11 Surprising Heart Disease Factors

Heart diseases are among the greatest killers of our day and age and lay claim to the lives of about 18 million people worldwide every year, according to the WHO. Of those, a whopping 80% deaths are the result of a stroke or a heart attack. While some possible triggers of heart conditions, such as obesity, are a matter of public knowledge, other possible causes may surprise you:

 

1. Poor Dental Hygiene

Apparently, not brushing your teeth may cause plaque buildup… in the arteries. The same oral bacteria that cause periodontal (or gum) disease can enter the blood stream and cause atherosclerosis, a cardiovascular condition wherein blood vessels become clogged by arterial plaque, possibly leading to strokes and heart attacks.

2. Drinking Diet Sodas

If you’re looking into sugar-free soft drinks as a means to avoid obesity and related heart complications,you have another thing coming . Heavy diet soda drinkers are actually more likely to suffer from a stroke or a heart attack than those who drink sugar-sweetened sodas.

3. Shunning Beans

Beans, beans, they’re good for your heart. This isn’t just a line out of a nursery rhyme, it’s a medical fact. Eating beans and other protein-rich legumes (such as lentils, chickpeas, soybean, peas and peanuts) has been found to lower your resting heartbeat as effectively as regular exercise, potentially preventing heart attack.

4. Dieting

Committing to a drastic change of lifestyle may sound like a good idea when thinking about weight loss, but often dramatic and prohibitive diets are very hard to sustain over time, cause great fluctuations in body mass over a short period of time and can cause more harm than good. This yo-yo effect, in and of itself, can dramatically increase the risk of heart disease.

5. Contracting Flu

If there weren’t enough reasons to get a flu shot, according to this study, among people between the ages of 65-86, the likelihood of having a heart attack within one week of contracting influenza A was six times! Odds were even higher for people with prior heart complications and those who contracted influenza B.

6. Depression

The notion that body and mind operate independently is flat-out wrong, as many mental health conditions and physical illnesses appear to be inextricably tied. This is also true of depression, as a recent study established. The research showed that among men above the age of 45, depression was associated with a 30% increased chance of heart attack, and a 18% increased chance among women of the same age group. For both groups, depression was also associated with 24-44% increased chance of stroke, with odds increasing with the intensity of their mental distress.

Likewise, one of the major symptoms of depression is social withdrawal, which- independently of the aforementioned study- has been shown to be associated with a 30% increased chance of coronary heart disease and stroke

7. Avoiding Fruit

Much like legumes, eating fresh fruit has been established as an effective way to reduce heart pressure, as well as lowering blood sugar levels. According to the study conducted in China, people who consumed fresh fruit on a daily basis were 40% less likely to have a heart attack, 34% less likely to have a major heart complication, and 30% less likely to have a stroke.  

8. Sleep Apnea

Snoring might be a hassle for your partner, but it can indicate a huge risk for you. Severe obstructive sleep apnea, characterized by problems breathing through the nose while sleeping has been associated with a nearly twofold increase in coronary heart disease, heart failure and heart disease-related death.

9. Living at a Low Altitude

This may seem strange to you, but for athletes who depend on good cardio, this is hardly news. Living at a high altitude increases cardiovascular endurance, which in turn decreases the odds of having metabolic syndrome, a cluster of several medical conditions, including obesity, high blood pressure and high blood sugar, by 25%. Metabolic syndrome is a major cause of type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke.

10. Body Image

We know that obesity can be a cause for multiple heart conditions, but apparently stigma around obesity greatly increases the risk. According to a 2017 study, obese people who suffered from a negative body image were 46% more likely to have metabolic syndrome than those who are more accepting of their body type.

11. Your Job

Yes. Your work, and particularly if your career finds you sitting on a chair in front of a monitor for the better part of the day, can kill you. A 2012 study found that a sedentary schedule was associated with a 147% increase in heart complications and a 90% increase in heart-related deaths. Meanwhile, a work schedule of 55 or more weekly hours was associated with a 13% increased chance of coronary heart disease and a 33% increased chance of stroke.

THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES.                                    PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO  VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                                           https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/    

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Parents’ Job Stress Affect Kid’s Health

Besides economic resources, parents’ autonomy in the workplace can help boost the health of their children, suggests research. While it was long known that sick children can affect a company’s bottom line, less is known about the impact a parent’s work life has on their children’s health. The researchers, looked at the so-called “self-regulatory resources”, or the amount of self-control parents bring to parenting, including the ability to act in a more reflective manner. “If a parent has too many stressors, it reduces your self-control,” said a Professor. Parental self-control was linked to better health outcomes for children. In other words, how we parent when we experience high levels of stress is probably fundamentally different from how we parent when we are coping well. “At lower levels of job autonomy,” the researchers wrote, “employees likely have to rely more on self-regulatory resources to compensate for the impact of limited control over one’s job on one’s personal life.” On the other hand, “at higher levels of job autonomy, freedom and more decision-making opportunities are likely to motivate the person to engage; however, self-regulatory resources would be less needed.” 

THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES.                                                                                
 PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO  VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                                           https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/                                                                                                                                                                             FOR INFO ABOUT KNEE REPLACEMENT, YOU CAN VIEW MY BLOG-                                               
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Unsatisfactory Job may trigger back pain

Unsatisfactory jobs may give a headache to many, but a study says that they can also cause acute back pain.

Researchers at University of Western Australiahave found that workers who resign themselves to work in unsatisfactory jobs are more likely to suffer from serious, persistent lower back pain than others with a positive attitude.

In their study, they found that a third of people studied with niggling non-specific back pain went on to develop daily back pain that severely affected their career and social lives.

Although the workers required extended sick leave and went to their doctors complaining of pain, only a few had suffered a physical change such as a slipped disc. Anatomical tests showed no reasons for their ongoing daily problems with pain, say the researchers.

"Everybody has occasional lower back or neck pain but we are concerned about people with continuous non-specific pain for weeks at a time, which has significant socio-economic and personal costs," professor Markus Melloh, who led the team, said.

The researchers found that patients who continued to show "maladaptive cognitions" such as fear and helplessness about their condition, movement avoidance and magnification of its seriousness were likely to develop a persistent condition.

"Attitude in the workplace and positive thinking have a huge impact on lower back pain. If an employee has the option to participate in change in their workplace or have some say in their job design, they can regain a positive attitude and the condition may correct itself ," Melloh said.