Dr. Curtis McElroy

Category: Preventative Medicine

  • Need To Know About Cholesterol

    What Is Cholesterol?

    You’ve heard the doctor say to watch it. You’ve heard that some foods have an abundance of it – but exactly what is cholesterol? It’s true that cholesterol is found mainly in the types of food you eat, but that’s not the only way this waxy type of matter gets into the body.

    Did you know that your liver makes cholesterol? Your body must have this substance in order to work properly and keep you in good health. When there’s an overabundance of cholesterol, that’s when health problems start building up.

    Like too much of anything, a build up can damage the internal organs (the heart, liver, etc.). When you get too much cholesterol in your body, it can cause trouble for your arteries.

    Imagine a drainpipe in your bathtub. What happens if it’s not treated (kept cleaned out) and deposits of hair are allowed to build up? The opening to allow water to drain gets smaller and smaller. Then one day when you get into the shower, the water has nowhere to go, so it pools at your feet.

    This is essentially what happens when you have too much cholesterol. The arteries around the heart become too narrow for blood to adequately flow. This can lead to a blocked artery, which can then cause a heart attack and damage to the heart muscle.

    Some people get confused about good versus bad cholesterol because cholesterol is broken into types. So what is cholesterol when it’s grouped into categories? It’s both good and bad.

    First, you have triglycerides. This is fat. You get this fat from overindulging in food (even ones that are good for you). What you eat undergoes a form change within the body and triglycerides are one of these changes that occur from certain foods being consumed.

    Foods like cakes, cookies, ice cream, candy, pies, etc. Triglycerides are also formed by drinking beer and other beverages containing alcohol. Secondly, low density lipoproteins (LDL) are a type of cholesterol. This one has the most potential to cause damage to your heart.

    Third, high density lipoproteins (or HDL) is a cholesterol that’s very good for your heart. Think of this one as a shield in your body trying to battle back against the bad or the LDL cholesterol.

    If your doctor tells you that you need to raise your level of HDL, it’s for your heart’s protection. Finally, there’s very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) and this is also a bad cholesterol.

    More importantly than wondering, ‘what is cholesterol,’ you need to know what the levels are within your body. By taking a simple blood test and sending it to a lab, you can see how much cholesterol is in your blood.

    If you have good HDL levels, it’s best for your heart’s health. If the results come back showing that you have both high triglycerides as well as high cholesterol, then your heart is in danger of developing heart disease or putting you at risk of a heart attack. Depending on the results, your doctor may prescribe lifestyle changes, medication or both in order to get your levels where they need to be.

  • What Is Your BMI

    Understanding BMI And How To Calculate Yours

    If you’ve ever wondered whether your weight is healthy, then you may have stumbled upon the term BMI. You may have heard about it from your doctor or colleague, and that it could be an indicator that you need to lose or gain weight. If you want to know what it is all about and how to calculate your own BMI, then read on.

    What Is BMI

    BMI stands for Body Mass Index, which is a number that you calculate from your height and weight. This number takes into consideration the ratio of your weight to your height, to roughly calculate the percentage of body fat that you have. A high BMI suggests that you have a higher percentage of fat in your body. Experts have come up with a method of calculating one’s BMI together with a BMI chart that represents one’s body fat content. However, it’s far easier to use an online calculator such as this one: http://nhlbisupport.com/bmi/

    Men and women generally carry different amounts of body fat and therefore cannot refer to the same chart when calculating their BMI. Women naturally tend to have more subcutaneous fat than men do, so they may have a higher BMI than men. To obtain the best results when calculating your BMI, you should refer to a chart designed for your gender.

    Calculating Your BMI

    Calculating your BMI is quite a simple process. To calculate it by yourself, you first need to measure your height and weight (both in inches and pounds). You then calculate the square of your height (multiply your height with itself). Now divide your weight by your this number, and multiply that value by 703. The number you have now is your BMI. Alternatively, you can also use meters and kilograms to calculate your BMI. The method is exactly the same but you do not need to multiply the number by 703 in the end.

    A BMI of below 18.5 suggests that you are underweight; whereas a value of 25 and above suggests that you are overweight. You should try to adjust your weight so your BMI is always within the normal range which is 18.5 to 24.9. If your BMI is above 30, you are then considered obese. If this is the case, then you may need to work at losing weight.

    Remember, however, that the BMI measure is just a starting point. If you are very muscular, you may have a higher than average BMI but actually still be healthy. And, those with a good BMI are not always healthy. To get a better measure of body fat, you can use tools such as calipers. However, as an easy to calculate starting point, your BMI is a good place to begin.

  • Health and Fitness For Kids

    When it comes to raising children one of the best things you can offer your child is the encouragement to live a healthy lifestyle. This  includes following a proper diet, routine exercise, weight loss if necessary, and risk factor modification to prevent problems with heart disease, lung disease, strokes, kidney disease, and other chronic medical problems on down the road.

    Children learning and making these factors a part of their daily life will play a major role in your child’s longevity and quality of life as they grow older.

    Your child’s observation of the example you set will provide the greatest impact on their long term health and wellness. If you have not started an exercise program, then do it for your children.

    Kids today are not as active as they were twenty years ago. Video games and television has made them more sedentary. Your children need to be active to maintain or achieve proper fitness and prevent them from becoming obese.

    It is a good idea to limit the time that your children are allowed to watch television, play video games or be on the computer.

    By placing limits on their sedentary activities, your children will be forced to find other activities to engage in. You may want to get  your children video games that require them to move their bodies to play. There are some great games available that will have your child dancing and even exercising.

    Find out what interests your child the most. If your child likes soccer or basketball, sign him up for a team. If your daughter has an interest in horseback riding, sign her up for horseback riding lessons. Do not push your child into a sport that he or she does not want to do. This will send a negative message to your child.

    If you have very young children, you can still encourage them to be active. Be silly around your little ones. Show them how much fun being active can be. Jump around to music, hop like a bunny or just play musical chairs with them.

    A great idea to get your kids more active is to have them do chores. The chores can be made more fun by turning them into a competition. See who can pull the most weeds in the garden or who can get their room clean the fastest. Making the chores fun will encourage the kids to help out around the house and become more active.

    When your child has a birthday, schedule a party in which they will be doing something active. You may want to take the kids at the birthday party bowling or swimming at the local YMCA. If you have a large yard, you could have a game of scavenger hunt or even a game of kickball.

    Make a family night of activity once a week. Have a different person choose each week what the  weekly activity is going to be. Challenge each member of the family to come up with something more creative than the previous week.

    Incorporating fitness into your family activities is not difficult if you use a little imagination. The whole family will benefit from becoming more active and living a more optimal healthy lifestyle.

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Copyright @ 2017 DrCurtisMcElroy