We all need a little bit of salt because it helps keep your body fluids at the right concentration. However, the majority of us eat more salt than we need. If you eat too much salt, your volume of body fluids increases and pushes up your blood pressure. High blood pressure can lead to serious problems such as heart disease or stroke.

As salt is often a “hidden” ingredient in many foods, it can sometimes be difficult to work out how much you are eating. Some foods, such as crisps, olives and bacon, taste obviously salty and can easily be removed from your diet if you are trying to cut down.

However, 75% of the salt we eat comes from ready-made foods, such as bread, cereals and baked beans. Even sweet things, such as biscuits, have salt added to them.

To keep track of your salt intake, get into the habit of reading the nutritional information on food labels, where you will find the salt (sodium) content for a 100g serving. As a rough guide:

• a high amount of salt is more than 1.5g for 100g (0.6g sodium)
• a low amount of salt is 0.3g for 100g (0.1g sodium)

Read more about How much salt is good for you

Article source: http://www.nhs.uk/

Image courtesy: http://www.thegoodcalorie.com/

Heart is a vital organ of the body that needs your care for life. Every one of us has control over our body and we can do something to have a healthy heart. We can start by altering our lifestyle to kick – start our way towards a healthy heart.

Dr.Prakash Jain tells that diet can play a major role in lowering your cholesterol. He recommends few easy to follow tips for all ages to keep your cholesterol under control.

Especially in children, when they are overfed with fried and spicy food, their overall health will be affected. Children should be encouraged to exercise and keep them fit.

For young adults who are in their 20s-30s, doctor recommends to take smaller meals throughout the day instead of larger portions and also to reduce the quantity of red meat in their diet. A regular exercising habit along with this will give them a healthy lifestyle.

A caller who is a mother of a young boy was doubtful whether if it’s ok to give him junk food once in a while. Doctor Prakash replied that as long as the boy is following a healthy dietary pattern, indulging in junk food once in a while will do no harm.

Another caller asked if it is advisable for an eighty year old to undergo a valve transplant. Doctor replied saying age is not a constraint. It depends on the level of activity of the patient. Pin-hole surgeries, percutaneous transplant are innovations in the world of heart surgery.

When the cholesterol range is higher in your body, it builds up in the walls of your arteries causing a heart condition called atherosclerosis. If there is any unusual pain starting from your chest and spreading to rest of your body similar to heart attack symptoms, its wiser to consult a doctor immediately and get an ECG or stress test done.

We think that living a good quality of life with a heart condition is impossible. With healthy lifestyle, regular exercise and a good dietary pattern anyone can go on having a normal life with a heart condition. Doctor wraps up his conversation by saying heart disease is preventable if we keep ourselves healthy. To have a healthy body one must avoid active and passive smoking.

Image Credits: http://milenhealth.info/

The question is not what Apple Cider Vinegar can do, but what can’t it do. As a folk remedy, it has been credited with curing everything from the flu to warts or sunburn to dandruff. However, it also can help reverse many serious diseases that many would immediately turn to medications to solve. Here are 8 more reasons this powerful health tonic makes your kitchen your best pharmacy.

Unpasteurized or organic Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) contains mother of vinegar, which has a cobweb-like appearance and can make the vinegar look slightly congealed. It’s the only way apple cider vinegar should be consumed.

ACV can kill head lice, reverse aging, ease digestion, prevent flu, prevent acne, reduces inflammation, kill fungus, regulate pH balance, dissolve kidney stones and helps relieve allergies, migraines, asthma, nausea, heart burn and wash toxins from the body. Science has also verified the the empirical evidence observed through the ages.

1) Diabetes

The effect of apple cider vinegar on blood sugar levels is perhaps the best researched and the most promising of APV’s health benefits. Several studies have found that vinegar may help lower glucose levels. For instance, a study (White, A. Diabetes Care, November 2007) of 11 people with type 2 diabetes found that taking two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar before bed lowered glucose levels in the morning by 4%-6%. In another study from Arizona State University, subjects took a drink of 20 grams of apple cider vinegar and 40 grams of water. Those with insulin resistance who drank the vinegar had 34% lower postprandial (after-meal) glucose compared to controls. Vinegar may be the most cost-effective medicine in history, but most people with diabetes still aren’t taking it.

2) Allergies

This miracle vinegar helps to break up mucous throughout the body and cleanse the lymph nodes. Believe it or not, research suggests that apple cider vinegar can help with allergies because of its ability to reduce mucous and sinus congestion. When reducing the effects of allergies, it can also help stave off sinus infections and their related symptoms, such as sore throats and headaches.

Click here to read more:

Article Credits: http://themindunleashed.org/

High blood pressure (BP) is called as a ‘silent killer’ as it often shows no symptoms. It is a major public health problem in India and its prevalence is rapidly increasing among both urban and rural populations. Lifestyle changes are important for preventing and treating high blood pressure.

Though essential hypertension remains somewhat mysterious, it has been linked to certain risk factors.  Kidney is a major risk factor for high BP. It has been found that about 7 in 10 people who have their first heart attack have high BP. About 8 in 10 people who suffer their first stroke are found to have high BP. About 7 in every 10 people with chronic heart failure have high BP. The risk factor increases with age.

Dr. Vijay Chandra Reddy says that one should start checking their BP from their 20’s and should get checkups regularly. Hypertension can be prevented by a healthy diet and active lifestyle. It is better to prevent it than to treat it with medicines. Healthy changes include maintaining a normal weight, exercising regularly, quitting smoking, limiting alcohol consumption, reducing sodium (salt) intake and increasing potassium intake.

A caller asked if it is common for a woman to get high BP after pregnancy. Doctor said the pressure increases during pregnancy but it comes back to normal after delivery. If the condition continues, one has to consult their physician.

When a caller asked if there will be any side effects if one start the medication at an early age , the doctor advised him to follow a healthy diet and exercise regularly for few months. If the condition improves, medication is not necessary. If not, then he can take medication after consulting with his doctor.

Another caller asked how he could deal with the side effects of the medication. The doctor replied that all allopathic medicines have side effects but most are reversible. It is best to inform the doctor about the side effect and discuss a way to reduce it. Anger and stress can lead to hypertension. He also mentions that his favorite movie is ‘Anger Management’ by Peter Segal. The Doctor concluded by saying that the activities he follows to relax and reduce stress are doing Yoga, Gardening and playing with his pet to deal with hypertension.

For many of us, back pain is an unavoidable discomfort. But we may have more control over it than we think. Back pain is one of the most common complaints among both men and women. It is also a common reason for absence from work.

Dr. Shankar discusses on the causes and reasons for back pain, discomfort and lower back problems with us and gives us simple tips and tricks to avoid or manage the pain.

He says, Slipped discs are one of the commonly faced problems and a clinical examination is a must to judge the severity of the problem. Since the Spine nerves are very delicate, it’s better to do an MRI to check that the nerves are not damaged before starting on any treatment.

One of the first few callers said he has been suffering from sciatica and asked if practicing yoga alone could help him with his problem. Dr. Shankar advised the caller to do a nerve conduction study and an MRI and based on the diagnosis of his physiotherapist he can ask his yoga practitioner for few strengthening exercises.

Another caller complained about on and off lower back pain. The doctor advised that a simple x-ray and a bone density test would throw some light on the root cause of the issue. He also told her to self check if the pain is appearing only after sitting or sleeping in a particular position.

Dr. Shankar says women should watch their posture while sitting, walking or standing to avoid back pain. When we keep our body posture right, back pain can be avoided most of the times. He prescribes women to enrich their calcium intake by taking 2-3 glasses of milk every day. Older women should take regular calcium supplements to prevent osteoporosis.

When the back pain is bothering you for more than 6months, then you will have to consult your physician. Some young people might suffer stiffness in their backs in early mornings. It might be a symptom of arthritis of the spine. It might not be permanent but however the severity needs to be diagnosed by a physician.

As we all know, Vitamin D is very important for both bones and muscles. Any deficiency of this vitamin might result in weakness and pain. Though there are many supplements available in the market, the best and the simple solution to gain this vitamin is to go out for a few minutes of walk in the sun.

Dr. Shankar’s gives us few easy to follow advice according to your age to avoid back problems:
– Under 25 yr olds- Be Active!
– 25-40 yr olds – Walking is important for a healthy spine.
– Post 50 – Women must check bone density and make sure they get enough Calcium.
– Not all back pains are due to Spondylosis. Please get your problem diagnosed immediately!

A back pain can make your day worse. Not only does it make you uncomfortable while you sit, but also causes pain when you are lying down or standing. Here are a few ways you can take care of this problem.

Stretching
This form of exercise limbers up tense muscles and strengthens the ones that need help. But before you try any stretches it is advised that you visit a fitness expert or a doctor to know which ones will work for you. Stretching should be done gently. Don’t exert too much pressure on your muscles; they might do more damage than good.

There’s nothing worse than sitting at work with a horrible backache. Here’s how you can take care

Article Courtesy: Times Of India

Image Credits: http://www.apchiropractic.com.au/

A recent sample survey by World Health Organization (WHO)  has sent worrying signals for road safety experts across the globe. According to the initial findings of the survey, only 18.5% two-wheeler users wear helmet in the city.

“The surveys done in two phases in a few months’ gap have shown little improvement in the situation. Our surveys have also shown how there is less awareness among drivers so far as the importance of wearing helmet is concerned,” said Dr Adnan Hyder, director of department of international health at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health while addressing road safety experts at Safety World Conference in Wellington (New Zealand).

The details of the survey findings, which would be published by the WHO, in December shows that only 23% of two-wheeler drivers were aware about the need to wear helmets while only 1% of the passengers felt its need. “At night the helmet usage drops significantly because of less police presence,” Hyder said.

Click here to understand why Helmets are important

Image Courtesy: http://kauaifamilymagazine.com

Organ Donation Day in India is celebrated  every year by the people, government organizations and other related professions in order to motivate normal human beings to donate the organs as well as to understand the value of organ donation in the life of an individual. The organ donor can be anyone of which the organ can be transplanted to the patient urgently require. The organ donated by the normal human being is saved properly to transplant into the patient whenever he or she require. One can get the new life through the organ transplantation donated by someone.

According to the report, at least more than 5 lakhs of the Indians are dying every year just because of the failure of their major functioning organs anytime. They still want to live their life as they are not fully satisfy with their life and want to live more but just because of the natural calamities they are unable to do so.

Click here to read about the initiative by Times of India

Objectives:

• To aware the people about the need of organ donation.
• To distribute the messages of organ donation all over the country.
• To remove the hesitations of the people about donating organs.
• To say a grateful thanks to the donors of the organs.
• To motivate and encourage more people towards organ donation in their life.