Do You Know Your Numbers?

 

In the United States, nearly half of everyone over age 18 (48%) has hypertension. For Americans over age 60 that rises to 75%. Of those who are hypertensive, only 1 in 4 have it under control and 41% of women and 51% of men are completely unaware of their condition because they were never diagnosed. Hypertension significantly increases the risk of heart, brain and kidney diseases, and is one of the top causes of death and disease throughout the world.

Although hypertension easily diagnosed and treatment is usually very effective, the death rate from high blood pressure increased by nearly 11 percent in the United States between 2005 and 2015, and the actual number of deaths rose by almost 38 percent — up to nearly 79,000 - in the same period.

Blood pressure is determined by measuring the systolic and diastolic blood pressures.

• Systolic blood pressure, the top number, measures the force the heart exerts on the walls of the arteries each time it beats.
• Diastolic blood pressure, the bottom number, measures the force the heart exerts on the walls of the arteries in between beats.

The American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association divide blood pressure into four general categories.

                                Normal                               Up to  120/80
                                Elevated                             Up to  130/80
                                Stage 1 Hypertension        Up to  140/90
                                Stage 2 Hypertension        Above 140/90

Do you know your numbers? You should.

Read more about it here.

                                

If Sugar Is So Bad, Why Is Fruit Good?

 

Unless you have managed to successfully ignore information about food and nutrition almost completely, you have heard by now about the many problems that a diet too rich in sugar is blamed for. A powerful inflammatory agent, among the many health problems in which sugar is implicated include weight gain, high blood pressure, diabetes, fatty liver disease, dental cavities, cancers, cognition issues, kidney disease and heart disease. That's quite a rap sheet.

At the same time, we tire of hearing that we "need to eat more fruits and vegetables".

But wait, aren't most fruits filled with sugar? Isn't all sugar just... sugar?

It turns out that there is a huge difference between the naturally occurring sugar found in fruits and added sugars. The primary sugar in fruit is fructose, which some refer to as fruit sugar. Fruits also contain water, fiber, and several other beneficial phytonutrients, making them an optimal choice to include in a balanced and healthy eating style.

Processed forms of sugar include such common additives as table sugar, honey, and high fructose corn syrup. These sugar types are often consumed as the sugar added to soda, candy, and sweetened baked goods. At a minimum, you should consume these added sugars in moderation, but ideally, they should barely be consumed, if at all!

Yes, fruits contain sugar, but this sugar is different from refined added sugar. Refined added sugars lack the multiple health promoting qualities of fruits provided by the presence of naturally occurring phenols, fiber, vitamins, and minerals. So there is no good reason to exclude them from your diet.

Read about the details here.

 

The Key to Success (and Failure)

 

Whether it is keeping your New Year's resolutions, getting to the gym 4 days a week, staying with that new meal plan, getting to bed earlier so that you can get up earlier or making those Sunday night family phone calls, consistency can make all the difference. Whether you want to accomplish something important to you, form a new habit or get rid of an old one, consistency (along with determination) will either put you over the goal line or sink you long before you get there.

Most of us struggle with consistency, primarily because staying the same is so very much easier than changing (especially for us older folks). The power of our habits, even those we don't particularly like, is hard to overestimate. Consistent effort, much more-so than massive effort, is often the key to progress.

But what to do if we struggle to be consistent? Here are five research backed principles that can help you.

https://bit.ly/42LDsrw

How Much Water Do I Really Need to Drink Every Day?

 

The average person has a body that is composed of about 60% water (not 90% as is often incorrectly asserted). All that water does a lot more than just sit there sloshing around. Water is crucial for many reasons: to regulate body temperature, keep joints lubricated, prevent infections, deliver nutrients to cells, and keep organs functioning properly. Being well-hydrated also improves sleep quality, cognition, and mood.

You body doesn't just hold onto its water though. Quite the opposite. It is constantly expelling it through urination, respiration, digestion and perspiration. When the body loses more water than it takes in, we become dehydrated. As you might imagine this can become quite serious if not remedied. Among the symptoms of dehydration are headache, delirium, confusion, fatigue, dizziness, weakness, high heart rate with low blood pressure, muscle cramps, chills, constipation, confusion and anxiety. Quite a list. 

A person can survive as long as 2 months without food. But without water only 3 or 4 days.

As you can see, getting enough water to stay hydrated is pretty important. But how much do you need, exactly?

The popular wisdom is that we all need eight cups of water every day for optimal health. But there’s no evidence to suggest that consistently drinking eight glasses of water a day is needed

The reality is that each person’s water intake needs vary, and depends on a number of factors, including your age, how much exercise you get, the weather conditions where you are, what you eat, and other health conditions you might have. Taking all these factors into account, the purported eight glasses a day just doesn’t work for most people. 

So how much do you need to take in every day? The answer is surprisingly simple. Here it is.