Heart Studies
Can Menopause Affect Your Heart Health?
By: MIKE SELVON
For many years researchers believed that hormone therapy was beneficial for heart health. Medical practitioners routinely prescribed hormone replacement therapy to women as a preventative measure for heart disease. However, several important studies, such as the Women’s Health Initiative, have cast significant doubt on this practice.
In fact, there is substantial evidence that proves hormone replacement therapy may increase the risk of heart disease. With such information, how can woman protect her heart during menopause? In this article, we’ll answer this critical question.
A woman has a reduced rate of heart disease before menopause compared with men her own age. After menopause, however, a woman’s rate of heart disease increases considerably, until by the age of 65, her risk is equal to that of her male peers.
Recent research has found conclusively that there is no coronary health benefit for women with a history of heart disease, who take estrogen alone, or estrogen plus a progestin. Research has also found that women without a previous history of heart disease may also face an increased risk for heart disease when taking hormone therapy. Estrogen therapy is still a safe, short-term option for some women, but numerous other therapies also are available to help you manage menopausal symptoms and protect your heart during this important phase of your life.
There are many things that menopausal women can do to reduce their risk of heart disease. First, quit smoking and reduce your alcohol intake. This will almost immediately reduce your blood pressure. Secondly, eat a diet low in saturated fats and plentiful in whole grains, fruits and vegetables.
A diet high in omega-3 fatty acids, such as those found in cold water fish, can prevent heart disease. Cold water fish include salmon, tuna, mackerel, herring and halibut.
Fish oils high in omega-3 fatty acids can also help to prevent blood clots, can decrease inflammation in the blood vessels, and can promote a regular cardiac rhythm. Increasing dietary fiber by eating a whole foods diet high in vegetables can lower cholesterol levels and can have a positive effect on the health of your heart.
Exercise is a most beneficial activity for women during menopause. Before you cringe, remember that the exercise does not have to strenuous and painful. To get the benefits to your heart health, you have to get your heart rate up for twenty minutes.
Gentle exercises that promote mobility, flexibility and relaxation, while decreasing stiffness and soreness are best. Vigor and energy are usually enhanced with regular exercise. Using stairs whenever possible and increasing daily walking time are two of the very best exercises.
Since women often struggle with insomnia and fatigue during menopause, the last thing they may be thinking about is going out for a walk. However, besides improving your heart health, regular exercise has a number of other benefits.
Once you get into the habit of exercising, you’ll notice that your body feels more relaxed, your mood will improve, and you’ll even feel more alert. You don’t have to get an expensive gym membership and pump iron until you drop. A brisk walk several times a week is all you need. Before you know it, exercise will become a part of your routine that you will look forward to every day.
Author Resource: A free gift awaits you at our portal site, where you can enrich your knowledge further about the heart health. Your comment is much appreciated at our menopause treatments blog.
Article From Article Thunder
Chocolate for Heart Health
By: Gregory Smyth
There is big money behind recent studies that have shown that chocolate is good for your health – and plenty of chocolate manufacturers that have jumped on the “chocolate as medicine” bandwagon. There has been some great news for heart patients – many don’t have to give up all of the foods they love to have a healthy lifestyle, some chocolate is actually good for heart health.
However, Thailand’s experienced heart care centers advise that cardiac bypass surgery patients should take the chocolate advice with a grain of salt or sugar!
The number one killer of people worldwide is heart disease in its various forms – ischemic heart disease, myocardial infarctions (heart attacks), and stroke related to cardiovascular disease.
Over 40% of all deaths in the world can be attributed to heart disease. Until recently, chocolate was thought to have a purely negative impact on heart health by hospital heart centers. Its high fat and sugar content could only contribute to the formation of arterial blockages, it was thought.
However, recent studies have revolutionized cardiac treatment in Thailand and meant that hospital heart centers have had to revise their dietary plans.
Chocolate has been found to be especially high in a group of flavonoids (chemicals that can protect against heart disease), flavonols.
Dietary intervention trials where cocoa-containing products have been introduced and controlled have shown platelet function and endothelial function to be improved, as well as lowered blood pressure. When cardiac bypass surgery has been performed, Thailand heart care centers recognize that the most important thing is to reduce the stress on heart tissue – which means blood pressure needs to be lowered. The richest in these protective chemicals is dark chocolate.
In studies, participants ate 1 bar of modified dark chocolate containing approximately 180mg of cocoa flavonols, 2 times per day for four weeks. The administrators measured serum lipids and other cardiovascular health markers at 0, 4 and 8 weeks, with blood pressure being measured every two weeks. The plant sterol-containing dark chocolate bar helped reduce lipids by 2%, with LDL reduced by 5.3%.
After 8 weeks, systolic blood pressure was also reduced. Cardiac treatment centers in Thailand know that systolic blood pressure is a major contributor to heart damage, and is critical to keep down in the days after cardiac bypass surgery.
However, news reports and advertising don’t seem to balance this news with the other side of the coin, which is that chocolate is extremely high in fat and sugar, both of which contribute to an overall weight gain. Being overweight is one of the single biggest risk factors for heart disease, with hospital heart centers seeing more obese and overweight patients by far than normal-weight patients.
These information sources also frequently use the word chocolate in their headlines, the addendum that dark chocolate is the type that has been found to contain the helpful compounds is often lost in the body of the report. White chocolate has almost no flavonols, while milk chocolate has negligible amounts.
Author Resource: Bangkok Hospital – 36 years of advanced medical technology and expertise, complemented with Thai hospitality and compassionate care. Includes the world-renowned Bangkok Heart Hospital and specializing in oncology, neurology and orthopedics. Some of the worlds most advanced minimally invasive diagnostics and treatment procedures are in place.
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