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Medical Conditions, Illnesses and Diseases

The term for any tendency or a condition hampering the normal body functions is called a disease. Most people think of disease as a condition causing dysfunction or uneasiness. Pathology is the name for studying of diseases, illnesses, and disorders. Many factors can cause a disease such as, biological, chemical, psychological, and social. When harmful pathogenic microbes or germs (viruses, bacteria, and protozoa) enter a person’s body, this is called an infection and can be infectious or non- infectious.

An infectious disease, also called communicable or contagious, can be transmitted through insect bites, food or water contamination, air, blood transfusions, and infected injections. It is suggested to take appropriate medical treatment and keep away from other people to refrain from spreading the disease around.

A non- infectious disease can not be spread to other people, such as diabetes, cancer, and heart conditions. Millions of dollars are spent each year on non- infectious diseases in the United States alone. The top most expensive are, heart, trauma, cancer, mental illness, respiratory, hypertension, arthritis, diabetes, and back ailments. There has been a substantial increase in the some diseases and ailments such as, high cholesterol, esophageal diseases, anxiety disorder, breast cancer, and hemorrhoids.

Some illnesses are not caused by infection but by responses of the body to clearing up an infection. Aspects of this type of illness include depression, lethargy, sleepiness, anorexia, and complete lack of concentration. Disorder is the preferred terminology in some cases instead of disease or illness. Disorders are grouped in several categories; mental, functional, emotional, genetic, behavioral, and physical disorders. A mental disorder acknowledges the interaction of social, psychological, and biological factors of a psychiatric condition.

A broad term including all disorders, diseases, injuries and even pregnancies is called a medical condition. Some insurance companies describe medical conditions as an injury, disease, or illness, with the exception of psychiatric conditions. A synonym used for a medical condition describes a medical state such as the usage of “critical condition”. The ending of a treatment or medical condition is called a cure, while a temporary disappearance of a symptom is referred to as a remission.

Filed Under: Fitness, Heart Care Tagged With: Disease, Infectious disease, Mental disorder

Dietary Risk Factors for a Heart Attack

Even those who eat incredibly well might have risk factors that can cause a heart attack. How much we eat regardless of what it is can impact our weight and heart health. Eating is a pleasurable activity but it doesn’t mean we should eat to oblivion (even fruit). For example, bananas are an excellent source of potassium, but they also contain a lot of sugar as they ripen. In addition, they contain anywhere from 70 to 130 calories each. A simple rule to keep in mind is whatever you consume, be prepared to burn off with a fair amount of movement.

What we drink can also impact our ticker’s function. Consider this before you visit your local coffee shop for a latte. One or two cups of coffee without any milk, sugar or cream isn’t so bad (4 ounces). Caffeine itself isn’t a problem in moderation but it can harden the blood vessels and over time increase blood pressure.

Soda has approximately 22 grams of sugar per each six-ounce can or bottle. The huge cups found at the convenience stores are about one liter or more. If the small can or bottle contains double the amount of our daily allowable sugar intake, you can only imagine what those super-size drinks contain. Sugar is known to be deadly in excess by many of our medical professionals. The food pyramid shows us how little should be consumed and it’s considered a treat. Think about these risk factors more.

Genetics can play a role in determining your risk for difficulties with cardiovascular health. Even those of us who appear to be thin can have high cholesterol. If one or both of our parents and some of our ancestors on either side of the family tree have had a heart attack, chances are we can suffer the same fate. During your next annual checkup consider providing your general practitioner or cardiologist with any family history or pertinent health information.

Filed Under: Exercise, Heart Care Tagged With: Hypercholesterolemia, Myocardial infarction, Risk factor

Noteworthy Foods for Good Nutrition

Whenever you hear your parents’ voice telling you to eat for good nutrition, your conscience is serving you properly. In a world with so many diets that come and go quickly, one thing seems clear. Proteins and whole foods remain among the best for heart-healthy enthusiasts.

When you don’t like fish with a strong smell or aftertaste, salmon might be a nice alternative means to obtain omega-3 fatty acids. Alpha-Linolenic acid and fish oil are in bountiful supply when you eat a piece of salmon. If eaten at least two times per week, this can prevent your heart from accumulating plaque. It also can help us avoid having our arteries harden over time and lower blood pressure. If you don’t like fish at all, you can try taking fish oil capsules but remember to avoid taking too many (as doing so can cause a greater risk for internal bleeding).

If you’re tired of cashews, peanuts and pumpkin seeds try flaxseeds instead. They might remain unknown by many people but these are high sources of proteins and fiber. Flaxseeds also contain omega three fatty acids. Additionally, they contain phytoestrogens which may help regulate hormones in men and women. Hormones can affect the likelihood of heart problems as well.

If you don’t like the way your mom made oatmeal as a child, you may want to reconsider banishing it altogether. Oatmeal contains a rich source of omega-3′s, magnesium, calcium and niacin. All of these can help support efficient blood flow to and from the heart and may minimize cholesterol clumping within the arterial veins. In the name of health, try putting berries on your oatmeal in the morning or make oatmeal cookies with low sugar.

Drinking occasional red wine with dinner won’t make you a lush. Actually, you have considerable common sense. The fermented grapes contain reservatrol, which can help reduce the bad form of cholesterol (LDL). So the next time you sit down, celebrate good nutrition.

Filed Under: Fitness, Heart Care Tagged With: Health, Heart Disease, Low-density lipoprotein, Omega-3 fatty acid

Dietary Nutrition Made Simple

Since the late 1970s the concept of nutrition seems to have gotten more complex. Fad diets have increased in popularity since then and they do help many people achieve a more slender appearance. The fact remains that unless we stick to the reduction of calories or maintain the proper calorie intake we can gain the weight back, no matter what we do and what plan we choose.

Many argue over the proper dietary needs and have done so since the early 1950s. The most realistic diet plan for an individual is one that should be kept. It’s important to understand that not every diet works for everyone since body chemistry varies with each person.

First we should ask ourselves how and why we originally gained weight, thus putting us in the condition to go on a diet. Some of us have been able to master the necessity of portion control and may find portion control weight plans to be useful in our long-term goals. Others find they feel bloated or unwell after eating certain foods such as dairy items or those containing high fat.

If a diet consists of what we eat and drink, we have to remember to keep it balanced. Otherwise we might feel deprived, give up and search for another weight-loss plan. This can send many of us on a frenzy of yo-yo dieting. Food was meant to be enjoyed and we shouldn’t be fanatical about calorie counting and weighing food. That said, we should be aware of what we’re consuming in the first place.

Dietary nutrition begins at home and the refrigerator should be stocked with fruits and vegetables spanning various colors of the rainbow. Foods like cucumbers, spinach, red bell peppers, yellow squash, mangoes, papaya, oranges and eggplant can provide us the vitamins and minerals we need to sustain health. It’s unlikely we’ll get bored with these different flavors if we learn to cook and enjoy the kitchen. Eat up!

Filed Under: Fitness, Heart Care Tagged With: Dieting, Nutrition, Weight loss

Keep The Ticker Ticking

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While all the muscles in the body work together to keep us moving and shaking, one of the most important muscles is the heart. The heart works hard to keep the body fueled, and we need to take care of it. Exercise is wonderful. A good brisk walk not only clears the mind, it makes us feel good. At the same time, we are exercising that very important muscle in the middle of the chest, the heart. Keeping stress down is important to a healthy heart, and hence, a healthier life. An extremely important part of heart health is obviously, the diet.

Eating the right foods, in the right combination, at the right time of day, is a huge step towards a healthy heart, and a healthier you. The truth is that healthier choices can please the palate as well as the heart. While a breakfast of bacon and eggs is fine sometimes, substituting that breakfast meal with some whole grain cereal and fresh fruit will make your heart very happy, and you will be healthier. Substitute a healthy breakfast more often during the week, say four to six times a week, and your heart is a happy little muscle.

Keep yourself active. One does not have to run the Boston Marathon on a monthly basis to keep the heart healthy. A nice brisk walk a couple of times a week makes a huge difference. Not only will you be exercising your heart, you will be exercising your body, which will also reap the benefits. Tighter muscles work better, make us less tired, and we will be less likely to sit on the couch and grab a bag of chips.

Our hearts will hopefully keep us living for a very long time. If we take good care of it, the chances are that the heart will take care of us well into our golden years.

Filed Under: Heart Care, Heart Surgeons, Surgery Tagged With: Blood pressure, Boston Marathon, Cardiovascular Disorders, Conditions and Diseases, Health, Heart Disease, Muscle, Physical exercise

Do What You Are Told

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Heart conditions and heart surgeries are serious business. When chest pain hits, you never know what is causing it. It can be as simple as a bad case of indigestion, or as serious as one or more blocked heart valves. When the heart valves are blocked, the heart cannot do its job. There are as many reasons for heart disease as there are people who have heart disease. Finding out you have a heart condition is only the first step. The next step is yours.

We all know that eating right, exercising, staying away from cigarettes, drugs and alcohol are all ways to stay heart healthy. Everyone has a vice. When your heart is at stake, there are seriously important decisions to be made. Once the doctors determine what the problem is, they will take steps to fix said problem. This may include just diet and exercise. It may be that you need medication. Or in more serious cases, surgery might be the answer. Whatever the treatment for your problem, your doctor will tell you to take better care of yourself. Start eating right, exercise regularly, and absolutely stay away from cigarettes, alcohol or illicit drugs.

When it comes to your health and your heart, do what you are told. Make the decision to have a healthier life. Put down the cigarettes, cut out the happy hours, take a walk, eat an apple instead of a doughnut. These can be very difficult steps for some people. People who have smoked for many years find it near impossible to quit. Many people who have heart issues still continue to smoke. Those who have issues with alcohol find it just as difficult to put the bottle down.

Stop and think. What is important to you? Can those cigarettes or that drink possibly be more important than what you have left to live for? Take a good look at your family, the answer is right there.

Filed Under: Heart Care, Heart Surgeons, Surgery Tagged With: Cardiac surgery, Cardiovascular Disorders, Conditions and Diseases, Health, Heart Disease, Heart valve, Physical exercise, Surgery

An Apple or Five a Day

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The old proverb that, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away” is more than just a whimsical saying. Eating at least five servings of fruits and vegetables a day has proven to keep us healthier. A 19 year study in adults ages 25 to 74 found that those who ate three or more servings of fruit a day cut their risk of dying by 27%, as opposed to those who only consumed one serving of fruit per day.

It is actually probably more likely that eating five servings of fruits and vegetables per day reduces the risk factors for cardiac disease rather than actually fighting the disease. Cardiac risk factors include things like being overweight, high cholesterol, and too much fat in the diet. We have no control over some of the factors for heart disease, but by substituting some of the fattier foods with a piece of fruit or a serving of vegetables, you are working towards a healthier lifestyle. You will be more likely to lose weight, the fruit will replace the fat in your diet and in turn, your cholesterol will come down.

Of course, if you are feeling healthier, the chances are that you will want to keep that feeling and work on more healthy aspects of your life. With a little weight off and the fats in your diet not weighing you down, you may just find yourself outside more often, taking in the fresh air, going for a walk. All of these suggestions will start you on a path to a healthier heart. Nobody wants to be faced with the decision to be on a lifetime of heart medication, or to have heart surgery. It is never too late to start getting healthy, and it is so easy to get started. If you eat one apple today, maybe you will eat another tomorrow and you know what they say about an apple a day.

Filed Under: Heart Care, Heart Surgeons, Surgery Tagged With: Apple, Cholesterol, Conditions and Diseases, Fruit, Health, Heart Disease, Hypercholesterolemia, Risk factor

Living With Heart Disease

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Heart disease is a term that denotes an extremely large field of medicine. If you have high blood pressure, you have heart disease. If you have had atrial fibrillation treated by a cardiologist, you have heart disease. If you have to take medication daily to control any heart condition, you have heart disease. While many people think of heart disease as something fatal, and in some cases it can be, most heart conditions are treatable and easy to maintain if the right steps are taken.

Keeping up with health check ups with your family physician or cardiologist is essential to maintaining your health and keeping your heart disease under control. Taking any medication that is prescribed to you is essential in managing your heart disease. These medications are carefully formulated and specific to your type of heart disease. Taking them as directed will keep your heart from causing any problems in your life. Hence, not taking them as directed can have serious, even fatal, side effects. Over time if you do not take your medication as directed, your heart disease can progress, it can easily become more serious and can cause irreversible damage to your heart muscle.

Eating a healthy diet and getting as much exercise as you can are also essential steps to keeping your heart healthy. Cutting out some of the fats in your diet and substituting unhealthy snacks with fruit or low fat snacks is one way you can take charge of your care. Taking a nice walk a few times a week goes a long way in helping to keep the heart muscle strong. Obviously, if you are smoking, you should make every effort to stop. Smoking can cause serious risks to a patient with heart disease.

By just managing your lifestyle a little differently and making some minimal changes, you can keep your heart healthy for a very long time to come.

Filed Under: Heart Care, Heart Surgeons, Surgery Tagged With: Atrial fibrillation, Cardiac muscle, Cardiology, Health, Heart, Heart Disease, Hypertension, Pharmaceutical drug

Choosing The Right Doctor

You have been diagnosed with heart disease. Those two words alone can mean something as minor as a heart beat flutter to full blown blocked arteries and need for surgery. How do you find out what the next step is? Who is the right professional for your needs?

If a baby is born with a heart problem, the professionals will probably be called in right at the time of birth, and these specialists and their colleagues will determine exactly what needs to be done and who is the best specialist for that. Heart disease will need to be followed throughout the child’s life, thus setting up lifelong heart care. If you have never had heart disease, and begin to have symptoms, you would probably start with your family doctor. Yearly physicals are so important for catching heart disease at its earliest and making the treatment of heart disease work the best for you. You may just be starting to have some high blood pressure. Your physician will tell you to exercise more, eat healthier and he may prescribe some blood pressure medication, which you may be on for a lifetime. Taken properly and taking care of yourself can keep this particular heart disease in check forever.

If it something more involved, your family doctor will send you to a heart doctor, or cardiologist. Your cardiologist may handle your issues with just medication if that is all that is necessary or you may need another step. Further testing may be involved, or even surgery. The cardiologist will then send you to a cardiac surgeon, who will do whatever is necessary to diagnose the proper issue with your particular heart. From there you may be sent to another specialist, as the study of the heart and those who have made it their life’s work are vast and varied. Do your research. With the right guidance from your doctors, your heart will be in good hands.

Filed Under: Heart Care, Heart Surgeons, Surgery Tagged With: Blood pressure, Cardiology, Health, Heart, Heart Disease, Hypertension, Physician, Surgery

Saying No Changes Lives

I am a very outgoing person and because of that I attract a lot of people into my life. Most of these people are great and people that I want to have in my life. However, being young and having fun is something that can bring about the wrong type of people, too. I find myself often surrounded by people that I do not want to call friends and because of that, I often have to make decisions to avoid peer pressure.

It does not matter how old you are, a teen or an adult, there are people that will try to sway you from doing what you know is good. These are people that can often lead you down the wrong path, usually because that is where they are heading, too. I find myself often spending a lot of my time determining if I should offer a helping hand to those people that obviously are struggling, or if I simply should walk away.

I say no. When someone approaches me and asks me to do something that I do not want to do or to participate in something that I know will harm me in my future, I simply say no and walk away. A friend will not force you or bring up the situation again. The person that comes after you and pushes you is not someone you want in your life.

I recently experienced this type of person. I told her no, and, when she came after me to again pressure me, I suggested that she reach out and get help from family and friends. I even suggested one of the best places I know for people struggling with addictions, LaPalomaTreatment.com.

I don’t know if she took this advice, but I do know that I did not find myself going down the wrong road because of the peer pressure she was trying to inflict.

Filed Under: Drug Addiction, Heart Care, Rehab Tagged With: Adolescence, Health, Peer pressure, Youth