Nutrition. Vitamins. You.
When it comes to refined sugars, like high-fructose corn syrup, wanting to steer clear of them all together can be more difficult than you think. Refined sugar like high-fructose corn syrup can be tricky to pin point; companies tend to hide it by replacing it …
According to the United States Department of Agriculture, an estimated 40 percent of Americans do not get enough Vitamin D. And now that the summer is practically over and your long, hot days in the sun are getting shorter and shorter, you may find it …
Doctors are finding strong connections between obesity and the extremely dangerous heart arrhythmia known as atrial fibrillation. According to the American College of Cardiology, an estimated 5.6 million U.S. adults have atrial fibrillation (AF), an abnormal heart rhythm characterized by rapid, irregular beating of the upper chambers of the heart. It is a leading cause of stroke. Symptoms include weakness, shortness of breath, and palpitations. Obesity, another condition that plagues more than one-third of U.S. adults, is connected with an increased risk of AF. But there’s good news – a new study has found that obese patients with AF who lost at least 10 percent of their body weight were six times more likely to achieve long-term freedom from the disorder compared to those who did not lose weight.
Rajeev Pathak, MD, a cardiologist and electrophysiology associate at the University of Adelaide in Australia and the lead study author of this study stated, “Previous studies have shown that weight management can reduce atrial fibrillation symptoms in the short term and improve outcomes of ablation (a surgical treatment for atrial fibrillation). We sought to shed light on the long-term outcomes of sustained weight loss, the effects of the amount of weight lost and the impact of changes in weight over time.”
Need some help with losing weight and exercising? Read Jun Wang, MS’, “Dietary Approach to Weight Loss” here!
Three hundred and fifty-five participants, all obese with atrial fibrillation at the start of the study, were enrolled in a dedicated weight loss clinic by researchers that tracked their health annually for about four years. The study found a direct relationship between weight loss and the participants symptoms – the higher the weight loss, the higher the percentage of people who became free of their symptoms. Fourty-five percent of the patients who lost 10 percent or more of their body weight were free of atrial fibrillation symptoms, without medication or surgery. In the patients who lost from 3 to 9 percent of their body weight, 22 percent achieved freedom from the symptoms of atrial fibrillations. Only 13 percent of patients who lost less than 3 percent of their body weight were free of symptoms. Even with the use of surgery or medication, those who lost more weight were substantially more likely to achieve success and have freedom from atrial fibrillation symptoms, as well. This study is published online March 16, 2015 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
Five months after the former study was published, a new study also performed at the University of Adelaide found that exercise appeared to strongly benefit the control of atrial fibrillation in obese people. Australian researchers found that “cardiorespiratory fitness” reduced the risk that this dangerous irregular heartbeat may return by as much as 84 percent. Cardiorespiratory fitness is defined as “the ability of the heart and lungs to supply oxygen to the body during sustained physical activity.” Lead researcher Dr. Prashanthan Sander, director of the Center for Heart Rhythm Disorders at the University of Adelaide in Australia, explains, “This study adds to a growing body of evidence that aggressive risk factor management with increased physical activity should be an integral component of management of atrial fibrillation.”
Researchers assigned the study’s 308 patients (all obese or overweight with atrial fibrillation) to one of three groups based on their level of fitness – low, adequate or high. After four years, 84 percent of patients in the high fitness group no longer had atrial fibrillation. Seventy-six percent of patients in the adequate level of fitness group no longer had atrial fibrillation and just 17 percent of patients in the low fitness level group no longer had atrial fibrillation. As measures of fitness improved, the incidence of atrial fibrillation declined. This study is published online August 24, 2015 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
Need some help with losing weight and exercising? Read Jun Wang, MS’, “Dietary Approach to Weight Loss” here!
Rheumatoid arthritis is an extremely painful and disabling form of arthritis affecting many joints at once. Unfortunately, there is no cure for this condition, although there are ways someone can ease their pain. In this recent clinical trial performed by the Rheumatology Unit at Royal …
Coffee is a highly traded commodity, the main reason why it is the subject of epidemiological and clinical studies with respect to safety and the likelihood of health benefits. This new study from Japan may give men who drink coffee reason to brew an extra …
According to a new study, people are living longer but with more illnesses and disabilities than ever before.
While our life expectancy has improved due to numerous advances in technology, our healthy life expectancy has not followed suit. People are living for a longer amount of time but with more illnesses and disabilities, according to a new analysis published in the Lancet Journal that used data from 188 countries.
A professor at the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington and leader of the analysis, Theo Vos, stated, “The world has made great progress in health, but now the challenge is to invest in finding more effective ways of preventing or treating the major causes of illness and disability.”
You get no warning sign when it comes to experiencing an illness or disability, as unless you’ve spent your whole life with one, they can occur completely by surprise.
But if there was a way to prevent or treat the major illnesses and disabilities, it would make everyone’s life significantly easier.
The study found that “global life expectancy at birth for both sexes rose by 6.2 years – from 65.3 in 1990 to 71.5 in 2013. Healthy life expectancy at birth rose by 5.4 years – from 56.9 in 1990 to 62.3 in 2013.” Healthy life expectancy, in this case, includes mortality, impact of “non-fatal conditions”, and chronic illnesses. The study does more than suggest that it does not have a direct relationship with the global life expectancy.
According to the study and News Daily, “For most of the 188 countries studied, changes in healthy life expectancy between 1990 and 2013 were “significant and positive”, the researchers said. However in May – among them Belize, Botswana and Syria – healthy life expectancy in 2013 was not much higher than in 1990.” Healthy Life expectancy has even dropped in some countries like South Africa, Paraguay, Belarus, Lesotho and Swaziland. There were also major differences in the countries with the highest and lowest healthy life expectancies.
According to the University of Cambridge and the Medical Research Council, there are four health changes that can prolong your life for 14 years. These changes include limiting your alcohol consumption, quitting smoking exercising regularly, and eating five servings of fruits and vegetables each day.Overwhelming evidence has shown that these things contribute to healthier and longer lives, but the new study actually quantified their combined impact, the British team said. Read the full study by clicking here!
Source: http://newsdaily.com