Is Coffee Good for Your Health?
A 10-year Swedish Mammography Cohort Study looked at the connection between lifestyle and disease development. The study included 34,670 women between the ages of 48 to 83. All the women were healthy and without cardiovascular disease at the start of the study.
The study found women who consumed one or more cups of coffee per day throughout the ten year study had a reduced stroke risk of 22-25% compared to the women drinking less than one cup of coffee daily.
Women consuming more than 5 cups of coffee show the same benefits as those drinking one cup.
What Nutrients are in Coffee?
Shift Work and the Impact on Heart Health
A subscriber to The Heart of Health submitted a good question and I wanted to share the answer.
Question:
Does working nights affect my health, especially heart?
Answer:
There is strong evidence that shift work is linked to some serious health conditions, such as heart disease, diabetes and obesity. Additional health concerns linked to shift work include stomach ulcers and depression.
Which is better to lower blood pressure? Garlic SALT or Garlic POWDER
Your daily intake of salt has a direct impact on your blood pressure. For some individuals who are salt sensitive the impact on blood pressure levels is even greater.
Restock Your Spice Rack
Spices are a wonderful way to add flavor to your foods so you are less tempted to reach for the salt shaker at the table. However, you need to purchase the right spices. For example, replace garlic SALT, which contains 320 mg of sodium per ¼ teaspoon, with garlic POWDER which contains 1 mg per 1 teaspoon.
The same goes for onion salt, replace it with onion powder and any other ‘salts’ you may have in your cupboard.
Increase Exercise Intensity to Strengthen Heart
There are some studies that suggest a higher intensity interval workout routine, such as those used by athletes, may be beneficial for patients with heart conditions.
High intensity interval training involves short bursts of intense exercise at 85-95% maximum heart rate. These short bursts are alternated with periods of moderate exercise. This workout method is frequently used by athletes to improve speed and endurance.
If this type of training were to be recommended for heart patients it’d be a change from the standard protocol of steady aerobic exercise at 70% maximum heart rate. This lower level of intensity is intended to work the heart without risking chest pain, heart attack, or other complication.
Walking for Heart Health Benefits
Do you understand the importance of being regularly active to promote heart health? However, you know this and still remain sedentary? Is this because the thought of exercise makes you think of a gym membership, spandex, and everyone watching you try to use equipment you have no idea how to work? Well, here’s an alternative.
Simply taking a daily walk has many benefits without the risk of embarrassment.
Benefits of Walking Daily
- Decreases risk of heart disease or stroke.
- Lowers LDL cholesterol
- Increases HDL cholesterol
- Reduces blood pressure
- Increases daily calories burned (weight management)
- Decreases risk of colon cancer and diabetes (may protect against breast cancer)
- Decreases joint swelling and pain from arthritis
- Improves mood
- Improves stress management
- More energy
- Improves self-esteem
- Improves sleep quality
How Long of a Walk
Obesity – Where does your state rank?
In 2010 rural Mississippi had the most obese residents for the 7th year in a row. This is according to an annual obesity report published by two public health groups.
Can you guess the thinnest state? Yep, Colorado.
The results of the annual obesity report get worse every year. American’s are getting heavier and heavier as time passes. Here’s an interesting fact that was pointed out:
In Colorado in 2010, 19.8% of the adult population was considered obese. Back in 1995, this would have meant Colorado was the heaviest state in the U.S.
It’s pretty scary how quickly things change in just 15 years.
According to the study results, the states that struggle the most with obesity are located in the South.
Here are the 12 states with an obesity rate of greater than 30%:
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