempting this again. This is to prevent our body from going into a fat storing starvation phase. Basically this is a low calorie diet. There is no magic ingredient which causes weight loss. Most of the weight loss is fluid which will return soon after you return to your normal diet plan. 

The Recipe

Day 1

Breakfast

• Half grapefruit or one glass fruit juice
• Tea or coffee with low calorie sweetener
• A piece of bread toast with one spoon peanut butter if necessary

Lunch

• Tea or coffee with low calorie sweetener
• A piece of bread toast
• Half cup of tuna fish

Dinner

• One cup of carrots
• 90 grams of chicken or any other lean meat
• An apple
• One cup of green beans
• One cup regular vanilla ice cream

Day 2

Breakfast

• One egg
• A piece of bread toast
• Half banana
• Tea or coffee with low calorie sweetener

Lunch

• One cup cottage cheese or tuna
• Eight salted crackers

Dinner

• Two beef pieces
• Half cup carrots
• Half banana
• Half cup regular vanilla ice cream
• One cup broccoli or cabbage

Day 3

Breakfast

• Tea or coffee with low calorie sweetener
• Five salted crackers
• 30 grams of cheddar cheese
• An apple

Lunch

• A piece of bread toast
• One boiled egg
• Tea or coffee with low calorie sweetener

Dinner

• One cup of carrots
• Half cup regular vanilla ice cream
• One cup cauliflower
• One cup tuna
• One cup melon

The Three day diet review

This is a fad diet which is difficult to sustain in the long term. It can only be adopted by yo-yo dieters who want to lose weight very fast. If this is adopted for more than a few days, the body goes into fat conservation phase and then it becomes very difficult to lose weight. The diet does not provide the necessary nutirents and can result in malnourishment

Final verdict - Not Recommended

Hormone replacement patches found to decrease heart disease risk

• Author: Bijoy Johnson
• Filed under: Uncategorized
• Date: Oct 2,2008

Photo by Fillmore Photography

Hormone replacement patches were found to decrease risk for heart disease upto 40%

Women tend to have a lower risk for heart disease. But all that changes after menopause. Estrogen - the hormone reponsible for the feminine characters - also helps to decrease the heart disease risk in women. But after menopause, when the estrogen production decreases dramatically, the risk for having a heart attack also rises. This change in hormone production is also responsible for what is known as post menopausal syndrome, which includes hot flashes, head ache, stomach upset, fatigue and anxiety.
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is a system of  supplementing the hormones so as to alleviate the symptoms experienced by post menopausal women. The various methods of hormone supplementation include estrogen pills, estrogen and progesterone pills, patches, vaginal gels etc. Earlier research ( The Women’s Health Initiative Study conducted in the US on nearly 20,000 post menopausal women.) suggested that long term use of HRT (more than 4 years) significantly increased the risk for breast cancer and heart disease. 
But a new study published in the European Heart Journal conducted on 700,000 Danish women over 50 suggests that hormone patches and gels are safer than the hormone pills that are mostly in use in America.
It was found that while women who took estrogen plus progesterone pills had increased risk of heart attacks by upto 35%, those who used hormone patches and vaginal gels had nearly 40% lower risk of heart disease. Thus HRT patches and gels provide a safer alternative for combating the symptoms of post menstrual syndrome.

Heart patients could be at a high risk of depression

• Author: Bijoy Johnson
• Filed under: Uncategorized, heart disease
• Date: Oct 1,2008

Photo by Burning Image

According to the American Heart Association, people with heart disease have a high risk of depression.

Living with heart disease is not easy. Having an episode of heart attack can be devastating for many people. Temporary feelings of sadness are normal and most people get back to their normal routine within a few weeks. But if these feelings persist beyond a few weeks, this can have serious impact on the quality of life.

Heart attack patients are three times more likely to suffer from depression than their healthy counterparts. Studies have found that 15-20% of patients hospitalised with heart attack show signs of depression. People with depression often forget to take their prescribed medications, have a poor diet, forget to exercise and in general, do not stick to a heart healthy lifestyle. About 16 million people have heart disease in the U.S., including 8.1 million who have suffered a heart attack.

The persent recommendations suggest that people with heart disease should be screened for depression by their doctor. Those showing signs of mood disorder should be referred to a mental health professional. Proper management of depression can help the person to return to their normal routine and significantly reduces the chances of a second episode of heart attack.

‘Red Heart Pill’ could help prevent heart attack and stroke!

• Author: Bijoy Johnson
• Filed under: heart disease
• Date: Sep 29,2008

Photo by newtype2011

Red heart pill (polypill) - a combination of aspirin, a statin which helps lower cholesterol, an ACE inhibitor and a thiazide to counter high blood pressure.

According to the world health organisation, 17 million people die every year from heart attack and stroke. What if we could cut this in half just by using the existing resources? Well, thats what the ‘Red heart pill’ is all about. It is a combination of 4 drugs - aspirin which helps prevent the formation of clots within the blood vessels, a statin which helps lower cholesterol, an ACE inhibitor and a thiazide which helps lower blood pressure. There are low cost drugs but are very effective in the prevention of heart attacks.

Presently, a person who has had a heart attack has to take multiple drugs every day, the cost of which amounts to a few hundred dollars every year. Compare this to the ‘Red heart pill’ which would cost about $1 for a full month. The polypill had been the dream of doctors for a long time. Widespread use of the Red heart pill could translate into heavy losses for the pharmaceutical industry, which explains why they are reluctant to back this initative. The Red Heart Pill has had backing in the UK from the Wellcome Trust and the British Heart Foundation.

The polypill is about to go into a 12 week pilot trial, with about 700 people in 6 countries. If all goes well, a main trial involving upto 7000 people will be conducted to further assess the benefits of the drug. The typical patient who would be prescribed the polypill would be a 55-year-old man, or slightly older woman, who smokes and is overweight. The red heart pill could be much beneficial especially in the developing countries where the low cost drug will be accessible to all sections of the society.

Brush your teeth to stay heart healthy!

• Author: Bijoy Johnson
• Filed under: Health Buzz
• Date: Sep 13,2008

Photo by Kitt Walker

Scientists  at Bristol University and London’s Royal College of Surgeons found that poor oral hygiene can cause bacteria to flourish in the mouth and enter the bloodstream, potentially causing fatal heart disease.

“The mouth is probably the dirtiest place in the human body.” said Steve Kerrigan of the Royal College of Surgeons. If we dont brush our teeth regularly, our mouth can harbour upto 700 different types of bacteria. This results in increased risk of gum disease and gum bleeding. And when that occurs, the bacteria in the mouth can enter the circulation through the open blood vessels. Within the blood stream, some of these bacteria can cause clumping of platelets, the cells responsible for clotting of blood. The clumped platelets can block blood flow through the blood vessels and if that occurs in one of the blood vessels supplying the heart, it can result in a heart attack. 

So why cant we just give some antibiotics to kill those bacteria? First of all, all of those bacteria in our mouth are not harmful. There are lots of bacteria in our body which are actually useful to us. For example, certain bacteria in our intestines produce vitamins which we use. Secondly, bacteria are becoming more and more resistant to antibiotics and many of the antibiotics those were effective earlier are pretty much useless nowadays. Indiscriminate use of antibiotics can cause bacteria to develop resistance and can kill the useful bacteria in our body. Also, these bacteria use the clumped platelets as a shield protecting them from the action of antibiotics and even our immune system.

So, what can we do to prevent all this? It’s pretty much simple. Just brush your teeth in the morning and before going to sleep, and floss atleast once a day.

World Heart Day 2008

• Author: Johnson Francis
• Filed under: Uncategorized
• Date: Aug 31,2008

Sunday, 28th September 2008

World heart day is celebrated on the last Sunday of September every year. This year it is 28th September, 2008. The celebrations were initiated by World Heart Federation in order to foster a heart healthy life style for reducing the risk of heart disease. Various programs are conduction globally and details are posted on the federation website. Anyone planning to organise programs can submit the details at the website: world-heart-federation.org 

Theme of the year: “Know Your Risk”

Every year the World Heart Federation announces a theme for the celebrations. The theme of this year’s World Heart Day Celebrations is ‘Know Your Risk’. It is meant to help people get a better understanding of their personal risk for cardiovascular disease, including high blood pressure (hypertension). Screeing for risk factors is an important aspect of this program. Screening programs will be held in over hundred countries. These will be along with public awareness programs which will include lectures, demonstrations and video / slide shows.

How can you get involved?

As the first step you can check for the World Heart Federation (WHF) member in your country on local activities and ways to collaborate with them. Details of member societies in your country are listed on the federation website.

If there is no society in your country which is a member of the federation, you can look out for those with similar interest in prevention of cardiovascular disease and start a society of your on. WHF members can access the members area of the federation website for a lot of useful information including press releases, newsletters and promotional material.

Once affiliated with WHF, your society’s activity can be submitted to the website for announcement to world.

What activities can be planned?

Different types of activities for spreading information on risk factors and risk factor screening can be planned. Risk factor screening for blood pressure, cholesterol, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference and blood sugar levels can be done. Free health check ups can be organised at local schools, clinics or hospitals. Free/discounted health check-ups at local clinics or hospitals. Public lectures, seminars and ask the expert sessions can be organised. Special newsletters or pamphlets can be published and distributed in places where people gather like cinemas, areas of worship or recreational spaces.

World Heart Day recreational activities encouraging physical activity can also be planned. This can be in the form of walks, runs or football / cricket matches. A swimming contest can also be good idea in feasible locations. Swimming can be considerated as one of the best form of exercise for the whole body, which does not produce much strain on your weight bearing joints, unlike jogging or running.

Special functions like demonstration of healthy food cooking or sale of subsidised healthy food can also be organised.

The 100 pushups challenge

• Author: Bijoy Johnson
• Filed under: exercise
• Date: Aug 23,2008

Pushups are a great way for attaining upper body strength. They require no fancy equipment and can be done from just about anywhere. Adding pushups to your fitness routine is a great way to boost up your overall fitness level. So if you are thinking about how to get started, here’s how. A few days ago I came across a site - Hundred Pushups. It is a fitness program that enables you to do a hundred consecutive pushups in matter of just 6 weeks. First there is an inital test to check how many consecutive pushups you can presently do. Based on your test score, you can then begin your 100 pushups program. Don’t lose heart if you cant even do 10 pushups at first. Stick to the program and you will see results. You just have to spend 15 minutes a day, 3 days a week. Mainting your form during pushups is also important and the website describes how to do pushups in proper form. And finally, you should take the advise of your doctor before taking up any new fitness program.

Treadmills for exercise at home

• Author: Johnson Francis
• Filed under: Uncategorized
• Date: Aug 22,2008

Importance of exercise in cardiovascular fitness

A regular exercise program is highly essential for general as well as cardiovascular fitness. It is useful for any individual who is capable of exercise. For a person with heart disease the exercise program has to be planned in consultation with the treating doctor. Ideally if you are planning to start a strenuous exercise program after the age of 40 years, it will be better to exclude cardiac illness by medical evaluation and a treadmill stress electrocardiogram.

Even though blood pressure and heart rate increases during exercise (see cardiovascular response to exercise), a regular exercise program brings down the blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels if they are mildly elevated. Severe elevations require additional medical treatment. Regular exercise brings down the body weight and reduces the risk of cardiovascular illness.

Types of treadmills for home exercise

Treadmills are a great way to exercise from home!

Photo by lzzard

Basically there are two types of treadmills for home exercise. The simplest is a mechanical one which does not require any electrical connection. The treadmill belt moves with the effort of the runner so that a motor is not needed. The speed is variable depending on the effort put in by the runner. It does not have many controls and is much cheaper than a motorised treadmill. Naturally the effort needed to run a purely mechanical one is more for any given speed. One potential disadvantage is the higher strain to the lower limb joints.

The motorised treadmill is very convenient if you can afford one. Various sophisticated controls are available depending on the cost you are ready to pay. The speed can be varied continuosly and so can the gradient or slope. Sensors for checking the pulse rate are available. The exercise time, speed, distance run and calories spent are all displayed in front of you. A word of caution about the calories displayed. The calories spent will depend on your weight, being higher for a heavier person. But the most machines do not check your weight and only the calories spent for an average person at that particular speed and incline are displayed, as a function of the time run.

Taking away the boredom of treadmill exercise

Music can take the boredom out of exercise

Photo by Andrew*

If you walk or run outdoors for your daily exercise, each day you can take a separate route and can watch the activities around and enjoy the fresh breeze. You lose out on all these in a home treamill exercise. After the initial enthusiasm wanes off, treadmill exercise can turn out to be a real bore.

So how to get away with it? Some finish their morning newspaper reading during the treadmill time. But this is not easy unless you provide a good stand for reading the paper and have some mechanism of turning the pages. Reading small print would not be ideal thing to do while moving on a treadmill in view of the eye strain it is likely to produce. A much simpler way is to watch music or an interesting program on televsion. Some use just a walkman or ipod to listen to music.

How to plan your exercise program?

For cardiovascular fitness, at least 30 - 40 minutes of exercise for 5 days a week are required. Average calories spent per week should be not less than 1000 KCal. For a beginner, start low and gradually increase timing and speed over a few weeks till you reach the maintenance phase. This will help to tune up your body. Every day the program should consist of an initial warming up and a final cooling down phase of slow speed. Any exercise program has to be maintained life long to remain effective. Hence choose the maximum speed judiciously. Dont try to overdo it - you wont be able to maintain it. Dont forget to use a good sports shoe or else your sole skin will be damaged soon and come out as blisters.

Sacred Heart Diet

• Author: Bijoy Johnson
• Filed under: diet
• Date: Aug 20,2008

Photo by radiant guy

Sacred Heart Diet is a soup based 7 day diet for rapid weight loss.  It claims that you can lose 10 pounds in one week (Please read the review at the end of the page). Vegetables are the major ingredient of the sacred heart diet soup, which forms the core of this diet program.

Recipe - Ingredients

2 large tins of any stewed tomato
2 cans of beans
Few teaspoons of beef broth
2 pounds fresh carrots
Lots of chopped mushrooms
1 green pepper
One bunch of chopped celery
Half head of cabbage
Chicken noodle soup mix
3 Green onions

Soup recipe -Instructions

1. Add necessary salt, pepper and hot sauce
2. Make the vegetables into small pieces
3. Take adequate water in a pan and add all the ingredients
4. Boil well for 10 minutes
5. Reduce the heat and continue to cook till the veggies are just right

7 day diet plan

Day 1 consists of eating fruits (other than bananas) and soup. Watermelon and watercress are better as they have very little calories and form part of a the fat burning diet.

Day 2 Eat as much veggies as you want. The green leafy vegetables are great. Also you can have lots of soup. Keep away from fruits for today. At dinner you can have baked potato and butter.

Day 3 You can eat lots of fruits, vegetables and soup. No baked potato today. By this time you could have lost a few pounds. Drink lots of water.

Day 4 is composed of bananas and milk: Stick to the soup diet and you can also eat bananas and drink milk.  Bananas and milk have lots of  calories and carbohydrates, but your body needs the potassium and carbohydrates.

Day 5 is mainly beef and tomatoes. You can take upto 1 pound of beef and a about 6 fresh tomatoes today.  Have the soup at least once.

Day 6 is again vegetables and beef. Have green leafy veggies but keep away from baked potato.  Make sure that your diet includes at least one serving of soup.

Day 7 Eat  brown rice,  fruit juice without sugar and lots of vegetables till your tummy is full.

Will this 7 day diet actually work?

This diet is again one of the fad diets that promise you that you can lose ten pounds in a week. Most of the weight lost is water and you will gain this back when you return to a normal diet. This diet is never sustainable in the long term as you cannot continue for long eating such a diet. The American Heart Association also considers this as a fad diet. Don’t go after the diets which claim to have a secret fat burning ingredient as they are all phoney. The real secret of weight loss is to eat right and to work out. Eat a healthy balanced diet with lots of fruits and vegetables. Keep away from junk food. About exercise, do cardio - they are useful for weight loss. The American heart association recommends at least 40 minutes of cardio exercise on most days of the week.

Breast feeding for at least six months lowers cholesterol in adult life

• Author: Johnson Francis
• Filed under: Uncategorized
• Date: Aug 8,2008

Photo by maessive

Babies who are breast fed for at least six months have lower cholesterol levels in adult life, says a multi-author, multi-centre study by Dr Christopher G Owen and associates. This study analysed the data of over 17,000 adults and found that those who were exclusively breastfed had lower cholesterol than those who were fed only on formula feeds. The study summarised information from12 890 breastfed and 4608 formula-fed subjects. It was a systematic review of 17 research papers and was published in the August issue of American Journal of Clinical Nutrition ( Am J Clin Nutr 2008 88: 305-314 ). Even those who were only partially breast fed also had lower cholesterol levels in adulthood. If this lower cholesterol levels are translated into heart disease risk, initial breast feeding can be considered to protect against heart disease in adult life.