Italian researchers find that women who eat white bread have two times the risk of heart disease than women who eat wheat.

When we were young and our folks asked us what bread we wanted our peanut butter and jelly on—white or wheat—our answer depended upon our mood at the time.  Did we want the white, which had a more bland taste but soaked up the jelly and peanut buttery goodness, or did we want the wheat, which had a more distinctive taste but didn’t marry with the PB and J quite as well as the white did?

Now that we’re older—and with any luck more health conscious than taste conscious—we hopefully choose wheat over white because it has the complex carbohydrates and fiber that white bread is void of, both of which are great for maintaining healthy weight levels and regularity.

But there’s another why white should always play second fiddle to wheat:  It may double your risk for heart disease.

In a new study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, Italian scientists found that women who tended to eat high glycemic foods like white bread, pastries and ice cream had more than two times the risk of having heart disease later in life compared to women who ate foods low on the glycemic index.

Writing in the journal, Italian scientist Sabina Sieri and her colleagues said, “A high consumption of carbohydrates from high glycemic index foods, rather than the overall quantity of carbohydrates consumed, appears to influence the risk of developing coronary heart disease.”

The study of 32,500+ women also looked into the diets of over 15,100 men to see if their consumption of high glycemic foods affected their heart health.  But interestingly, no such linkage could be made between the kinds of carbohydrates men ate.  Researchers attribute the differentiation to the fact that men and women metabolize foods differently.

So, does this give men the green light to eat white bread and corn flakes whenever they want?  Alternatively, does this mean women should avoid white bread like the plague?

To both, the answer is no.  There’s nothing wrong with an occasional sandwich with white bread, so long as your bread options are more often than not 100 percent whole wheat.

And men, while your choice of bread may not influence your heart disease risk, a 10-year study conducted by Harvard researchers in 1994 found that men who ate high fiber breads like wheat had fewer heart attacks and fewer strokes than men who opted for white.

So when you’re out perusing the bread aisle and deciding what bread’s best, keep the white out of sight and make wheat your new favorite treat.

But buyer beware:  Don’t assume that brown in color means it’s wheat.  Many breads are made with refined flour; they’re just dyed brown with caramel color to make it look like they’re wheat. Read the ingredients label.  If the first listing doesn’t say “100 percent whole wheat,” put the brown down.

Sources:
vegetariantimes.com
msnbc.msn.com

Could your risk for a heart attack be tied to whether or not you suffer from migraines?

Here’s some news that might make your migraines worse:  They increase your risk for heart attack.

That’s according to a new study reported in the medical journal Neurology.  Researchers from the University Hospital Essen in Germany studied more than 11,000 adults living in the U.S., half of them battling migraines fairly regularly.  When the researchers looked into their heart health, they found that those that suffered migraines were more likely to have suffered a heart attack or heart-related malady.

This shouldn’t be the source of too much alarm, though.  After all, of the 6,100 people with migraines, just four percent of them had a heart attack or stroke (the rate of heart attack or stroke was two percent among the remaining 5,200 participants).

So if the risk heart attack isn’t really significant, then you may be wondering why I would bother to mention this in the first place.  After all, why bother reporting it if the risk isn’t very high?  People can just treat them with painkillers and the heart risk goes away, right?  Not exactly.

According to researchers, treating your migraine with painkillers may put you at an even greater risk for cardiovascular-related problems.

In an October issue of the Harvard Heart Letter, a Harvard Medical School publication devoted to information about pharmaceutical-based pain relievers, NSAIDs often cause the blood vessels to constrict.  They can also cause blockages to form inside the arteries through the production of smooth muscle cells.

And in a separate study published in 2008 in the pages of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, researchers concluded that all NSAIDs increase a person’s heart risk.  Quite the statement to make, but after a review of 8,850 people who’d suffered heart attacks, they found that the likelihood of their having a heart attack was tied to the dosage and the length of time the drugs were taken.

NSAIDs—or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs—are a class of drugs often taken by migraine sufferers for relief.  You may recall that Vioxx was taken off the market in 2004 when clinical studies revealed they increased a person’s risk for heart attack and stroke. It’s maker, Merck, remains embroiled in lawsuits five years later.

For more information on the natural options that are out there for migraine relief, please peruse the section of my web site devoted to migraine relief.

While the choice of pharmaceutical medication or natural treatment is a decision best left between you and your doctor, naturally treating your migraines is something you ought to least try.  As the saying goes, don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.

Sources:
foxnews.com
health.harvard.edu
braytonlaw.com
nj.com

University College researchers find that bored people tend to die younger.

“I’m bored.”

It’s the age-old phrase that every one of us has uttered at least once in our life, most likely escaping our lips in our younger years. To be honest, I don’t know how anybody could be bored, especially in today’s era, as there has never been more things to occupy someone’s time every moment of the live-long day (i.e. iPods, television, video games, books, newspapers, magazines, work, exercise, cell phones, blackberries etc.).

Nevertheless, feeling bored may be bad for your health by shortening your life span.

As it turns out, you really can be “bored to death.”

Researchers from University College in London discovered this after reviewing 7,500 questionnaires that were taken between 1985 and 1988 by men and women between the ages of 35 and 55.  Part of the questionnaire asked how often they felt bored while at work over the past 30 days.

Twenty-one years later, the researchers sought out the people that filled out these questionnaires.  Amazingly, those that reported being bored the most often were two and a half times more likely to have died from a heart-related problem like cardiovascular disease or a heart attack.

But researchers don’t think it’s boredom, in and of itself, that leads to a shortened lifespan.  Rather it’s the activities people turn to when their bored that leads to a shortened life lifespan, like binge drinking, drug abusing, and cigarette smoking.

So, does this mean that being bored seals your fate for an early grave?  Certainly not.  Everybody gets bored now and then.  But if you find that you’re feeling bored all the time (“I have 100 TV channels and there’s nothing on!”), then you might want to re-assess your life.

Start analyzing why it is that you’re bored.  Are you putting too little on your plate?  Are you too focused on yourself?  You’d be surprised how enriched your life can become by reaching out to other people who need help.  Serving others has a way of melting away your own concerns, as you become re-focused on the more meaningful aspects of why we’re all here:  to help others.

Do you have a hobby?  Starting a hobby should not, and is not, the sole proprietorship of kids.  What are you truly passionate about?  Whatever it is—stamps, puzzles, comic books, fishing, computers, baseball memorabilia, knick-knacks—seek out as much information as you can on it and make it your own.

I hate to sound cruel, but if you’re bored, I really don’t have a lot of sympathy for you.  There are so many things to take advantage of and it all starts with you.

In short, if you’re feeling bored, you’re not…but you are boring!  Become exciting by ridding yourself of this toxic state of mind.

Source:
newsmaxhealth.com

If you're obese, even a little weight loss pays big heart health dividends.

It’s one thing to hear about something, but it’s quite another to know it.

For instance, I’m sure all of you have heard that obesity is a significant risk factor for developing heart disease – the world’s leading killer.  But how many of you have actually seen this on display?  Where someone who had all the symptoms of heart disease freed themselves of those symptoms after losing just a moderate amount of weight?

Well, a study out of the Washington University School of Medicine demonstrates that very thing.

The researchers recruited approximately 60 individuals to participate in a weight loss experiment.  The program would take two years to complete, and they could choose from one of two diets to follow over that two-year period.  Their weapons of choice?  Either a low-carb diet or a low-fat diet.  Impressively, 78 percent of the participants stuck with their pre-selected diet throughout the two-year trial.

The researchers from St. Louis, MO instructed each participant to consume a low-calorie diet (between 1,200 and 1,500 calories per day, depending upon how obese they were) and to get at least three and a half hours per week of aerobic activity.  Their oldest participant was 64, youngest 22, and the participants’ BMI Index ranged between 30 and 44.  Anything over 30 is considered obese.

Fast-forward two years and both groups lost an average of 22 pounds.  Now, for people moderately overweight, this is a significant drop.  But for the obese and morbidly obese—which adequately describes most of the participants in the study—22 pounds is like scooping a bucket of water out of the ocean.

Nevertheless, researchers found significant improvements to their heart health. For instance, the physical structure of the heart takes on a different form in obese people.  The heart hardens and the arteries thicken because it has to work so much harder.  But according to the study’s lead researcher, Lisa de las Fuentes, this 22 pound weight drop “turned back the clock,” allowing them to “regain more youthful heart function” as the heart smoothened, and the arteries became more elastic.

The study is published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Granted, this isn’t exactly an earth shattering discovery, but sometimes we need to be reminded of things to re-commit ourselves to why we do the things we do.  After all, as a wise man likes to say, “Repetition is the mother of learning.”

And with the rate of childhood obesity three times higher today than what it was 20 years ago, this is a lesson that we need to have down-cold if we want to be examples to our children on how to live healthfully.  If we don’t, then they’re certain to have a similar fate.

Sources:
sciencedaily.com
americansportsdata.com

White bread is a refined carbohydrate, which should be consumed in moderation.

Anyone who knows me knows I’m not one who shuns carbohydrates.  I enjoy my carbs, I’m just careful about what kinds of carbohydrates I consume.

Carbohydrates supply the body with the nutrients it needs to perform daily tasks that require effort (even the slightest effort).  They replenish the body’s glycogen stores and keep the body energized.

Some people in the health profession, though, advise avoiding carbohydrates entirely.  They say that all they do is add weight to the body, and that the easiest way to lose weight is to cut back on carbs.

There’s no question that cutting back on carbohydrates will help you lose weight.  But cutting back entirely on carbohydrates is not the answer.  In fact, I’ve found that it’s a recipe for gaining more weight down the road, as the body is starved of carbs for so long that it will eat them voraciously sooner or later.

The best way to lose weight – and keep it off – while remaining energized is to consume the right kinds of carbohydrates.  By not consuming carbohydrates, you’re making other nutrients do carbohydrates job.

For instance, protein is supposed to replenish and repair muscles that get broken down, not serve as the body’s source for energy.  But by not consuming carbs, you’re stretching the role of protein too thin, making it far less effective in replenishing broken down muscle.

At the same time, though, we shouldn’t be consuming carbohydrates that ramp up our blood sugar levels  too quickly.  Simple carbohydrates are an inefficient source of energy – where our energy levels peak, but go down quickly soon thereafter.

An overconsumption of simple carbohydrates also increase our risk for long term heart health problems, like heart disease, the leading cause of death in the country.

And we now know why simple carbohydrates tend to increase our risk for heart problems, as a recent study published in the Journal of American College of Cardiology explains.

The risk is not necessarily that carbohydrates make us fatter – though they can when eaten in exorbitant amounts – but rather in how they affect our arteries, making them far less elastic.

This is precisely what Dr. Michael Schecter from Tel Aviv University envisioned before conducting this study, and his envisions were realized when he observed the arterial function of 56 people after a high carb meal.

He had four groups of 14 people each consume high carbohydrate meals.  One ate pure sugar, another ate corn flakes with milk (one of the higher foods on the glycemic index) and another ate bran flakes (not as high on the glycemic index, but still high).  The last group was the placebo group, so they abstained from a meal.

Dr. Schecter and his colleagues found that each member of each group had endothelial function that diminished after their meal compared to prior to their sugary cereal servings – even those that ate bran flakes.  The one group whose endothelial function remained healthy?  You guessed it, the placebo group.

Endothelial function is just a fancy word for describing the lining of the arteries.  When foods high in sugar and high on the glycemic index are consumed, there’s undue stress put on those arteries, so much so that the arteries become dysfunctional for a short period of time, according to Dr. Schecter.

While Schecter is quick to point out that this dysfunction is sudden and only temporary, it doesn’t take a study of his to know that that endothelial dysfunction will become permanent the more often a person eats foods high on the glycemic index.

Maintaining a healthy heart is not accomplished by cutting out carbohydrates from your diet but rather to eat carbohydrates low on the glycemic index.  These should be complex carbohydrates, like oatmeal, 100 percent whole wheat bread (make sure it says “100 percent,” as many breads that claim to be “wheat” are made with refined flour), beans, nuts, and seeds.

You can’t go wrong with fruits and vegetables either, but just be aware that they tend to vary on the glycemic index considerably (e.g. cherries have a low GI of 22, while watermelon has a high GI 72; potatoes have a high GI of 82, while broccoli has a low GI of 15).

Sources:
sciencedaily.com
southbeach-diet-plan.com

Consumption of red meat should be limited.

It may not be game, set and match, but this latest finding on the dangers of red meat certainly gives its avoiders the advantage.

A 10-year study conducted by researchers from the National Cancer Institute seems to confirm what many of us suspected, but few of us readily acknowledged:  Red meat eaters are more likely to die than white meat eaters are. 

The study involved men and women who were between the ages of 50 and 71.  Approximately 500,000 was the grand total of participants, and the researchers followed up on their health and the types of foods they were eating regularly throughout the decade-long period

Over that 10-year period, a number of men and women died, about 48,000 of them men and 24,000 of them women.  When the researchers went back over their food frequency questionnaires that asked the participants how often they ate red meat and other meat sources (i.e. chicken, turkey, pork), then compared that to what they died of, they came away with a number of take-away findings.  Among them:

• The men and women who ate the most red meat were the most likely to die from all causes, but specifically heart disease and cancer 

• 11 percent of men and 16 percent of women could have decreased their overall mortality rate had they consumed fewer grams of red meat at each meal 

• High white meat consumers had a slightly lower rate of overall mortality than those who ate the lowest amounts of white meat

Now, this study may not tell us a whole lot – again, most of us already knew that red meat is heavy on the saturated fat, which clogs the arteries and all too often leads to heart disease and other cardiovascular-related deaths.  Even those unrelated to cardiovascular health, as this study found. 

But I bring this up because it re-ignites the debate of whether or not one should avoid red meat entirely.  After all, if saturated fat consumption from red meat contributes to all forms of death and even some forms of cancers like colorectal and breast, why wouldn’t you?  Who wants to hasten their death?

Despite this finding, I stand behind what I’ve always said and that is to eat red meat sparingly.  I say this because red meat is one of the best places to go to for iron and it’s very easy to become iron deficient, even if you’re eating lean cuts of chicken and turkey regularly.

Another reason why is because bison falls under the umbrella of red meat.  Bison is one of the healthier cuts of beef anyone can have, and depending on the cut, it has fewer calories, fat, and cholesterol than a skinless piece of chicken.  And if the bison is grass-fed, its nutrition facts are even more impressive.

This latest finding may be a point in the vegetarians’ column, but I still believe you can boast a winning nutritional profile and a long, healthy lifestyle by eating red meat sparingly and lean cuts of it.  There are many examples why, but I’ll point you here as just one reason why.

Sources:
New Grass Bison
ScienceDaily

Former studies had proven that consuming a large amount of vegetables, like broccoli was a good option for bypassing heart disease or stroke, but Thornalley and his fellow researchers wanted to know the reasoning behind this.  Their theory was linked to the sulforaphane found within vegetables, which is a know activator of nrf2, a protein that helps increase antioxidants as well as protective and metabolic enzymes.

To test this, they cultured human microvascular HMEC-1 endothelial cells.  Some were low in glucose concentrations and others were high (3 and 30 mMole, respectively).  They analyzed the effects of adding sulforaphane to the mix in order to determine if the activation of nrf2 could prevent any damage to the heart blood vessels or have any result on the Reactive Oxygen Species molecules.

Based on the results, the researchers wrote, “Activation of nrf2 may prevent biochemical dysfunction and related functional responses of endothelial cells induced by hyperglycemia in which increased expression of transketolase has a pivotal role.”  The transketolase in their statement refers to an enzyme that converts harmful glucose byproducts so that they can be safely removed from the body.

In the study, the sulforaphane was able to double the amount of nfr2 typically activated, which in turn doubled the amount of antioxidants and enzymes.  The nfr2 itself reduced Reactive Oxygen Species molecules and prevented the increase of them by an impressive seventy-three percent. 

Regarding their findings, Thornalley said, “[The study] Suggests that compounds such as sulforaphane from broccoli may help counter processes linked to the development of vascular disease in diabetes.”

Although further studies will have to be done with human volunteers suffering from diabetes, even healthy skeptics see the importance of the work done at the University of Warwick.  Diabetes UK charity director of research, Dr Iain Frame said, “Professor Thornalley and his team have identified a potentially important substance that may protect and repair blood vessels from the damaging effects of diabetes.” 

Even the American Diabetes Association cites vegetables like broccoli as a good option for those with the disease.  They suggest eating three servings a day and even compiled a list of helpful tips in order to implore patients to heed their advice. 

Should further studies be conducted and people start taking their mothers’ old warnings to finish the vegetables from their plate, then perhaps the devastating effects of diabetes to the heart can be prevented.

Tennessee Doctors Mark C. Houston of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine and Karen J. Harper of Harper Medical Communications, Inc. both note the reasoning behind high blood pressure and heart disease is the lack of potassium in the typical diet. They refer to vegetarians and people living in isolated areas to solidify this point. Potassium is found in fruits and vegetables and both of these groups are known to include a significant amount in their diet. Furthermore, they are also prone to consume less sodium. A healthy balance between the levels of potassium and sodium one eats is what helps potassium function efficiently within the body. 

This is a tremendous contrast with the average person’s processed diet, which has them eating double the recommended amount of sodium and half the recommended amount of potassium (which is 4.7 grams per day, according to the American Heart Association as of 2006). In societies where fruits and vegetables are typically undesirable and rarely eaten, the effect is startling.  Houston and Harper found that while only one percent of those living in isolated areas have been diagnosed with hypertension, a staggering one out of three citizens of industrious areas suffer from it.    

Houston and Harper strongly advocate eating potassium as an effective strategy, saying, “An increase in potassium with a decrease in sodium is probably the most important dietary choice (after weight loss) that should be implemented to reduce cardiovascular disease.” Should those living with hypertension heed this vital advice, more than ten percent of them can lower their blood pressure significantly.  The daily intake of five hundred to a thousand milligrams of magnesium and over eight hundred milligrams of calcium have also been proven through other studies to assist with blood pressure.

It must be noted that potassium provides other benefits and to be deficient allows room for risks to the body. This can range from acne or extremely dry skin to hypoglycemia or hypokalemia to even insomnia or depression. The most obvious way to lack potassium is through diet, but there are other ways that make it difficult for the body to absorb it. Taking certain prescription drugs like steroids, penicillin, ACE-inhibitors and diuretics, eating disorders, alcohol or laxative abuse can all negatively affect potassium intake. 

When potassium is consumed correctly it can aid in allergies and blood pressure, as previously discussed. It is a mineral that brings nutrients to the cells and carries waste away from them. Again, it requires a healthy balance with sodium to be effective. The balance lessens the chance of a stroke and assists in the conversion of carbohydrates to energy. The level of potassium must be larger than the level of sodium in the body. This creates the membrane potential, which contributes to a person’s nerve, muscle and heart functions through the carrying of electrical messages between them.

This is why to date, we have only heard on the news and within the media that Tim Russert died of a heart attack. It is quite obvious that his heart was failing and the immediate failure of the organ is the cause of death. However, to look a little deeper, could the breaking point of this heart failure have been contributed by the FDA approved prescription medications he was taking to control his coronary artery disease? This is certainly a strong possibility, in my opinion. This is where it becomes important to learn that pharmaceuticals do not solve or cure heart disease, they are meant to simply control the symptoms.

No health improvements can be found with prescription medications. They superficially control your symptoms. This can be astonishing news for anyone who is relying on their pharmaceutical drugs to prevent heart attacks in their future. They simply create the illusion of health and this is the biggest problem. The illusion of health causes the person taking the medications to live as if they have no heart problems to worry about and this in turn creates more serious problems along the way.

Of course we cannot be sure just yet that the heart medications Tim Russert was taking contributed to his death. There were many other factors that could have participated in the results seen on Friday such as his diet and other health problems he may have thought were solved by his prescription drugs. Millions of Americans think this way as well and now is the time to learn how to actually control your heart disease symptoms through natural therapies that provide results, not further risk. Some beneficial alternatives to take into consideration are the following:

Alpha-Lipoic Acid is used to lower your cholesterol levels naturally.

Chinese Red Yeast Rice Extract helps promote blood circulation throughout the body and regulate your cholesterol levels as well.

Coenzyme Q10 should be taken in dosages of at least 100 mg daily since statin drugs deplete Coenzyme Q10 levels in the body. This natural supplement literally improves the function of the heart muscle.

Grape Seed Extract is an antioxidant that eliminates the risk of blood clotting.

In order to maintain a regular and steady heart rhythm, an adequate amount of potassium is needed on a daily basis.

As you can see there are many different natural ways to deal with your heart disease and this is only a taste of what is out there for you to try. A naturopathic professional can help you create a healthy supplement routine to control your symptoms and strengthen your heart to prevent heart attacks in your future. It is time to stop relying on prescription medications that only mask the problem.

It is important to note here that for people in North America, many of the over-the-counter Red Yeast rice supplements cannot be trusted and are not what was used within this study. These supplements have not yet been regulated and it is impossible to know the amount of Xuezhikang within them. This study looked at patients who had experienced a heart attack within the year and provided them with dosages of two-300-milligram XZK capsules or a placebo per day to be tracked over a 5-year term. The goal of this study is to continue research to allow people throughout the entire world to utilize this natural ingredient to help control their heart disease.

Remember, not all Red Yeast supplements will produce the same results because not all brands are manufactured the same way. It is important to conduct your own due diligence prior to purchasing any supplement. If you are looking to help prevent repeat heart attacks within your future, there are many other natural supplements on the market today available to help keep your heart healthy without the long list of side effects found on prescription medications.

• Alpha-Lipoic acid helps to lower your high cholesterol levels with its antioxidant powers.

• Coenzyme Q₁₀ improves the function and strength of your heart muscle to prevent a second heart attack in the future. This should be taken in dosages of 100 mg daily.

• Grape Seed Extract is an essential antioxidant that prevents the risk of blood clotting, which can result in another heart attack.

• Potassium is required to maintain a regular heart beat rhythm and also aids in lowering your cholesterol levels. A potassium supplement is available in dosages of 99 mg. It is recommended to consume an adequate amount of potassium through food sources.

• Vitamin E has been proven to thin the blood and improve the circulation throughout your body. Be sure to purchase a natural form of vitamin E.

• Calcium and Magnesium when taken together can control your blood pressure and rhythm of the heart for proper functioning.

This is just a small list of the different natural methods you can utilize when it comes to treating and healing your heart after a heart attack. Repeated heart attacks do not have to be in your future when you visit a naturopathic professional to help you develop the perfect natural supplement regime for your current health and future health goals.