Dr. Curtis McElroy

Author: docmac

  • Is Heart Disease Preventable

    Is Heart Disease Preventable

    While it’s true that heart disease is the #1 cause of death in the US for both women and men, it’s also true that you have some control over certain risk factors that lead up to heart disease, even reverse some of the symptoms if they’re caught early on.

    heartdiseaseprevention

    Heart Disease is considered a lifestyle disease, which means its main causes are lifestyle choices such as diet and lack of exercise. This is good news as it means that we have an adequate amount of control over it.

    The important thing is to learn all you can about these factors and how they can be regulated so you can enjoy a healthy, strong disease-free heart.

    What exactly is heart disease?

    It’s usually a broad term which refers to several conditions relating to an unhealthy heart, which may include:

    • Heart attack
    • Stroke
    • Heart failure
    • Hardening of the arteries
    • Arrhythmia
    • Heart valve problems

    The good news is that there are things you can do to help avoid any type of heart disease. Generally, heart diseases doesn’t happen overnight. It develops over the years, and its symptoms may be spurred on or slowed down depending on the lifestyle choices you make starting from your early adulthood years.

    Some scientists even argue that it starts as early as your childhood because it’s all connected. This also makes sense from the perspective of heart disease being a lifestyle disease, as many of our eating and activity habits are solidified in childhood.

    When it comes to preventing heart disease, the American Heart Association and other health experts break it down into 3 categories:

    • Primordial prevention is for those who have no risk factors that could result in heart disease. This type of prevention works at avoiding any type of inflammation within the lining of the heart, while maintaining heart health in order to ward off high blood pressure, extra weight, and high cholesterol.

    • Primary prevention is meant to prevent someone who’s at risk for heart disease from having a heart attack, stroke, or develop any other type of heart disease, or need surgery or angioplasty. It provides a healthy, well-balanced lifestyle for individuals who suffer from high blood pressure or high cholesterol levels. Medications may also be prescribed in an effort to control these risk factors and bring them down to healthier levels.

    • Secondary prevention which is the measures taken after someone has suffered from some type of heart disease or undergone heart surgery. These may include taking medications to lower cholesterol levels and aspirin to help prevent blood clots. It also includes eating healthier foods, exercising regularly to ward off stress and manage weight, quitting smoking if needed and regulating how much alcohol is consumed on a daily basis. The aim of secondary prevention is to defend against a second heart attack, and to stop any advancing heart disease symptoms.

    First things first, let’s find out what risk factors can’t be controlled so you can get them out of the way and focus on what you can control.

    Risk factors you can’t change:

    • Gender
    • Race/ethnicity
    • Family history
    • Age

    Risk factors within your control:

    • Manage your weight
    • Eat a healthy, well-balanced diet
    • Regular exercise
    • Low blood pressure
    • Low cholesterol and triglycerides (the most common type of body fats) levels
    • Maintain blood sugar levels
    • Limit alcoholic consumption
    • No smoking
    • Manage stress
    • Get quality, uninterrupted sleep

    Whether you’re working on maintaining a healthy heart or working at reducing certain risk factors, studies have proven that making healthy lifestyle choices can fend off nearly 80% of heart diseases, 75% of sudden cardiac deaths and 50% of strokes.preventingheartdisease

    It’s never too early to start making those smart choices and start investing in a healthier, brighter, longer life.

  • Seniors Can Improve Balance With These 3 Exercises

    3 Exercises That Will Help Seniors Improve Balance

    Have you been noticing that your balance just isn’t what it used to be? Maybe it was never very good. Either way, something needs to change. While there are countless, sometimes intensive, martial arts like tai chi and various yoga poses which could help you, we insist on an easier path.

    stayingbalanced

    You can do exercises to improve your balance pretty much anytime, anywhere, and as often as you like. That being said, you are going to need something sturdy nearby to hold on to if you become unsteady. When you first start out, a chair or wall is perfect.

    First exercise: Stand on One Foot

    This is a great one to try while waiting in lines, at the bus station, or while you watch a kung fu movie. As you get better there are tons of ways to challenge yourself with this too! To start out with though, it’s as simple as this:

    1. Grasp your sturdy surface (chair, desk edge, handrail, etc)
    2. Lift one leg off the ground carefully (we recommend lifting your weakest leg first, for safety)
    3. Hold this position for up to 10 seconds (if 10 seconds is too long or too short, adjust this time for your comfort—but keep it a challenge!)
    4. Repeat this 10 times.
    5. Switch legs.
    6. Repeat steps 1-4

    As always, the number of seconds or repetitions can vary. Please be safe, but not too comfortable. You can only improve through discomfort!

    Second exercise: Walking Heel-to-Toe

     

    To start, simply find an open space (big enough for 20-30 steps) near a wall for you to walk. No need to draw that chalk line, your body will do the work for you (though, if it helps, draw a line anyway).

    1. Position the heel of one foot just in front of the toes of the other foot. Your heel and toes should touch or almost touch.
    2. Look straight in front of you and pick a spot. Focus on it to keep you steady as you walk.
    3. Take a step. Put your heel just barely in front of the toe of your other foot.
    4. Repeat for 20 steps.

    Third Exercise: Balance Walking

    This last exercise is a bit advanced, and it might bode well to stay near that wall—just in case.

    1. Raise arms to sides, shoulder height.
    2. Choose a spot ahead of you and focus on it to keep you steady as you walk.
    3. Walk in a straight line with one foot in front of the other.
    4. As you walk, lift your back leg as high as you can without falling. Pause for 1 second before stepping forward.
    5. Repeat for 20 steps, alternating legs.

     

    While these exercises are simple in nature, it can benefit greatly to be creative. Go ahead and hold positions for longer, lift your legs higher, or walk farther. However you improve upon these exercises is up to you, as long as you are improving yourself.

     

     

  • Key Features of a Successful Weight Loss Program

    Key Features of a Successful Weight Loss Program

    Finding a weight loss program that really works in the long term can be difficult.

    With so many stories and reports in the news about diets and programs that have failed, finding the right one may seem impossible.

    weight loss program

    The following are some of the features of weight loss programs that may actually work for you:

    1. They don’t try to sell anything

    A weight loss program doesn’t have to be something which has specific supplements or drinks that you need to consume each day.

     

    A program can be a diet plan for the week and an exercise plan tailored towards your individual fitness levels. Avoid any programs which try to hard sell you any pills or supplements.

    2. You know who has developed it

    You should be cautious of programs which have been developed by anyone other than trained medical professionals who know the effects that certain things can have on your body. While somebody may have had a lot of success with their own diet plan, putting it out there for the general public to try won’t always work out.

    3. People are able to give positive reviews

    If you hear from real people who have had successful with the diet plan, you can start listening and considering trying the program out for yourself. If it’s a program which doesn’t seem to have any reviews, or they seem to be fake, you should avoid it and seek another one.

    4. It seems legitimate

    If it promises instant weight loss without really having to do any work, you should be wary of it and stay away. A weight loss program which is successful will combine all the things which we know are key to shedding excess weight – a healthy diet, plenty of water and regular exercise.

    5. There are no false promises

    Promising that you’ll lose x amount of pounds in a certain period of time is never a good sign of a weight loss program.

    The more fat you have to shed, the quicker you’ll be able to lose it, and the amount you lose in any given time frame depends on a wide variety of things.

    Since nobody can promise how much you will lose in a week or a month, avoid programs which tell you that you’ll definitely lose a certain amount.

Copyright @ 2017 DrCurtisMcElroy