2007-05-28 morning, my weight = 65.0 kg, BMI = 23.588
2007-06-28 morning, my weight = 61.0 kg, BMI = 22.136
2007-07-28 morning, my weight = 59.0 kg, BMI = 21.410
2007-08-28 morning, my weight = 58.7 kg, BMI = 21.302
2007-09-28 morning, my weight = 57.5 kg, BMI = 20.866
2007-10-28 morning, my weight = 57.5 kg, BMI = 20.866
2007-11-28 morning, my weight = 56.2 kg, BMI = 20.394
2007-12-28 morning, my weight = 55.5 kg, BMI = 20.140
2008-01-28 morning, my weight = 54.8 kg, BMI = 19.886
2008-02-28 morning, my weight = 54.8 kg, BMI = 19.886
2008-03-28 morning, my weight = 54.5 kg, BMI = 19.777
2008-04-28 morning, my weight = 54.4 kg, BMI = 19.741
2008-05-28 morning, my weight = 54.1 kg, BMI = 19.632
2008-06-28 morning, my weight = 54.6 kg, BMI = 19.814
2008-07-28 morning, my weight = 54.5 kg, BMI = 19.777
2008-08-28 morning, my weight = 54.3 kg, BMI = 19.705
2008-09-28 morning, my weight = 54.9 kg, BMI = 19.923
2008-10-28 morning, my weight = 55.3 kg, BMI = 20.068
2008-11-28 morning, my weight = 54.5 kg, BMI = 19.777
2008-12-28 morning, my weight = 55.6 kg, BMI = 20.177
2009-01-28 morning, my weight = 54.8 kg, BMI = 19.886
2009-02-28 morning, my weight = 55.9 kg, BMI = 20.285
2009-03-28 morning, my weight = 54.8 kg, BMI = 19.886
2009-04-28 morning, my weight = 55.3 kg, BMI = 20.068
2009-05-28 morning, my weight = 55.4 kg, BMI = 20.104.
2009-06-28 morning, my weight = 55.2 kg, BMI = 20.031
2009-07-28 morning, my weight = 55.1 kg, BMI = 19.995
2009-08-28 morning, my weight = 55.2 kg, BMI = 20.031
2009-09-28 morning, my weight = 56.3 kg, BMI = 20.431
2009-10-28 morning, my weight = 55.8 kg, BMI = 20.249
2009-11-28 morning, my weight = 56.2 kg, BMI = 20.394
2009-12-28 morning, my weight = 56.1 kg, BMI = 20.358
2010-01-28 morning, my weight = 55.6 kg, BMI = 20.177
2010-02-28 morning, my weight = 56.5 kg, BMI = 20.503
2010-03-28 morning, my weight = 56.4 kg, BMI = 20.467
Note: From 2010-02-01, Watson weighing scale has replaced Camry, which became faulty. In the past reading of Camry was about 500g more than that of Watson. To maintain consistency, so my weight =Watson reading (in kg) + 500g.
On 2010-03-28, at about 7.40 am, my weight by Camry = 55.9 kg + 500g = 56.4 kg. I also used Tanita BC-532 Body Composition Monitor to confirm that my weight was 56.4 kg.
My current BMI is within the healthy range of 18.5 to 22.9.
For me, the range of healthy weight is 50.9786 kg (BMI = 18.5) to 63.10324 kg (BMI = 22.9).
People with BMI values of 23 kg/m2 (or 25 kg/m2 according to some sources) and above have been found to be at risk of developing heart disease and diabetes.
To be healthy, I must have a healthy weight. Be as lean as possible without being underweight, as recommended by World Cancer Prevention Foundation, United Kingdom.
Add happy years to healthy life and healthy life to happy years. Your food becomes your body.Your thoughts become your words.Your words become your actions.Your actions become your habits.Your habits form your characters.Your characters decide your destiny.This blog serves as a platform for exchange of ideas for healthy eating and healthy living.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Positive thinker Dr Chung Sook Yin, a doctor who focuses on preventive and holistic medicine
Dr Chung Sook Yin, 61, a public health doctor who focuses on preventive and holistic medicine at Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre, says she believes in the healing power of the mind. POON CHIAN HUI reports in Mind Your Body of the Straits Times dated 18 march 2010.
-----------------------------------------------------
I decided to specialise in preventive and holistic medicine because...
I've always been interested in food. Growing up, I began to see more and more processed food on supermarket shelves, which made me wonder how they affect our health.
Also, I used to run marathons and triathlons and I'd fall ill after running hard. So, it was also in my own interest to pursue this field.
Hippocrates once said: 'Let food be your medicine and your medicine be your food.' Similarly, I wanted to share with my patients the benefits of eating wisely.
The human body is fascinating because...
Of the link between mind and body. For instance, a study on positive emotions showed that the incidence of diseases, such as heart problems, is 22 times higher in people with pessimistic personalities than those who are optimistic. It shows the importance of positive thinking on our health.
If I were to give an analogy for what I do, I'd be a...
Teacher, guide and friend. I don't just dispense medicine to patients. Rather, I lay down guidelines, not just on what they should be eating, but also on their lifestyle in general.
I do think there's a place for using medicine, but I won't use it as the first line of defence. I believe that healing comes from within.
I have come across all types of cases...
I don't see patients who are seriously ill - but my patients may not necessarily be in optimal health either. Most want to find out what they can do to improve their current health.
There was this middle-aged man who wanted to lower his cholesterol levels, but he wasn't keen on pills as he was already taking medicine for high blood pressure. I advised him to alter his diet and to exercise.
The next time I met him, his cholesterol levels were down. But he took it easy after that, and his levels went right up again.
In a way, I'm glad it happened as it made him realise he really needed to revamp his lifestyle.
A typical day for me would be...
I work out at the gym before I head to work, where I see patients at my clinic for the entire day.
After work, I have an hour-long yoga class. If the class starts late, I'll catch up with paperwork, or practise yoga at home instead.
Then, I head back home to have dinner with my husband, a retired doctor. He retired because of a major stroke five years ago.
I end the day with about an hour of meditation. I have been practising holodynamic vibrational entrainment technology (HVET) for the past nine years. It uses sound to synchronise the brain hemispheres.
I have two sons. One is a doctor in England, and the other is studying naturopathy in the United States.
I love patients who are...
I don't have any preferences; I treat everyone the same way.
Patients who get my goat are...
None do. Because of my philosophy. I accept them as they are.
One little known fact about vitamins and minerals is...
Zinc influences the function of over 100 enzymes. And while it can be found in plant foods, it can never equal the amount found in animal foods.
Weight-for-weight, oysters contain 20 times more zinc than vegetables; beef has four times more. So, strict vegetarians may wish to consider taking supplements.
It also goes hand-in-hand with vitamin D, another important nutrient that is found to affect the expression of more than 200 genes.
Things that put a smile on my face are...
When I feel that the patient realises he can do something about his health and manages to do it.
It breaks my heart when...
This hasn't happened, but I may feel disappointed at times with patients. However, I will later realise that it is because I am imposing my expectations on them.
I wouldn't trade places for the world because...
I believe in accepting whatever situation life brings, rather than bemoan or rail about one's misfortune. For example, my husband's stroke changed my life. I had to do everything - work, take care of my sons and husband, who was left handicapped. But I just do what I can. We cannot control life.
My best tip...
Learn to be content with your life. Ask yourself: "s my cup half-empty or half-full?" Accept whatever situation you are in and do something to make it better.
-----------------------------------------------------
I decided to specialise in preventive and holistic medicine because...
I've always been interested in food. Growing up, I began to see more and more processed food on supermarket shelves, which made me wonder how they affect our health.
Also, I used to run marathons and triathlons and I'd fall ill after running hard. So, it was also in my own interest to pursue this field.
Hippocrates once said: 'Let food be your medicine and your medicine be your food.' Similarly, I wanted to share with my patients the benefits of eating wisely.
The human body is fascinating because...
Of the link between mind and body. For instance, a study on positive emotions showed that the incidence of diseases, such as heart problems, is 22 times higher in people with pessimistic personalities than those who are optimistic. It shows the importance of positive thinking on our health.
If I were to give an analogy for what I do, I'd be a...
Teacher, guide and friend. I don't just dispense medicine to patients. Rather, I lay down guidelines, not just on what they should be eating, but also on their lifestyle in general.
I do think there's a place for using medicine, but I won't use it as the first line of defence. I believe that healing comes from within.
I have come across all types of cases...
I don't see patients who are seriously ill - but my patients may not necessarily be in optimal health either. Most want to find out what they can do to improve their current health.
There was this middle-aged man who wanted to lower his cholesterol levels, but he wasn't keen on pills as he was already taking medicine for high blood pressure. I advised him to alter his diet and to exercise.
The next time I met him, his cholesterol levels were down. But he took it easy after that, and his levels went right up again.
In a way, I'm glad it happened as it made him realise he really needed to revamp his lifestyle.
A typical day for me would be...
I work out at the gym before I head to work, where I see patients at my clinic for the entire day.
After work, I have an hour-long yoga class. If the class starts late, I'll catch up with paperwork, or practise yoga at home instead.
Then, I head back home to have dinner with my husband, a retired doctor. He retired because of a major stroke five years ago.
I end the day with about an hour of meditation. I have been practising holodynamic vibrational entrainment technology (HVET) for the past nine years. It uses sound to synchronise the brain hemispheres.
I have two sons. One is a doctor in England, and the other is studying naturopathy in the United States.
I love patients who are...
I don't have any preferences; I treat everyone the same way.
Patients who get my goat are...
None do. Because of my philosophy. I accept them as they are.
One little known fact about vitamins and minerals is...
Zinc influences the function of over 100 enzymes. And while it can be found in plant foods, it can never equal the amount found in animal foods.
Weight-for-weight, oysters contain 20 times more zinc than vegetables; beef has four times more. So, strict vegetarians may wish to consider taking supplements.
It also goes hand-in-hand with vitamin D, another important nutrient that is found to affect the expression of more than 200 genes.
Things that put a smile on my face are...
When I feel that the patient realises he can do something about his health and manages to do it.
It breaks my heart when...
This hasn't happened, but I may feel disappointed at times with patients. However, I will later realise that it is because I am imposing my expectations on them.
I wouldn't trade places for the world because...
I believe in accepting whatever situation life brings, rather than bemoan or rail about one's misfortune. For example, my husband's stroke changed my life. I had to do everything - work, take care of my sons and husband, who was left handicapped. But I just do what I can. We cannot control life.
My best tip...
Learn to be content with your life. Ask yourself: "s my cup half-empty or half-full?" Accept whatever situation you are in and do something to make it better.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
What Is Iridology? (From The Canadian Institute of Iridology)
What Is Iridology? Iridology is a quick, accurate and painless system of health analysis through the examination of the colored part of the eye known as the iris. Proclaimed throughout the ages as "windows of the soul", the eyes are now acknowledged as mirrors of the body and compared to miniature television screens recording the condition of the various organs and tissues throughout the body.
info source: http://www.cdninstiridology.com/
info source: http://www.cdninstiridology.com/
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
MALAYS & OBESITY (Big trouble)
The following is a report by Chang Ai-Lien, Senior Correspondent in the Saturday Special report of the Straits Times dated 13th March 2010.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Fatty foods and a couch potato lifestyle have long been the Malay way but alarming rates of chronic disease and obesity are spurring policymakers, medics and community leaders into action, with programmes of diet and exercise. Success is simply a matter of life and death.
By Chang Ai-Lien, Senior Correspondent
-----------------------------------------------------------------
THE treats just roll off the tongue: nasi lemak with its glistening coconut-saturated rice, mutton rendang, that tender meat blanketed in rich, spicy gravy; delightfully rich, sinfully sweet melt-in-the-mouth kueh.
All part of Singapore's celebrated food heritage - but for the Malays, overindulging in these dishes so central to their cultural identity could become a meal ticket to an early grave.
To put it bluntly, Malays are too fat, getting fatter too fast and succumbing to chronic diseases in the process.
Dr Sum Chee Fang, director of Alexandra Hospital's diabetes centre, sums it up: 'First they get big, then they get diabetes, complications from diabetes such as eye damage and kidney disease, then it leads to heart trouble and stroke.'
Almost seven in 10 Malays here are considered at risk of health problems such as diabetes or heart disease because of their weight.
Over one in two Malays is too heavy, with a body mass index (BMI) of 25 or more. One in five has a BMI of 30 and above, and is obese. BMI is an international classification of weight status in adults, based on a person's weight and height.
Asians, who have relatively higher body fat than Caucasians, have an increased risk of health problems at lower BMI. Those with a BMI of 23 and above are considered at risk - that includes 66.2 per cent of the Malay community.
The numbers only hint at the dimension of a problem that involves huge health costs, family trauma, as well as underperformance at school and work.
The issue is so worrying that the Government is working with key community representatives to try a new tack to help Malays get active, eat better and take charge of their health.
Trained health ambassadors will go door to door to cajole families to buy into a healthier lifestyle later this year.
Several mosques are also leading the charge with exercise regimes, health checks and cooking sessions in a pilot project that will eventually be rolled out to every mosque.
The obesity issue has Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Yaacob Ibrahim concerned.
'Making inroads into exercise and diet is a challenge,' he tells The Straits Times. 'In particular, the message to eat healthily has to seep in. It's an input, output thing; we have to start cutting back to what we actually need.'
Doctors and community leaders are equally concerned.
Madam Halimah Yacob, deputy secretary-general of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and former chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Health, is very worried because obesity is associated with diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure, which could lead to heart attack and kidney failure.
'I think we should continue to engage the Malay-Muslim organisations and the mosques as these are effective vehicles to reach out to the community,' says Madam Halimah, who rides a stationary bicycle or does brisk-walking for 45 minutes several times a week to keep fit.
'In addition, we should focus a lot more on the women as they are the ones that plan and cook for the family.'
The incidence of chronic illnesses like kidney failure is already much higher among Malays, and, notes cardiologist Mak Koon Hou, they are more likely than other races to die from a heart attack. 'With increasing prevalence of diabetes and obesity, the occurrence of these chronic diseases will likely increase further. Health programmes targeted at Malays are needed to improve their outcomes,' he says.
FAT-SATURATED DIET
DOCTORS can point to the main culprits: a fat-saturated diet consisting of rich gravies, sweet dessert and fast food, on top of a sedentary lifestyle.
Endocrinologist Lee Chung Horn says: 'Most of us believe Malays are the heaviest ethnic group because of their diet which often includes high-calorie food like fried noodles, lontong lemak, nasi lemak, sayur lodeh, curry lemak, mutton rendang, beef rendang and Malay kueh.'
According to the 2004 National Nutrition Survey, one in two Malays has deep-fried food more than twice a week. One in five has at least seven sweetened drinks weekly.
Malays have also overtaken Indians when it comes to the amount of fat in their diet. They consumed 85.7g of fat each day, the survey found, up from 68.9g in 1998. In comparison, Indians had 83.3g, while the figure for Chinese was 77g.
What does not help is that social functions centre on eating. 'Malays are also very gregarious people, and arguably the most family-oriented of our country's major races,' says Dr Lee, who is president of the Singapore Association for the Study of Obesity, which comes under the International Obesity Task Force, a body that works with the World Health Organisation and other stakeholders to fight obesity.
'Traditional Malay culture is characterised by social assemblies, and at these assemblies - weddings, birthdays, parties - extended families and friends come together to meet and eat.'
Researchers have uncovered variants of genes that seem to be associated with obesity, but there is no evidence yet that ethnic differences in obesity have a genetic basis, says clinician-scientist Tai E Shyong, a consultant at the National University Hospital's (NUH) endocrinology department.
'What has been found so far is that these genetic variants explain only a small proportion of the risk of obesity,' he says.
But while genetic factors may predispose some people to being fat, the main causes are clearly a high-calorie diet combined with a sedentary lifestyle, notes Professor Chia Kee Seng, head of the epidemiology and public health department at the National University of Singapore's Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine. 'We should also look at the other end of the spectrum and study behaviour modification, and what is needed to encourage people to lose weight.
'Physical activity in Singapore is promoted as a leisure activity. We could look at what structural changes are needed for people to make it part and parcel of life, to get them to walk from point A to B rather than drive.'
Dr Yaacob notes that most Malays eat out, eat late and indulge frequently in rich foods such as nasi beriani, which in the past were a rare treat.
He laments that the expanding halal food industry has also embraced unhealthy options such as fast food. And he urges Malays just to change one thing, for starters: 'We should have dinner earlier, so as not to sleep on a full stomach.'
EVERY LITTLE BIT COUNTS
DOCTORS say the benefits of losing weight - no matter how little - are tremendous.
Dropping as little as 2 per cent of one's weight can improve diabetes control and often results in a reduction in medications, says Dr Tham Kwang Wei, director of the obesity and metabolic unit at the Singapore General Hospital Life (Lifestyle Improvement and Fitness Enhancement) Centre.
'The more weight one loses, the greater benefit one will see,' she adds, pointing to a recent study conducted by the United States National Institutes of Health, which showed that participants who lost 8.6 per cent of their weight over a year through diet and exercise improved their diabetes condition.
They reduced not only their diabetes medications, but those for blood pressure and cholesterol as well.
While Dr Yaacob is heartened to see more women taking to regular exercise, he notes men do not seem to be doing their bit. 'I see them jogging in their tudung and brisk-walking. For their husbands to join them, that's a lifestyle change I'd like to see.'
The percentage of obese Malay women dipped slightly from a high of 23.7 per cent in 1998 to 21.4 per cent in the 2004 National Health Survey, but the figure for Malay men almost doubled to 16.9 per cent from 8.8 per cent over the same period.
Doctors want to see the results of this year's National Health Survey before judging if the weighty issue of Malay women is indeed on a downward trend. But anecdotally, this group - traditionally the most sedentary - seems to be exercising more.
One customised programme that has taken off among women is 'kebayarobics' - an amalgam of aerobics with traditional Malay joget dance movements introduced by the Health Promotion Board (HPB). About 100 groups now do it regularly in places like mosques and community clubs since it started catching on here in 2004.
The need to get men on an exercise regime has prompted the board to set up a pilot programme with three mosques and the Football Association of Singapore to hold weekly soccer sessions. It has 80 sign-ups so far.
Over the next few months, the HPB will work with Malay caterers to customise healthier menu options, such as curries made with low-fat milk and vegetable dishes.
Nurses have also been selected to conduct workshops at community clubs and mosques for people who are overweight and at risk of developing chronic conditions, while mosque staff and cooks are being trained to whip up healthier food.
Dr Annie Ling, director of HPB's Adult Health Division, says the board was looking at customising programmes for other races, or specific groups such as women, but decided to start with Malays because 'this is where the need is greatest'.
The Committee for Community Health, set up in 2008 to work with the HPB on tailoring programmes for Malays, believes Malays will take to exercise if the initiative starts from the ground up and is rolled out with 'a human touch'.
'We are bringing the mountain to Muhammad,' says its chairman, cardiologist Abdul Razakjr Omar.
Dr Abdul, who is a consultant at the National University Heart Centre's cardiac department, adds that the problem among Malays - the race with the lowest median income here - is also a social issue.
Studies in developed countries such as the US have shown that obesity is more prevalent among the poorer and less educated. 'I believe that the more educated in our community should come forward to help,' he says.
His committee now comprises 10 Malay/Muslim representatives including doctors, grassroots mosque and media representatives. It means business, he says, adding that 'this is not just going to be a public relations exercise'.
One initiative is Sihat 360º, or Health 360º, a pilot programme involving four mosques in the south-west: Darussalam, Ar-Raudhah, Hasanah and Al-Khair.
A full-time Malay health promotion coordinator stationed at one of the mosques organises health screenings, exercise sessions, healthy cooking classes, weight and disease management workshops and so on.
Dr Abdul devised the idea after noting how the NUH heart failure programme had achieved sterling results by employing a Malay case manager to ensure Malay patients were taking their medication, eating properly and getting exercise. 'A lot of the time, people need motivation, someone to befriend them and to win their trust when they visit their homes, or at mosques where many Malays congregate,' he explains. 'It helps to have someone to call if you have a problem.'
If Sihat 360º takes off, similar projects will be rolled out in the 69 mosques islandwide, he adds.
In another initiative, 15 Malay grassroots leaders at Jurong Green are being trained by medics on chronic disease management and monitoring blood pressure and glucose levels, and even negotiation skills, says committee vice-chairman Zuraimi Mohamed Dahlan, a general practitioner who is volunteering time to conduct the weekly training.
They will visit people in their homes to check for obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol, and encourage them to adopt a healthy lifestyle.
As well, 80 grassroots volunteers from Sembawang and Nee Soon East and Central constituencies are being trained as 'health champions' to work with residents under a similar scheme.
REACHING OUT
ALEXANDRA Hospital staff have come up with a similar concept.
Dr Michael Wong, head of the family and community medicine department and director of the Health for Life Centre, says it is planning to work with six mosques in the north, to hold health talks for worshippers.
Doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, dietitians and psychologists will hold sessions at the mosques, when staff move to the new Khoo Teck Puat Hospital in Yishun this year.
Darul Makmur Mosque manager Suzana Bakar says that such talks had been done on an ad hoc basis before, and that a more structured programme would hopefully yield better attendance and results. She adds that physical and spiritual food do go together.
'There is a commandment for Muslims to ensure that the food we eat is permissible in source and substance, and also good and nutritious for the body,' she says. 'It's our responsibility to not only make sure our food is halal, but to also look out for healthy ingredients.'
Driver Mohammed Yussof, 45, for one, says he would be keen to attend such sessions. 'I don't have much free time, so if I can get some tips when I go for prayers, it will be very useful.'
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Fatty foods and a couch potato lifestyle have long been the Malay way but alarming rates of chronic disease and obesity are spurring policymakers, medics and community leaders into action, with programmes of diet and exercise. Success is simply a matter of life and death.
By Chang Ai-Lien, Senior Correspondent
-----------------------------------------------------------------
THE treats just roll off the tongue: nasi lemak with its glistening coconut-saturated rice, mutton rendang, that tender meat blanketed in rich, spicy gravy; delightfully rich, sinfully sweet melt-in-the-mouth kueh.
All part of Singapore's celebrated food heritage - but for the Malays, overindulging in these dishes so central to their cultural identity could become a meal ticket to an early grave.
To put it bluntly, Malays are too fat, getting fatter too fast and succumbing to chronic diseases in the process.
Dr Sum Chee Fang, director of Alexandra Hospital's diabetes centre, sums it up: 'First they get big, then they get diabetes, complications from diabetes such as eye damage and kidney disease, then it leads to heart trouble and stroke.'
Almost seven in 10 Malays here are considered at risk of health problems such as diabetes or heart disease because of their weight.
Over one in two Malays is too heavy, with a body mass index (BMI) of 25 or more. One in five has a BMI of 30 and above, and is obese. BMI is an international classification of weight status in adults, based on a person's weight and height.
Asians, who have relatively higher body fat than Caucasians, have an increased risk of health problems at lower BMI. Those with a BMI of 23 and above are considered at risk - that includes 66.2 per cent of the Malay community.
The numbers only hint at the dimension of a problem that involves huge health costs, family trauma, as well as underperformance at school and work.
The issue is so worrying that the Government is working with key community representatives to try a new tack to help Malays get active, eat better and take charge of their health.
Trained health ambassadors will go door to door to cajole families to buy into a healthier lifestyle later this year.
Several mosques are also leading the charge with exercise regimes, health checks and cooking sessions in a pilot project that will eventually be rolled out to every mosque.
The obesity issue has Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Yaacob Ibrahim concerned.
'Making inroads into exercise and diet is a challenge,' he tells The Straits Times. 'In particular, the message to eat healthily has to seep in. It's an input, output thing; we have to start cutting back to what we actually need.'
Doctors and community leaders are equally concerned.
Madam Halimah Yacob, deputy secretary-general of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and former chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Health, is very worried because obesity is associated with diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure, which could lead to heart attack and kidney failure.
'I think we should continue to engage the Malay-Muslim organisations and the mosques as these are effective vehicles to reach out to the community,' says Madam Halimah, who rides a stationary bicycle or does brisk-walking for 45 minutes several times a week to keep fit.
'In addition, we should focus a lot more on the women as they are the ones that plan and cook for the family.'
The incidence of chronic illnesses like kidney failure is already much higher among Malays, and, notes cardiologist Mak Koon Hou, they are more likely than other races to die from a heart attack. 'With increasing prevalence of diabetes and obesity, the occurrence of these chronic diseases will likely increase further. Health programmes targeted at Malays are needed to improve their outcomes,' he says.
FAT-SATURATED DIET
DOCTORS can point to the main culprits: a fat-saturated diet consisting of rich gravies, sweet dessert and fast food, on top of a sedentary lifestyle.
Endocrinologist Lee Chung Horn says: 'Most of us believe Malays are the heaviest ethnic group because of their diet which often includes high-calorie food like fried noodles, lontong lemak, nasi lemak, sayur lodeh, curry lemak, mutton rendang, beef rendang and Malay kueh.'
According to the 2004 National Nutrition Survey, one in two Malays has deep-fried food more than twice a week. One in five has at least seven sweetened drinks weekly.
Malays have also overtaken Indians when it comes to the amount of fat in their diet. They consumed 85.7g of fat each day, the survey found, up from 68.9g in 1998. In comparison, Indians had 83.3g, while the figure for Chinese was 77g.
What does not help is that social functions centre on eating. 'Malays are also very gregarious people, and arguably the most family-oriented of our country's major races,' says Dr Lee, who is president of the Singapore Association for the Study of Obesity, which comes under the International Obesity Task Force, a body that works with the World Health Organisation and other stakeholders to fight obesity.
'Traditional Malay culture is characterised by social assemblies, and at these assemblies - weddings, birthdays, parties - extended families and friends come together to meet and eat.'
Researchers have uncovered variants of genes that seem to be associated with obesity, but there is no evidence yet that ethnic differences in obesity have a genetic basis, says clinician-scientist Tai E Shyong, a consultant at the National University Hospital's (NUH) endocrinology department.
'What has been found so far is that these genetic variants explain only a small proportion of the risk of obesity,' he says.
But while genetic factors may predispose some people to being fat, the main causes are clearly a high-calorie diet combined with a sedentary lifestyle, notes Professor Chia Kee Seng, head of the epidemiology and public health department at the National University of Singapore's Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine. 'We should also look at the other end of the spectrum and study behaviour modification, and what is needed to encourage people to lose weight.
'Physical activity in Singapore is promoted as a leisure activity. We could look at what structural changes are needed for people to make it part and parcel of life, to get them to walk from point A to B rather than drive.'
Dr Yaacob notes that most Malays eat out, eat late and indulge frequently in rich foods such as nasi beriani, which in the past were a rare treat.
He laments that the expanding halal food industry has also embraced unhealthy options such as fast food. And he urges Malays just to change one thing, for starters: 'We should have dinner earlier, so as not to sleep on a full stomach.'
EVERY LITTLE BIT COUNTS
DOCTORS say the benefits of losing weight - no matter how little - are tremendous.
Dropping as little as 2 per cent of one's weight can improve diabetes control and often results in a reduction in medications, says Dr Tham Kwang Wei, director of the obesity and metabolic unit at the Singapore General Hospital Life (Lifestyle Improvement and Fitness Enhancement) Centre.
'The more weight one loses, the greater benefit one will see,' she adds, pointing to a recent study conducted by the United States National Institutes of Health, which showed that participants who lost 8.6 per cent of their weight over a year through diet and exercise improved their diabetes condition.
They reduced not only their diabetes medications, but those for blood pressure and cholesterol as well.
While Dr Yaacob is heartened to see more women taking to regular exercise, he notes men do not seem to be doing their bit. 'I see them jogging in their tudung and brisk-walking. For their husbands to join them, that's a lifestyle change I'd like to see.'
The percentage of obese Malay women dipped slightly from a high of 23.7 per cent in 1998 to 21.4 per cent in the 2004 National Health Survey, but the figure for Malay men almost doubled to 16.9 per cent from 8.8 per cent over the same period.
Doctors want to see the results of this year's National Health Survey before judging if the weighty issue of Malay women is indeed on a downward trend. But anecdotally, this group - traditionally the most sedentary - seems to be exercising more.
One customised programme that has taken off among women is 'kebayarobics' - an amalgam of aerobics with traditional Malay joget dance movements introduced by the Health Promotion Board (HPB). About 100 groups now do it regularly in places like mosques and community clubs since it started catching on here in 2004.
The need to get men on an exercise regime has prompted the board to set up a pilot programme with three mosques and the Football Association of Singapore to hold weekly soccer sessions. It has 80 sign-ups so far.
Over the next few months, the HPB will work with Malay caterers to customise healthier menu options, such as curries made with low-fat milk and vegetable dishes.
Nurses have also been selected to conduct workshops at community clubs and mosques for people who are overweight and at risk of developing chronic conditions, while mosque staff and cooks are being trained to whip up healthier food.
Dr Annie Ling, director of HPB's Adult Health Division, says the board was looking at customising programmes for other races, or specific groups such as women, but decided to start with Malays because 'this is where the need is greatest'.
The Committee for Community Health, set up in 2008 to work with the HPB on tailoring programmes for Malays, believes Malays will take to exercise if the initiative starts from the ground up and is rolled out with 'a human touch'.
'We are bringing the mountain to Muhammad,' says its chairman, cardiologist Abdul Razakjr Omar.
Dr Abdul, who is a consultant at the National University Heart Centre's cardiac department, adds that the problem among Malays - the race with the lowest median income here - is also a social issue.
Studies in developed countries such as the US have shown that obesity is more prevalent among the poorer and less educated. 'I believe that the more educated in our community should come forward to help,' he says.
His committee now comprises 10 Malay/Muslim representatives including doctors, grassroots mosque and media representatives. It means business, he says, adding that 'this is not just going to be a public relations exercise'.
One initiative is Sihat 360º, or Health 360º, a pilot programme involving four mosques in the south-west: Darussalam, Ar-Raudhah, Hasanah and Al-Khair.
A full-time Malay health promotion coordinator stationed at one of the mosques organises health screenings, exercise sessions, healthy cooking classes, weight and disease management workshops and so on.
Dr Abdul devised the idea after noting how the NUH heart failure programme had achieved sterling results by employing a Malay case manager to ensure Malay patients were taking their medication, eating properly and getting exercise. 'A lot of the time, people need motivation, someone to befriend them and to win their trust when they visit their homes, or at mosques where many Malays congregate,' he explains. 'It helps to have someone to call if you have a problem.'
If Sihat 360º takes off, similar projects will be rolled out in the 69 mosques islandwide, he adds.
In another initiative, 15 Malay grassroots leaders at Jurong Green are being trained by medics on chronic disease management and monitoring blood pressure and glucose levels, and even negotiation skills, says committee vice-chairman Zuraimi Mohamed Dahlan, a general practitioner who is volunteering time to conduct the weekly training.
They will visit people in their homes to check for obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol, and encourage them to adopt a healthy lifestyle.
As well, 80 grassroots volunteers from Sembawang and Nee Soon East and Central constituencies are being trained as 'health champions' to work with residents under a similar scheme.
REACHING OUT
ALEXANDRA Hospital staff have come up with a similar concept.
Dr Michael Wong, head of the family and community medicine department and director of the Health for Life Centre, says it is planning to work with six mosques in the north, to hold health talks for worshippers.
Doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, dietitians and psychologists will hold sessions at the mosques, when staff move to the new Khoo Teck Puat Hospital in Yishun this year.
Darul Makmur Mosque manager Suzana Bakar says that such talks had been done on an ad hoc basis before, and that a more structured programme would hopefully yield better attendance and results. She adds that physical and spiritual food do go together.
'There is a commandment for Muslims to ensure that the food we eat is permissible in source and substance, and also good and nutritious for the body,' she says. 'It's our responsibility to not only make sure our food is halal, but to also look out for healthy ingredients.'
Driver Mohammed Yussof, 45, for one, says he would be keen to attend such sessions. 'I don't have much free time, so if I can get some tips when I go for prayers, it will be very useful.'
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Protecting yourself (Against Cancer) from Straits Times dated 6 March 2010, Saturday.
The following is from a report in Saturday Special Report of the Straits Times dated 6 March 2010, Saturday.
AN INFLUENTIAL report on cancer prevention by the London-based World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research makes the following recommendations.
WEIGHT: Maintain a body mass index (BMI) of between 21 and 23 and avoid gaining weight in adulthood.
Although a BMI of up to 24.9 is considered normal, the lower end of normal is better for cancer prevention.
EXERCISE: Participate in moderate activity - brisk walking or something equivalent - for at least 30 minutes a day. Ideally, work in up to 60 minutes of moderate exercise, or 30 minutes of vigorous exercise, daily. Limit sedentary activities such as watching TV.
DIET: Eat healthily. That means a diet consisting mostly of plant-based foods such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Avoid sugary, processed foods and fast foods as much as possible and limit red meat consumption to no more than 500g a week. Salt consumption should also be restricted to no more than 6g of salt daily.
DRINKING: Avoid alcohol consumption, if not limit to one drink a day for women and two drinks a day for men. Studies have found that alcoholic drinks are a cause of cancers of the mouth, pharynx and larynx, oesophagus, and breast (pre- and post-menopausal). There is also evidence linking alcohol consumption to colorectal and liver cancer.
SUPPLEMENTS: Do not rely on them. The cancer-preventing benefits derived from nutrients are believed to come from foods, not from supplements. Authors of the report advise against taking supplements. Studies for example have shown that high-dose beta-carotene supplements can increase the risk of lung cancer in smokers.
BREASTFEEDING: Mothers should breastfeed their children for at least the first six months. There is convincing evidence that this practice offers cancer protection for both mother and child.
Mothers can lower their own risk of pre- and post-menopausal breast cancer by breastfeeding. And children who are breastfed are less likely to become overweight or obese, which lowers their risk of several cancers that have been linked to excess body fat.
AN INFLUENTIAL report on cancer prevention by the London-based World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research makes the following recommendations.
WEIGHT: Maintain a body mass index (BMI) of between 21 and 23 and avoid gaining weight in adulthood.
Although a BMI of up to 24.9 is considered normal, the lower end of normal is better for cancer prevention.
EXERCISE: Participate in moderate activity - brisk walking or something equivalent - for at least 30 minutes a day. Ideally, work in up to 60 minutes of moderate exercise, or 30 minutes of vigorous exercise, daily. Limit sedentary activities such as watching TV.
DIET: Eat healthily. That means a diet consisting mostly of plant-based foods such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Avoid sugary, processed foods and fast foods as much as possible and limit red meat consumption to no more than 500g a week. Salt consumption should also be restricted to no more than 6g of salt daily.
DRINKING: Avoid alcohol consumption, if not limit to one drink a day for women and two drinks a day for men. Studies have found that alcoholic drinks are a cause of cancers of the mouth, pharynx and larynx, oesophagus, and breast (pre- and post-menopausal). There is also evidence linking alcohol consumption to colorectal and liver cancer.
SUPPLEMENTS: Do not rely on them. The cancer-preventing benefits derived from nutrients are believed to come from foods, not from supplements. Authors of the report advise against taking supplements. Studies for example have shown that high-dose beta-carotene supplements can increase the risk of lung cancer in smokers.
BREASTFEEDING: Mothers should breastfeed their children for at least the first six months. There is convincing evidence that this practice offers cancer protection for both mother and child.
Mothers can lower their own risk of pre- and post-menopausal breast cancer by breastfeeding. And children who are breastfed are less likely to become overweight or obese, which lowers their risk of several cancers that have been linked to excess body fat.
5 superfoods in the Asian diet that may help you ward off cancer
The following is from a report in Saturday Special Report of the Straits times dated 6 March 2010, Saturday.
5 superfoods in the Asian diet that may help you ward off cancer
Soya
Studies have found that just a serving of soya milk or tofu a day helps protect women against breast cancer.
Cruciferous vegetables
Choy sum, kai lan, pak choy, cauliflower and watercress contain indole alkaloids and other antioxidants that may help prevent cancer.
Fish
Preferably steamed. Contains omega 3 fatty acids that help prevent cancer.
Green tea
Contains catechins and has been found to reduce the incidence of breast and colon cancers.
Yellow and orange fruits and vegetables
Papaya, tangerine and capsicum contain antioxidants that may keep lung cancer at bay, even in smokers.
5 superfoods in the Asian diet that may help you ward off cancer
Soya
Studies have found that just a serving of soya milk or tofu a day helps protect women against breast cancer.
Cruciferous vegetables
Choy sum, kai lan, pak choy, cauliflower and watercress contain indole alkaloids and other antioxidants that may help prevent cancer.
Fish
Preferably steamed. Contains omega 3 fatty acids that help prevent cancer.
Green tea
Contains catechins and has been found to reduce the incidence of breast and colon cancers.
Yellow and orange fruits and vegetables
Papaya, tangerine and capsicum contain antioxidants that may keep lung cancer at bay, even in smokers.
Eating right, keeping fit (by Sandra Davie)
The following is a report by Sandra Davie, Senior Writer in Saturday Special Report of the Straits times dated 6 March 2010, Saturday.
------------------------------------------------
IT IS a big global effort involving an army of medical experts, but the search to pinpoint why and when cancer might strike boils down to researchers like Associate Professor Koh Woon Puay taking thousands of tiny, meticulous steps every day.
The painstaking journey to greater knowledge for Prof Koh of the National University of Singapore's Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine is measured sample by sample, test by test.
She carefully retrieves straws of blood from special -80 deg C freezers and places them in a container that keeps them cold while being moved to a lab.
The 2,000 blood samples, which include 650 from colorectal cancer patients, will be used for yet another study that Prof Koh and her team of researchers from the NUS and several American universities are undertaking to find the link between certain food that Chinese Singaporeans eat and the incidence of cancer.
The Singapore Chinese Health Study draws on the information on the diet and lifestyle of 60,000 males and females who were first interviewed between 1993 and 1998. Around 30,000 had also donated small amounts of blood and urine for the research, which was established with funds from the National Institutes of Health in the United States.
For the latest sub-study, participants' blood samples will be analysed to check for 25 different kinds of fatty acids, including the omega-3 kind from fish, omega-6, which is found in corn oil, and saturated fats contained in meat.
Prof Koh, 41, hopes the study will be able to bolster other research findings that have linked eating fish to lower rates of colorectal cancer. It could also show if eating red meat increases the risk of contracting the cancer.
She says much has been gleaned from the study which started in the mid-1990s to look at how diet, genes and other environmental factors in Chinese people here contribute to cancer. The study has since been extended to cover other diseases such as diabetes, but cancer remains the main focus.
'So far we have made several findings which are useful to Singaporeans and people around the world on the protective roles of certain types of food common in the Asian diet,' she adds. 'We found for example that eating tofu could protect you from breast cancer. The amount needed is not high. Just a serving a day is enough to achieve a protective effect after 10 years.'
Yet another study found that eating fish may reduce the risk of breast cancer.
'This is probably due to the protective effect of omega-3 fatty acids, which are high in fish,' explains Prof Koh.
'Eating orange fruits such as papayas and oranges may reduce the risk of lung cancer and green tea may help reduce the risk of breast cancer in some women.'
Prof Koh stresses that such studies are useful in the light of the growing incidence of cancer. In the 2002 to 2006 period, there were 43,000 reported cases in Singapore, with 237 males out of 100,000 hit by the disease while 248 women out of every 100,000 were struck.
Those rates are far above those of the late 1960s: 135 per 100,000 males and 103 per 100,000 females. Chinese are 1.5 to two times more likely to be hit by cancer than Indians or Malays.
Prof Koh makes the case that lifestyle factors account for the rising number of cases among Chinese as well as across the board. 'It can't be genetic, because our genes don't evolve so quickly,' she says.
'All the research evidence points to the fact that although genes play a part, they account for a very small percentage - less than 10 per cent.'
Environmental or lifestyle factors are more important, she says. Some of these causes are well established - such as smoking, heavy alcohol consumption, radiation and viruses. 'It is clear that the rising incidence of common cancers... is driven by various potentially controllable external factors. This is surely the most comforting fact to come out of cancer research, for it means that most cancers are potentially preventable,' she stresses.
To back up her case, she pulls out the latest 500-page report on cancer prevention released three years ago by the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund. A team of international researchers concluded that a third of cancers could be avoided by adopting a healthy lifestyle - mainly eating right and being physically active. This proportion does not include smoking, which by itself accounts for another one-third of cancers.
Overall, one causal factor stood out, she says. 'The evidence scientists around the world have gathered is pretty convincing - carrying excess body fat increases risk for several cancers including that of the colon, the oesophagus and the uterus as well as post-menopausal breast cancer.'
Little wonder then that the report leads off with a recommendation to stay as lean as possible.
She highlights another key recommendation that food-loving Singaporeans should take note of - to eat healthily. That means a diet that consists of mostly plant-based foods.
'Research has shown that fruits and non-starchy vegetables are low in calories and contain micronutrients that can protect one against many types of cancer,' she explains.
Prof Koh practises what she preaches. She plays squash to keep fit, drinks green tea and tries to eat fish at least once a day. She has these final words of advice:
'Cancer does not develop suddenly. It's a long process that happens over many years. That means it's never too late to start making healthy lifestyle changes.
'So, if you are a smoker, stop the habit. If you're inactive, start exercising.
'If you're overweight, diet and exercise to bring your weight down.
'And if your diet is low in vegetables, fruits and grains, start adding them to your meals.'
------------------------------------------------
IT IS a big global effort involving an army of medical experts, but the search to pinpoint why and when cancer might strike boils down to researchers like Associate Professor Koh Woon Puay taking thousands of tiny, meticulous steps every day.
The painstaking journey to greater knowledge for Prof Koh of the National University of Singapore's Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine is measured sample by sample, test by test.
She carefully retrieves straws of blood from special -80 deg C freezers and places them in a container that keeps them cold while being moved to a lab.
The 2,000 blood samples, which include 650 from colorectal cancer patients, will be used for yet another study that Prof Koh and her team of researchers from the NUS and several American universities are undertaking to find the link between certain food that Chinese Singaporeans eat and the incidence of cancer.
The Singapore Chinese Health Study draws on the information on the diet and lifestyle of 60,000 males and females who were first interviewed between 1993 and 1998. Around 30,000 had also donated small amounts of blood and urine for the research, which was established with funds from the National Institutes of Health in the United States.
For the latest sub-study, participants' blood samples will be analysed to check for 25 different kinds of fatty acids, including the omega-3 kind from fish, omega-6, which is found in corn oil, and saturated fats contained in meat.
Prof Koh, 41, hopes the study will be able to bolster other research findings that have linked eating fish to lower rates of colorectal cancer. It could also show if eating red meat increases the risk of contracting the cancer.
She says much has been gleaned from the study which started in the mid-1990s to look at how diet, genes and other environmental factors in Chinese people here contribute to cancer. The study has since been extended to cover other diseases such as diabetes, but cancer remains the main focus.
'So far we have made several findings which are useful to Singaporeans and people around the world on the protective roles of certain types of food common in the Asian diet,' she adds. 'We found for example that eating tofu could protect you from breast cancer. The amount needed is not high. Just a serving a day is enough to achieve a protective effect after 10 years.'
Yet another study found that eating fish may reduce the risk of breast cancer.
'This is probably due to the protective effect of omega-3 fatty acids, which are high in fish,' explains Prof Koh.
'Eating orange fruits such as papayas and oranges may reduce the risk of lung cancer and green tea may help reduce the risk of breast cancer in some women.'
Prof Koh stresses that such studies are useful in the light of the growing incidence of cancer. In the 2002 to 2006 period, there were 43,000 reported cases in Singapore, with 237 males out of 100,000 hit by the disease while 248 women out of every 100,000 were struck.
Those rates are far above those of the late 1960s: 135 per 100,000 males and 103 per 100,000 females. Chinese are 1.5 to two times more likely to be hit by cancer than Indians or Malays.
Prof Koh makes the case that lifestyle factors account for the rising number of cases among Chinese as well as across the board. 'It can't be genetic, because our genes don't evolve so quickly,' she says.
'All the research evidence points to the fact that although genes play a part, they account for a very small percentage - less than 10 per cent.'
Environmental or lifestyle factors are more important, she says. Some of these causes are well established - such as smoking, heavy alcohol consumption, radiation and viruses. 'It is clear that the rising incidence of common cancers... is driven by various potentially controllable external factors. This is surely the most comforting fact to come out of cancer research, for it means that most cancers are potentially preventable,' she stresses.
To back up her case, she pulls out the latest 500-page report on cancer prevention released three years ago by the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund. A team of international researchers concluded that a third of cancers could be avoided by adopting a healthy lifestyle - mainly eating right and being physically active. This proportion does not include smoking, which by itself accounts for another one-third of cancers.
Overall, one causal factor stood out, she says. 'The evidence scientists around the world have gathered is pretty convincing - carrying excess body fat increases risk for several cancers including that of the colon, the oesophagus and the uterus as well as post-menopausal breast cancer.'
Little wonder then that the report leads off with a recommendation to stay as lean as possible.
She highlights another key recommendation that food-loving Singaporeans should take note of - to eat healthily. That means a diet that consists of mostly plant-based foods.
'Research has shown that fruits and non-starchy vegetables are low in calories and contain micronutrients that can protect one against many types of cancer,' she explains.
Prof Koh practises what she preaches. She plays squash to keep fit, drinks green tea and tries to eat fish at least once a day. She has these final words of advice:
'Cancer does not develop suddenly. It's a long process that happens over many years. That means it's never too late to start making healthy lifestyle changes.
'So, if you are a smoker, stop the habit. If you're inactive, start exercising.
'If you're overweight, diet and exercise to bring your weight down.
'And if your diet is low in vegetables, fruits and grains, start adding them to your meals.'
Friday, March 5, 2010
(Calorie Restriction) Calorie Intake Linked to Cell Lifespan, Cancer Development (from www.sciencedaily.com)
Info Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091217183053.htm
ScienceDaily (Dec. 18, 2009) —The research has wide-ranging potential in age-related science, including ways in which calorie-intake restriction (Note: i.e. Calorie Restriction) can benefit longevity and help prevent diseases like cancer that have been linked to aging, said principal investigator Trygve Tollefsbol, Ph.D., D.O., a professor in the Department of Biology.
"These results further verify the potential health benefits of controlling calorie intake." Tollefsbol said. "Our research indicates that calorie reduction extends the lifespan of healthy human cells and aids the body's natural ability to kill off cancer-forming cells."
The UAB team conducted its tests by growing both healthy human-lung cells and precancerous human-lung cells in laboratory flasks. The flasks were provided either normal levels of glucose or significantly reduced amounts of the sugar compound, and the cells then were allowed to grow for a period of weeks.
"In that time, we were able to track the cells' ability to divide while also monitoring the number of surviving cells. The pattern that was revealed to us showed that restricted glucose levels led the healthy cells to grow longer than is typical and caused the precancerous cells to die off in large numbers," Tollefsbol said.
In particular, the researchers found that two key genes were affected in the cellular response to decreased glucose consumption. The first gene, telomerase, encodes an important enzyme that allows cells to divide indefinitely. The second gene, p16, encodes a well known anti-cancer protein.
"Opposite effects were found for these genes in healthy cells versus precancerous cells. The healthy cells saw their telomerase rise and p16 decrease, which would explain the boost in healthy cell growth," Tollefsbol said. "The gene reactions flipped in the precancerous cells with telomerase decreasing and the anti-cancer protein p16 increasing, which would explain why these cancer-forming cells died off in large numbers."
The UAB research into the links between calorie intake, aging and the onset of diseases related to aging is thought to be a first of its kind given that it used the unique approach of testing human cells versus laboratory animals.
"Our results not only support previous findings from the feeding of animals but also reveal that human longevity can be achieved at the cellular level through caloric restriction," Tollefsbol said.
"The hope is that this UAB breakthrough will lead to further discoveries in different cell types and facilitate the development of novel approaches to extend the lifespan of humans," he added.
Tollefsbol's research team included Yuanyuan Li, Ph.D., M.D., a UAB biology research associate, and Liang Liu, Ph.D., a UAB assistant professor of medicine.
The group's study has been published in the online edition of The Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB Journal).
The research was funded by grants from the National Institutes of Health and the Glenn Foundation for Medical Research.
ScienceDaily (Dec. 18, 2009) —The research has wide-ranging potential in age-related science, including ways in which calorie-intake restriction (Note: i.e. Calorie Restriction) can benefit longevity and help prevent diseases like cancer that have been linked to aging, said principal investigator Trygve Tollefsbol, Ph.D., D.O., a professor in the Department of Biology.
"These results further verify the potential health benefits of controlling calorie intake." Tollefsbol said. "Our research indicates that calorie reduction extends the lifespan of healthy human cells and aids the body's natural ability to kill off cancer-forming cells."
The UAB team conducted its tests by growing both healthy human-lung cells and precancerous human-lung cells in laboratory flasks. The flasks were provided either normal levels of glucose or significantly reduced amounts of the sugar compound, and the cells then were allowed to grow for a period of weeks.
"In that time, we were able to track the cells' ability to divide while also monitoring the number of surviving cells. The pattern that was revealed to us showed that restricted glucose levels led the healthy cells to grow longer than is typical and caused the precancerous cells to die off in large numbers," Tollefsbol said.
In particular, the researchers found that two key genes were affected in the cellular response to decreased glucose consumption. The first gene, telomerase, encodes an important enzyme that allows cells to divide indefinitely. The second gene, p16, encodes a well known anti-cancer protein.
"Opposite effects were found for these genes in healthy cells versus precancerous cells. The healthy cells saw their telomerase rise and p16 decrease, which would explain the boost in healthy cell growth," Tollefsbol said. "The gene reactions flipped in the precancerous cells with telomerase decreasing and the anti-cancer protein p16 increasing, which would explain why these cancer-forming cells died off in large numbers."
The UAB research into the links between calorie intake, aging and the onset of diseases related to aging is thought to be a first of its kind given that it used the unique approach of testing human cells versus laboratory animals.
"Our results not only support previous findings from the feeding of animals but also reveal that human longevity can be achieved at the cellular level through caloric restriction," Tollefsbol said.
"The hope is that this UAB breakthrough will lead to further discoveries in different cell types and facilitate the development of novel approaches to extend the lifespan of humans," he added.
Tollefsbol's research team included Yuanyuan Li, Ph.D., M.D., a UAB biology research associate, and Liang Liu, Ph.D., a UAB assistant professor of medicine.
The group's study has been published in the online edition of The Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB Journal).
The research was funded by grants from the National Institutes of Health and the Glenn Foundation for Medical Research.
Life Spans of human cells
From 2020-03-5, I started to collect information from internet on the approximate Life Spans of human cells.
-- Skin cells: 2 to 4 weeks
-- Blood cells: 120 days
-- Stomach cells: two days
-- Brain cells: a person's entire lifetime
-- Skin cells: 2 to 4 weeks
-- Blood cells: 120 days
-- Stomach cells: two days
-- Brain cells: a person's entire lifetime
The following information is from:
http://vitanetonline.com/forums/1/Thread/1001
Granulocytes:eosinophils basophils, neutrophils: 10 hours to 3 days
Stomach lining cells: 2 days
Sperm cells: 2-3 days
Stomach lining cells: 2 days
Colon cells: 3-4 days
Epithelia of small intestine: 1 week or less
Platelets: 10 days
Skin epidermal cells: 2 - 4 weeks
Lymphocytes: 2 months - a year (highly variable)
Red blood cells: 4 months
Stomach lining cells: 2 days
Pancreas cells: 1 year or more
Bone Cells: 25 - 30 years
What is the life span of a normal skin cell? (Answered by Manu Sharma)
Info source:
http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives/2000-09/969294613.Cb.r.html
(Answered by: Manu Sharma, Grad student, Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, The Hospital for Sick Children. Date: Sun Sep 17 16:21:13 2000. Area of science: Cell BiologyID: 966726597.Cb)
Skin or epidermis refers to a specific kind of epithelium- a continuous sheet of cells that separates the blood-supplied side of the tissue from the "outside" environment (which, for example, includes the cavity within esophagus/food-pipe or within trachea/wind-pipe).
Skin is the kind of epithelium that has evolved to protect us from the dry and pathogen-filled environment on the surface of the body.
It is a layer of epithelial cells that originate at the base and move toward the surface continuously, at a rate that replenishes the constantly shedding older cells from the surface.
The life-span of the skin cell therefore depends on how fast the surface cells are shed and how many layers thick the skin is over a particular part of the body.
Another interesting fact about the skin cells that determines their life-span is their "keratinization". Keratin is a protein found in hair, nails or skin.
This protein starts accumulating in a skin cell as it moves toward the surface through the layers. By the time this cell is shed from the surface, it is dead and full of keratin.
These layers of dead keratinized cells at the surface (called "squames") are flat (squamous), scaly and tough, protecting the underlying live layers.
The constantly dividing cells at the base of skin that make new ones of these Kamikaze skin cells are called basal cells or stem cells.
Although the stem/basal cells last a lifetime, a typical epidermal cell has a life span of about 2 to 4 weeks depending upon the part of the body.
You can read more about skin, other epithelia and all about cells, in "Molecular Biology of the Cell" by Alberts, Bray, Lewis, Raff, Roberts and Watson (yes the one who co-discovered the structure of DNA!), published by Garland Publishing, NY.
I have an older version, so the page numbers differ, but you can look up "epidermis", "dermis" or "epithelium" in the index. Other cell Biology texts at the undergraduate level also have similar chapters.
http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives/2000-09/969294613.Cb.r.html
(Answered by: Manu Sharma, Grad student, Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, The Hospital for Sick Children. Date: Sun Sep 17 16:21:13 2000. Area of science: Cell BiologyID: 966726597.Cb)
Skin or epidermis refers to a specific kind of epithelium- a continuous sheet of cells that separates the blood-supplied side of the tissue from the "outside" environment (which, for example, includes the cavity within esophagus/food-pipe or within trachea/wind-pipe).
Skin is the kind of epithelium that has evolved to protect us from the dry and pathogen-filled environment on the surface of the body.
It is a layer of epithelial cells that originate at the base and move toward the surface continuously, at a rate that replenishes the constantly shedding older cells from the surface.
The life-span of the skin cell therefore depends on how fast the surface cells are shed and how many layers thick the skin is over a particular part of the body.
Another interesting fact about the skin cells that determines their life-span is their "keratinization". Keratin is a protein found in hair, nails or skin.
This protein starts accumulating in a skin cell as it moves toward the surface through the layers. By the time this cell is shed from the surface, it is dead and full of keratin.
These layers of dead keratinized cells at the surface (called "squames") are flat (squamous), scaly and tough, protecting the underlying live layers.
The constantly dividing cells at the base of skin that make new ones of these Kamikaze skin cells are called basal cells or stem cells.
Although the stem/basal cells last a lifetime, a typical epidermal cell has a life span of about 2 to 4 weeks depending upon the part of the body.
You can read more about skin, other epithelia and all about cells, in "Molecular Biology of the Cell" by Alberts, Bray, Lewis, Raff, Roberts and Watson (yes the one who co-discovered the structure of DNA!), published by Garland Publishing, NY.
I have an older version, so the page numbers differ, but you can look up "epidermis", "dermis" or "epithelium" in the index. Other cell Biology texts at the undergraduate level also have similar chapters.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Trivita: What Your Brain Needs For Healthy Aging (From facebook,com)
Info Source: http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=230887214114
Ever have a "senior moment"? It seems that forgetfulness increases with age. This is partially because the damage to our brain accumulates over time.
"Brain shrinkage" from stress and nutrient deficiencies, plus brain trauma from injuries and toxicity contribute to memory loss, inability to concentrate and even Alzheimer's disease. New research on brain erosion suggests that those experiencing significant stress may experience volume loss (brain shrinkage) as early as age 30.
Some of the rapid aging of our brain and body is caused by nutrient deficiency. It is much harder to get the nutrients from our food as we did in the past. Healthy brain, healthy body We have to remember that every cell in our brain and body has a pre-programmed life span. This lifespan may be very short or very long.
For instance, digestive cells in the small intestines live only a matter of hours and may be replaced up to six times daily.
Some cells in our brain, nervous system and immune system may last our entire lifetime but become dormant and stop functioning if not properly nourished. When the signal goes out that cell repair or replacement is needed, growth hormone accomplishes this with the nutrients we have available at that time. So, just imagine: A cell reaches the end of its normal lifespan and needs to be replaced.
Growth hormone is present to facilitate this restoration.
Now, your body recruits the nutrient building blocks that it needs to build healthy cells: •Proteins •Fats •Carbohydrates •Water •Vitamins •Minerals •Enzymes •Antioxidants and many other nutrients
What if you don't have enough nutrients available to facilitate this replacement?
What if you are missing a vitamin or an antioxidant or fat or some other critical nutrient when it is needed most?
Well, one of two things will happen:
1.Either the cell will not be replaced and we begin to wither; or
2.The cell is replaced, but without critical elements needed to keep it healthy.
For healthy aging you simply must have the proper nutrients available at all times because a cell deprived of the proper nutrients will be prone to disease and premature aging.
Your body must replace millions of cells each day.
One single day of poor nutrition will mean that you will make deficient cells that day. These cells may live for many months or years and they will be the focus for disease and inflammation. Premature aging is about losing more cells than we replace.
Healthy aging is about closing the gap between loss of cells and repair or replacement of our cells - as triggered by growth hormone and fueled by nutrients.
Men's and Women's Wellavoh™ is our newest contribution to the total nutrition you need for healthy aging! Forgotten nutrients All experts agree that the best way to get the phytonutrients we need is from whole foods. Most experts agree that the best way to ensure that you absorb your vitamin supplements is to take them with food.
Men's and Women's Wellavoh are designed with whole-food complexes containing virtually every nutrient known to science.
Many of these foods have known health values, such as pomegranate for the heart, cranberry for the kidneys and bilberry for the eyes. However, all of these superfoods belong in a healthy diet. How can we have a healthy brain and body?
Only from healthy living - based on healthy choices. If we make unhealthy lifestyle choices, our aging process can rush us into disability like a flooding river.
If we make wise choices our aging process will move along almost imperceptibly - like a creeping glacier. This is true healthy aging! Share this report with a friend
Take Control of Your Health
•Get 7 ½ to 9 hours of sleep every night
•Eat a nutritious diet ◦7 servings of fruits and vegetables for women ◦9 servings of fruits and vegetables for men ◦High quality protein every day
•Take Men's or Women's Wellavoh morning and evening
•Get active doing things you love
◦Volunteer
◦Mentor younger ones
◦Never stop learning
◦Mentor younger ones ◦Never stop learning
Upcoming Weekly Wellness Reports...
•Plastic Packaging and Toxins
•10 Essentials for Health and Wellness For product info: http://www.trivita.com/13142216
To learn about the business opportunity visit: http://www.sonoranbloom.com/13142216
Ever have a "senior moment"? It seems that forgetfulness increases with age. This is partially because the damage to our brain accumulates over time.
"Brain shrinkage" from stress and nutrient deficiencies, plus brain trauma from injuries and toxicity contribute to memory loss, inability to concentrate and even Alzheimer's disease. New research on brain erosion suggests that those experiencing significant stress may experience volume loss (brain shrinkage) as early as age 30.
Some of the rapid aging of our brain and body is caused by nutrient deficiency. It is much harder to get the nutrients from our food as we did in the past. Healthy brain, healthy body We have to remember that every cell in our brain and body has a pre-programmed life span. This lifespan may be very short or very long.
For instance, digestive cells in the small intestines live only a matter of hours and may be replaced up to six times daily.
Some cells in our brain, nervous system and immune system may last our entire lifetime but become dormant and stop functioning if not properly nourished. When the signal goes out that cell repair or replacement is needed, growth hormone accomplishes this with the nutrients we have available at that time. So, just imagine: A cell reaches the end of its normal lifespan and needs to be replaced.
Growth hormone is present to facilitate this restoration.
Now, your body recruits the nutrient building blocks that it needs to build healthy cells: •Proteins •Fats •Carbohydrates •Water •Vitamins •Minerals •Enzymes •Antioxidants and many other nutrients
What if you don't have enough nutrients available to facilitate this replacement?
What if you are missing a vitamin or an antioxidant or fat or some other critical nutrient when it is needed most?
Well, one of two things will happen:
1.Either the cell will not be replaced and we begin to wither; or
2.The cell is replaced, but without critical elements needed to keep it healthy.
For healthy aging you simply must have the proper nutrients available at all times because a cell deprived of the proper nutrients will be prone to disease and premature aging.
Your body must replace millions of cells each day.
One single day of poor nutrition will mean that you will make deficient cells that day. These cells may live for many months or years and they will be the focus for disease and inflammation. Premature aging is about losing more cells than we replace.
Healthy aging is about closing the gap between loss of cells and repair or replacement of our cells - as triggered by growth hormone and fueled by nutrients.
Men's and Women's Wellavoh™ is our newest contribution to the total nutrition you need for healthy aging! Forgotten nutrients All experts agree that the best way to get the phytonutrients we need is from whole foods. Most experts agree that the best way to ensure that you absorb your vitamin supplements is to take them with food.
Men's and Women's Wellavoh are designed with whole-food complexes containing virtually every nutrient known to science.
Many of these foods have known health values, such as pomegranate for the heart, cranberry for the kidneys and bilberry for the eyes. However, all of these superfoods belong in a healthy diet. How can we have a healthy brain and body?
Only from healthy living - based on healthy choices. If we make unhealthy lifestyle choices, our aging process can rush us into disability like a flooding river.
If we make wise choices our aging process will move along almost imperceptibly - like a creeping glacier. This is true healthy aging! Share this report with a friend
Take Control of Your Health
•Get 7 ½ to 9 hours of sleep every night
•Eat a nutritious diet ◦7 servings of fruits and vegetables for women ◦9 servings of fruits and vegetables for men ◦High quality protein every day
•Take Men's or Women's Wellavoh morning and evening
•Get active doing things you love
◦Volunteer
◦Mentor younger ones
◦Never stop learning
◦Mentor younger ones ◦Never stop learning
Upcoming Weekly Wellness Reports...
•Plastic Packaging and Toxins
•10 Essentials for Health and Wellness For product info: http://www.trivita.com/13142216
To learn about the business opportunity visit: http://www.sonoranbloom.com/13142216
How Does the Human Body Eliminate Dead Cells? (by wisegeek.com)
Info Source: http://www.wisegeek.com/how-does-the-human-body-eliminate-dead-cells.htm
The human body is a complicated system which operates much like a self-contained city. Some organs produce new cells, others use cells to perform their jobs, and eventually certain scavenger cells arrive to remove dead cells from the system. In the case of the human body, these scavengers are specialized white blood cells called macrophages.
Macrophages remove dead cells essentially by eating them, which helps to explain why the word macrophage means "big eater" in Greek.
When external skin cells die, there are a number of mechanical and chemical methods used to slough them off. Exfoliants and scrub brushes are often employed to remove dead cells and encourage new cell turnover. But dead cells within the human body are not so easily removed. They go through a much more complicated elimination process, which is not always as efficient or thorough as one might hope.
Living cells become dead cells through two different processes.
Many body cells are programmed to die at a prescribed time, through a process called apoptosis.
Red blood cells, for example, are programmed to die after 120 days of service.
Other cells, such as white blood cells, may be programmed to die an apoptotic death after only a few days.
These dead cells may continue to flow through the body's bloodstream or collect in various organs, but they are clearly no longer contributing to the system.
The other process for creating dead cells is called necrosis.
Necrotic cell death usually occurs after a trauma or infection or other shock to the system.
When cells become necrotic, they may be removed through surgery or other medical intervention, but often they enter the bloodstream in the same way as apoptic cells.
The body cannot function well with an overabundance of dead cells, so macrophages take on the mission of breaking down the excess.
A macrophage cell can literally detect dead cells through smell, much like a scavenger bird detects dead animals.
Whenever dead cells reach the part of the bloodstream patrolled by a macrophage, the macrophages surround them and convert them into easily removed components.
At the same time, the macrophage covers the dead cells with a substance known as an antigen.
This action tags the cells for further attack from other types of cells in the body's immune system. Ideally, the macrophages and killer T-cells should render both dead cells and foreign invaders harmless enough to re-enter the bloodstream for elimination.
When macrophages become overwhelmed, however, they may allow some dead cells to pass through unprocessed.
The DNA from those cells may trigger an inflammatory reaction as the dead cells combine with other substances.
This process is the basis for many autoimmune diseases such as Crohn's disease or lupus. Bolstering the body's macrophages is often a course of treatment recommended for autoimmune diseases and even some forms of cancer.
The human body is a complicated system which operates much like a self-contained city. Some organs produce new cells, others use cells to perform their jobs, and eventually certain scavenger cells arrive to remove dead cells from the system. In the case of the human body, these scavengers are specialized white blood cells called macrophages.
Macrophages remove dead cells essentially by eating them, which helps to explain why the word macrophage means "big eater" in Greek.
When external skin cells die, there are a number of mechanical and chemical methods used to slough them off. Exfoliants and scrub brushes are often employed to remove dead cells and encourage new cell turnover. But dead cells within the human body are not so easily removed. They go through a much more complicated elimination process, which is not always as efficient or thorough as one might hope.
Living cells become dead cells through two different processes.
Many body cells are programmed to die at a prescribed time, through a process called apoptosis.
Red blood cells, for example, are programmed to die after 120 days of service.
Other cells, such as white blood cells, may be programmed to die an apoptotic death after only a few days.
These dead cells may continue to flow through the body's bloodstream or collect in various organs, but they are clearly no longer contributing to the system.
The other process for creating dead cells is called necrosis.
Necrotic cell death usually occurs after a trauma or infection or other shock to the system.
When cells become necrotic, they may be removed through surgery or other medical intervention, but often they enter the bloodstream in the same way as apoptic cells.
The body cannot function well with an overabundance of dead cells, so macrophages take on the mission of breaking down the excess.
A macrophage cell can literally detect dead cells through smell, much like a scavenger bird detects dead animals.
Whenever dead cells reach the part of the bloodstream patrolled by a macrophage, the macrophages surround them and convert them into easily removed components.
At the same time, the macrophage covers the dead cells with a substance known as an antigen.
This action tags the cells for further attack from other types of cells in the body's immune system. Ideally, the macrophages and killer T-cells should render both dead cells and foreign invaders harmless enough to re-enter the bloodstream for elimination.
When macrophages become overwhelmed, however, they may allow some dead cells to pass through unprocessed.
The DNA from those cells may trigger an inflammatory reaction as the dead cells combine with other substances.
This process is the basis for many autoimmune diseases such as Crohn's disease or lupus. Bolstering the body's macrophages is often a course of treatment recommended for autoimmune diseases and even some forms of cancer.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
INDIANS & HEART DISEASE - Nature or nurture? (by Sandra Davie)
The following is from a report by Sandra Davie, Senior Writer in of Saturday Special Report of the Straits Times dated 27 February 2010, Saturday.
=================================================
HE RUNS scared, every other evening, an hour, or even two. He pounds the 10km route near his HDB home in Bukit Merah, his T-shirt sweat-soaked.
It's not about staying fit but about staying alive. It's about fending off the heart disease that Mr Maverick Saravanamuthu knows lurks everywhere in his family history.
The runs and three intense workouts a week at the Science Park's Fitness Network gym are just two of the weapons in his armoury to help him defy the fate his genes and race may have in store for him.
Diet is another. Fatty foods and processed carbohydrates, including his favourite roti prata with egg, are out. Greens are in. He is 1.63m tall and maintains his weight at a constant 61kg. He goes for medical screenings twice a year to ensure his cholesterol, glucose and blood pressure remain at healthy levels.
The 41-year-old, who runs a firm that organises health talks and workshops, knows that the risk of contracting heart disease and any one of the host of related ailments, such as hypertension or diabetes, hangs over him like the Sword of Damocles.
His father, despite practising yoga regularly, developed diabetes in his early 30s and suffered his first heart attack at 35. His second, a massive one at 62, killed him.
His mother, now in her 60s, had a heart attack six years ago and a bypass operation. One of his two sisters, now 45, is exhibiting risk factors and has mild hypertension and diabetes.
Being in the health-related business, Mr Maverick, who married at age 33 and has two young children, is only too aware that heart disease strikes Indians more frequently, at an earlier age, and more severely than all other races in Singapore.
Genetic or a matter of lifestyle?
AS FAR back as 1959, medical researchers in Singapore already reported a higher incidence of coronary heart disease among Indians.
A study by University of Malaya professor C.S. Muir published in the British Heart Journal in 1960 reports that based on a study of 552 deaths in Singapore, Indians here were 10 times more likely to die of heart disease than the Chinese or Malays.
It also found that Indian Muslims who consumed more red meat, in particular mutton, were 20 times more likely to die of heart disease than the Chinese.
According to the latest Health Ministry statistics, among the 6,348 Singaporeans admitted to restructured hospitals after suffering heart attacks in 2007, Indians were staggeringly over-represented.
They formed almost 13 per cent of the total number of heart attack victims, despite making up only 7 per cent of the population.
Malays were also over-represented but to a lesser extent than Indians. They made up 17 per cent of the heart attack victims, despite comprising only 14 per cent of the population.
The Chinese made up 69 per cent of those who suffered a heart attack in 2007, despite comprising 74 per cent of the population.
To get a more accurate picture of the severity of the problem, Gleneagles Medical Centre cardiologist Mak Koon Hou tracked the trend over nine years.
His study, published in 2003, tracked data on Chinese, Malay and Indian Singaporeans aged 20 to 64 who suffered heart attacks from 1991 to 1999.
The conclusion: Indians were three times more likely to suffer a heart attack than the Chinese, while Malays were two times more likely.
Retired National University of Singapore (NUS) Associate Professor Kenneth Hughes, who has investigated the higher rate of heart disease among Indians since the early 1980s, says it is not just a local phenomenon.
Overseas research on South Asians - covering those of Indian descent born on the Indian subcontinent, including Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan - found that they have at least twice, if not thrice, the rate of heart disease compared to other ethnic groups in their countries.
The World Health Organisation has predicted that by this year, India alone will account for 60 per cent of the world's cardiac patients, nearly four times its share of the world's population.
The Illinois-based CADI (Coronary Artery Disease among Asian Indians) research foundation headed by American-Indian doctor Enas A Enas also found that South Asians in the United States have three times the incidence of heart disease, compared to the general US population.
During the past 30 years, it noted that although the average age of first heart attacks increased by 10 years in the US, it decreased by 10 years in India.
And heart disease among Indians tends to be more severe, malignant and diffuse, meaning that, despite repeat surgery, artery blockages often return and cause death.
Dr Hughes, a Briton who retired three years ago and now lives in Singapore, says: 'It's an established fact that Indians are more likely to develop coronary heart disease. But the more interesting question is, Why is this so?
'Are Indians just born unlucky with the genes that predispose them to heart disease? Or is it diet and inactive lifestyle?'
Cardiologists such as Dr Dinesh Nair and his father, Dr V. P. Nair, both from Mount Elizabeth Hospital, and Dr Baldev Singh from Parkway East Hospital, who treat Indian patients from Singapore and around the world, say they have quite a few Indian patients in their 30s and early 40s.
A handful are even in their late 20s.
They all report that when heart disease strikes Indians, as well as occurring more often and earlier, it also tends to be more severe.
Says the older Dr Nair, who has been in practice for 35 years: 'My Indian patients have multiple blockages - five to six.'
The average Chinese patient typically has two or three blockages.
Part-roti prata
A 1996 study on 1,000 newborn babies in Singapore strongly suggested that Indians have the genetic dice loaded against them from the word go.
Analysing the cord blood of about 1,000 newborns, NUS Associate Professor Heng Chew Kiat and his team of six researchers found that Indian babies have about three times the level of cholesterol and lipoprotein (a) - a type of cholesterol - than Chinese babies.
Higher cholesterol, coupled with low levels of good cholesterol (HDL) and high levels of bad cholesterol (LDL) and lipoprotein (a), is associated with an increased risk of heart disease.
Still, Dr Heng, who is part of a team that developed a risk test for heart disease, says genetics accounts for only 20 per cent to 60 per cent of whether one gets heart disease.
'To put it another way, what you eat and your lifestyle account for 40 per cent to 80 per cent,' he explains.
The test developed by Dr Heng's NUS team examines 15 out of more than 200 genes that have been found linked to heart disease. It takes into account a person's lifestyle and environmental factors to calculate his or her overall risk of getting the disease.
Among the lifestyle factors looked at are smoking and exercise. Smoking, for example, is known to double or even triple the risk of heart disease, while lack of exercise increases the risk by about 20 per cent.
Says Dr Heng: 'As I tell my friends, any person's heart attack risk is part-genetic and part-roti prata and char kway teow.'
Dr Adrian Low of the National University Heart Centre, who studies how heart attacks happen, says dozens of genes have been found to contribute to a predisposition. Some are believed to affect arteries, others the processing of lipids in the blood.
'But of the several dozen genes, each may contribute just 1 per cent to a person's total risk, which is easily offset or compounded by lifestyle factors like diet and exercise.'
He says that studies have shown that traditional cardiovascular risk factors, such as high cholesterol and obesity, account for more than 90 per cent of the risk of heart attacks. And most of these risk factors are modifiable.
'Certainly, some of these risk factors may be contributed genetically but to date, no gene has been identified that has been convincingly shown to play a major role in determining heart attack risk,' he adds.
Coronary conundrum
ALTHOUGH there are no definitive answers yet from genetic science, research into heart disease risk factors among Indians has thrown up even more mysteries.
What adds to the puzzle for researchers is that despite their proclivity for heart disease, Indians tend to be less - rather than more - burdened with some traditional risk factors, such as smoking or hypertension, compared to other races.
In a study in the 1980s, Dr Hughes found that Indians did not have higher levels of hypertension than the Chinese or Malays. There were also fewer smokers among Indians.
Hypertension, or high blood pressure, forces the heart to work harder to pump enough blood and oxygen to the body's organs and tissues. Over time, the heart enlarges and weakens. Arteries also become scarred, hardened and less elastic.
These inconsistencies still hold true today.
A 2007 Health Ministry National Health Surveillance Survey to obtain information on the general health status and lifestyle practices of Singaporeans found that Malays and Chinese (12.5 per cent and 12.2 per cent, respectively) had a higher prevalence of reported hypertension, compared with Indians (9.3 per cent).
When it came to smoking, Malays had the highest daily smoking prevalence (23.2 per cent), followed by the Chinese (12.3 per cent) and Indians (11.4 per cent).
What about other risk factors, such as diabetes, a well-known precursor to developing heart disease?
The same survey found that more Indians (9.7 per cent) reported having diabetes, compared with 3.8 per cent of the Chinese and 6.2 per cent of Malays. This, Dr Hughes says, supports the belief that diabetes is the more significant risk factor for heart disease.
Being obese is another factor, but therein lies another puzzle.
Going by a common measure of obesity, called the body mass index, only 7.5 per cent of Indians were found to be obese, compared with 13.4 per cent of Malays and 4.3 per cent of Chinese, according to the same survey.
However, in this respect, Dr Hughes points out that how and where the fat is distributed on the body have a greater bearing.
He explains: 'Indian patients tend to be apple-shaped, with most of their fat concentrated round their waist, while the Chinese male is likely to have the fat distributed all over.'
In a mid-1990s study, he and a team at NUS measured the body mass index and waist-hip ratio of about 1,000 Chinese, Indians and Malays.
It concluded that Indians were more prone to 'central obesity', as well as insulin resistance and glucose intolerance, which is related to diabetes.
When a person eats, insulin is released to get glucose out of the blood and into the muscle cells that use it for energy. In insulin-resistant people, the pancreas responds by pouring out more insulin, resulting in a somewhat elevated blood level of glucose and a rise in triglycerides, which is linked to heart disease.
The same study also found that Indians had less good cholesterol (HDL) than Malays and Chinese. HDL is important as it removes cholesterol from clogged arteries.
Everyone is at risk
BESIDES the role of nature, however, nurture also plays a part, say doctors.
Here, diet is the chief culprit. Dr Singh notes that although many Indians tend to be vegetarian, their diet tends to be high in processed carbohydrates and cream.
'If a patient is insulin-resistant, the carbs will cause him to pile on fat,' he says.
Dr Hughes and his colleagues also found that Indians ingest significantly lower levels of vitamin C and selenium, a trace mineral. Studies have suggested that a link between lower levels of vitamin C and selenium increases the risk of heart disease.
'Lower vitamin C in Indians and Malays is probably because of its destruction by more prolonged cooking,' he says, referring to vegetable curries favoured by Indians.
What about lack of exercise, another contributory factor?
Ironically, the Health Ministry's 2007 survey found that of the one-quarter of respondents who said they exercised regularly - 20 minutes at least three times a week - Indians claimed they had the highest participation rate (36.9 per cent), followed by Malays (22.8 per cent) and Chinese (22.3 per cent).
This self-assessment may look impressive at first, but it seems most Indians simply do not exercise vigorously or long enough, even though they think they do.
Dr Singh says when it comes to staving off heart disease, one has to break a sweat for at least 30 minutes, five times a week - but many Indians often underestimate the frequency and intensity of the exercise needed.
Officials at Fitness Network gym, where Mr Maverick works out, report that only about 6 per cent of the members who work out at least three times a week are Indians. The rest tend to be Chinese or Caucasian.
Indeed, Mr Maverick agrees that he finds it difficult to convince his Indian friends to exercise with him.
'They say I am overdoing it, but I keep telling them that you need to exercise regularly and with intensity to benefit. A slow 10-minute walk to the bus stop won't do.'
Much less a saunter to the prata shop.
But even if Mr Maverick's exercise and diet regimen should fail him, he can take heart in a myriad of treatment options available today.
At the National Heart Centre Singapore in Outram, doctors saw 90,000 patients last year and performed 2,000 angioplasties and 700 bypass operations.
Thanks to computed tomography scanners, which produce startlingly clear pictures of a patient's heart and arterial blockages, they are able to make timely and accurate diagnosis.
Patients undergoing angioplasty, using a balloon at the end of a tube to open up blocked arteries and surgery to bypass the diseased arteries, all have good chances of survival.
Drugs called statins given early enough and in large-enough doses have also been shown to nip heart disease in the bud.
Cardiologists say, however, that they hesitate to prescribe statins freely. For one thing, they are expensive - a year's supply can cost between a few hundred dollars and $1,200.
'Statins are effective,' says Dr Singh. 'But I don't think the answer is a magic drug to prevent heart disease. The answer is to change your behaviour.
'Indian or not, there are ways you can fight heart disease: If you smoke, stop. If you are overweight, shed some pounds. Adopt a diet based on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and olive oil. Eat more fish. Exercise almost every day. Get enough sleep. And, most important of all, reduce stress.'
And Mr Maverick continues to work hard on all these fronts to defy the odds. 'I intend to live a healthy active life into my old age. I want to watch my kids grow up,' he vows as he puts on his running shoes.
=============================================
LIFESTYLE CHANGE
'Indian or not, there are ways you can fight heart disease: If you smoke, stop. If you are overweight, shed some pounds. Adopt a diet based on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and olive oil. Eat more fish. Exercise almost every day. Get enough sleep. And most important of all, reduce stress.'
=================================================
HE RUNS scared, every other evening, an hour, or even two. He pounds the 10km route near his HDB home in Bukit Merah, his T-shirt sweat-soaked.
It's not about staying fit but about staying alive. It's about fending off the heart disease that Mr Maverick Saravanamuthu knows lurks everywhere in his family history.
The runs and three intense workouts a week at the Science Park's Fitness Network gym are just two of the weapons in his armoury to help him defy the fate his genes and race may have in store for him.
Diet is another. Fatty foods and processed carbohydrates, including his favourite roti prata with egg, are out. Greens are in. He is 1.63m tall and maintains his weight at a constant 61kg. He goes for medical screenings twice a year to ensure his cholesterol, glucose and blood pressure remain at healthy levels.
The 41-year-old, who runs a firm that organises health talks and workshops, knows that the risk of contracting heart disease and any one of the host of related ailments, such as hypertension or diabetes, hangs over him like the Sword of Damocles.
His father, despite practising yoga regularly, developed diabetes in his early 30s and suffered his first heart attack at 35. His second, a massive one at 62, killed him.
His mother, now in her 60s, had a heart attack six years ago and a bypass operation. One of his two sisters, now 45, is exhibiting risk factors and has mild hypertension and diabetes.
Being in the health-related business, Mr Maverick, who married at age 33 and has two young children, is only too aware that heart disease strikes Indians more frequently, at an earlier age, and more severely than all other races in Singapore.
Genetic or a matter of lifestyle?
AS FAR back as 1959, medical researchers in Singapore already reported a higher incidence of coronary heart disease among Indians.
A study by University of Malaya professor C.S. Muir published in the British Heart Journal in 1960 reports that based on a study of 552 deaths in Singapore, Indians here were 10 times more likely to die of heart disease than the Chinese or Malays.
It also found that Indian Muslims who consumed more red meat, in particular mutton, were 20 times more likely to die of heart disease than the Chinese.
According to the latest Health Ministry statistics, among the 6,348 Singaporeans admitted to restructured hospitals after suffering heart attacks in 2007, Indians were staggeringly over-represented.
They formed almost 13 per cent of the total number of heart attack victims, despite making up only 7 per cent of the population.
Malays were also over-represented but to a lesser extent than Indians. They made up 17 per cent of the heart attack victims, despite comprising only 14 per cent of the population.
The Chinese made up 69 per cent of those who suffered a heart attack in 2007, despite comprising 74 per cent of the population.
To get a more accurate picture of the severity of the problem, Gleneagles Medical Centre cardiologist Mak Koon Hou tracked the trend over nine years.
His study, published in 2003, tracked data on Chinese, Malay and Indian Singaporeans aged 20 to 64 who suffered heart attacks from 1991 to 1999.
The conclusion: Indians were three times more likely to suffer a heart attack than the Chinese, while Malays were two times more likely.
Retired National University of Singapore (NUS) Associate Professor Kenneth Hughes, who has investigated the higher rate of heart disease among Indians since the early 1980s, says it is not just a local phenomenon.
Overseas research on South Asians - covering those of Indian descent born on the Indian subcontinent, including Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan - found that they have at least twice, if not thrice, the rate of heart disease compared to other ethnic groups in their countries.
The World Health Organisation has predicted that by this year, India alone will account for 60 per cent of the world's cardiac patients, nearly four times its share of the world's population.
The Illinois-based CADI (Coronary Artery Disease among Asian Indians) research foundation headed by American-Indian doctor Enas A Enas also found that South Asians in the United States have three times the incidence of heart disease, compared to the general US population.
During the past 30 years, it noted that although the average age of first heart attacks increased by 10 years in the US, it decreased by 10 years in India.
And heart disease among Indians tends to be more severe, malignant and diffuse, meaning that, despite repeat surgery, artery blockages often return and cause death.
Dr Hughes, a Briton who retired three years ago and now lives in Singapore, says: 'It's an established fact that Indians are more likely to develop coronary heart disease. But the more interesting question is, Why is this so?
'Are Indians just born unlucky with the genes that predispose them to heart disease? Or is it diet and inactive lifestyle?'
Cardiologists such as Dr Dinesh Nair and his father, Dr V. P. Nair, both from Mount Elizabeth Hospital, and Dr Baldev Singh from Parkway East Hospital, who treat Indian patients from Singapore and around the world, say they have quite a few Indian patients in their 30s and early 40s.
A handful are even in their late 20s.
They all report that when heart disease strikes Indians, as well as occurring more often and earlier, it also tends to be more severe.
Says the older Dr Nair, who has been in practice for 35 years: 'My Indian patients have multiple blockages - five to six.'
The average Chinese patient typically has two or three blockages.
Part-roti prata
A 1996 study on 1,000 newborn babies in Singapore strongly suggested that Indians have the genetic dice loaded against them from the word go.
Analysing the cord blood of about 1,000 newborns, NUS Associate Professor Heng Chew Kiat and his team of six researchers found that Indian babies have about three times the level of cholesterol and lipoprotein (a) - a type of cholesterol - than Chinese babies.
Higher cholesterol, coupled with low levels of good cholesterol (HDL) and high levels of bad cholesterol (LDL) and lipoprotein (a), is associated with an increased risk of heart disease.
Still, Dr Heng, who is part of a team that developed a risk test for heart disease, says genetics accounts for only 20 per cent to 60 per cent of whether one gets heart disease.
'To put it another way, what you eat and your lifestyle account for 40 per cent to 80 per cent,' he explains.
The test developed by Dr Heng's NUS team examines 15 out of more than 200 genes that have been found linked to heart disease. It takes into account a person's lifestyle and environmental factors to calculate his or her overall risk of getting the disease.
Among the lifestyle factors looked at are smoking and exercise. Smoking, for example, is known to double or even triple the risk of heart disease, while lack of exercise increases the risk by about 20 per cent.
Says Dr Heng: 'As I tell my friends, any person's heart attack risk is part-genetic and part-roti prata and char kway teow.'
Dr Adrian Low of the National University Heart Centre, who studies how heart attacks happen, says dozens of genes have been found to contribute to a predisposition. Some are believed to affect arteries, others the processing of lipids in the blood.
'But of the several dozen genes, each may contribute just 1 per cent to a person's total risk, which is easily offset or compounded by lifestyle factors like diet and exercise.'
He says that studies have shown that traditional cardiovascular risk factors, such as high cholesterol and obesity, account for more than 90 per cent of the risk of heart attacks. And most of these risk factors are modifiable.
'Certainly, some of these risk factors may be contributed genetically but to date, no gene has been identified that has been convincingly shown to play a major role in determining heart attack risk,' he adds.
Coronary conundrum
ALTHOUGH there are no definitive answers yet from genetic science, research into heart disease risk factors among Indians has thrown up even more mysteries.
What adds to the puzzle for researchers is that despite their proclivity for heart disease, Indians tend to be less - rather than more - burdened with some traditional risk factors, such as smoking or hypertension, compared to other races.
In a study in the 1980s, Dr Hughes found that Indians did not have higher levels of hypertension than the Chinese or Malays. There were also fewer smokers among Indians.
Hypertension, or high blood pressure, forces the heart to work harder to pump enough blood and oxygen to the body's organs and tissues. Over time, the heart enlarges and weakens. Arteries also become scarred, hardened and less elastic.
These inconsistencies still hold true today.
A 2007 Health Ministry National Health Surveillance Survey to obtain information on the general health status and lifestyle practices of Singaporeans found that Malays and Chinese (12.5 per cent and 12.2 per cent, respectively) had a higher prevalence of reported hypertension, compared with Indians (9.3 per cent).
When it came to smoking, Malays had the highest daily smoking prevalence (23.2 per cent), followed by the Chinese (12.3 per cent) and Indians (11.4 per cent).
What about other risk factors, such as diabetes, a well-known precursor to developing heart disease?
The same survey found that more Indians (9.7 per cent) reported having diabetes, compared with 3.8 per cent of the Chinese and 6.2 per cent of Malays. This, Dr Hughes says, supports the belief that diabetes is the more significant risk factor for heart disease.
Being obese is another factor, but therein lies another puzzle.
Going by a common measure of obesity, called the body mass index, only 7.5 per cent of Indians were found to be obese, compared with 13.4 per cent of Malays and 4.3 per cent of Chinese, according to the same survey.
However, in this respect, Dr Hughes points out that how and where the fat is distributed on the body have a greater bearing.
He explains: 'Indian patients tend to be apple-shaped, with most of their fat concentrated round their waist, while the Chinese male is likely to have the fat distributed all over.'
In a mid-1990s study, he and a team at NUS measured the body mass index and waist-hip ratio of about 1,000 Chinese, Indians and Malays.
It concluded that Indians were more prone to 'central obesity', as well as insulin resistance and glucose intolerance, which is related to diabetes.
When a person eats, insulin is released to get glucose out of the blood and into the muscle cells that use it for energy. In insulin-resistant people, the pancreas responds by pouring out more insulin, resulting in a somewhat elevated blood level of glucose and a rise in triglycerides, which is linked to heart disease.
The same study also found that Indians had less good cholesterol (HDL) than Malays and Chinese. HDL is important as it removes cholesterol from clogged arteries.
Everyone is at risk
BESIDES the role of nature, however, nurture also plays a part, say doctors.
Here, diet is the chief culprit. Dr Singh notes that although many Indians tend to be vegetarian, their diet tends to be high in processed carbohydrates and cream.
'If a patient is insulin-resistant, the carbs will cause him to pile on fat,' he says.
Dr Hughes and his colleagues also found that Indians ingest significantly lower levels of vitamin C and selenium, a trace mineral. Studies have suggested that a link between lower levels of vitamin C and selenium increases the risk of heart disease.
'Lower vitamin C in Indians and Malays is probably because of its destruction by more prolonged cooking,' he says, referring to vegetable curries favoured by Indians.
What about lack of exercise, another contributory factor?
Ironically, the Health Ministry's 2007 survey found that of the one-quarter of respondents who said they exercised regularly - 20 minutes at least three times a week - Indians claimed they had the highest participation rate (36.9 per cent), followed by Malays (22.8 per cent) and Chinese (22.3 per cent).
This self-assessment may look impressive at first, but it seems most Indians simply do not exercise vigorously or long enough, even though they think they do.
Dr Singh says when it comes to staving off heart disease, one has to break a sweat for at least 30 minutes, five times a week - but many Indians often underestimate the frequency and intensity of the exercise needed.
Officials at Fitness Network gym, where Mr Maverick works out, report that only about 6 per cent of the members who work out at least three times a week are Indians. The rest tend to be Chinese or Caucasian.
Indeed, Mr Maverick agrees that he finds it difficult to convince his Indian friends to exercise with him.
'They say I am overdoing it, but I keep telling them that you need to exercise regularly and with intensity to benefit. A slow 10-minute walk to the bus stop won't do.'
Much less a saunter to the prata shop.
But even if Mr Maverick's exercise and diet regimen should fail him, he can take heart in a myriad of treatment options available today.
At the National Heart Centre Singapore in Outram, doctors saw 90,000 patients last year and performed 2,000 angioplasties and 700 bypass operations.
Thanks to computed tomography scanners, which produce startlingly clear pictures of a patient's heart and arterial blockages, they are able to make timely and accurate diagnosis.
Patients undergoing angioplasty, using a balloon at the end of a tube to open up blocked arteries and surgery to bypass the diseased arteries, all have good chances of survival.
Drugs called statins given early enough and in large-enough doses have also been shown to nip heart disease in the bud.
Cardiologists say, however, that they hesitate to prescribe statins freely. For one thing, they are expensive - a year's supply can cost between a few hundred dollars and $1,200.
'Statins are effective,' says Dr Singh. 'But I don't think the answer is a magic drug to prevent heart disease. The answer is to change your behaviour.
'Indian or not, there are ways you can fight heart disease: If you smoke, stop. If you are overweight, shed some pounds. Adopt a diet based on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and olive oil. Eat more fish. Exercise almost every day. Get enough sleep. And, most important of all, reduce stress.'
And Mr Maverick continues to work hard on all these fronts to defy the odds. 'I intend to live a healthy active life into my old age. I want to watch my kids grow up,' he vows as he puts on his running shoes.
=============================================
LIFESTYLE CHANGE
'Indian or not, there are ways you can fight heart disease: If you smoke, stop. If you are overweight, shed some pounds. Adopt a diet based on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and olive oil. Eat more fish. Exercise almost every day. Get enough sleep. And most important of all, reduce stress.'
The resting heart rate of the 67-year-old well known former Olympian sprinter, C. Kunalan
The following was extracted from a report “the monday interview with C. Kunalan - Champion of life - Sprinter C. Kunalan embodies the Olympic values of friendship, excellence and respect on and off the track, by john lui” of the Straits Times dated 1 March 2010.
“He has a resting heart rate of 55 beats a minute when the average male has a rate of about 70. Stronger hearts do not need to beat as fast. World-class athletes such as swimmer Michael Phelps have very low rates - in the 30s.”
“He has a resting heart rate of 55 beats a minute when the average male has a rate of about 70. Stronger hearts do not need to beat as fast. World-class athletes such as swimmer Michael Phelps have very low rates - in the 30s.”
How to prevent heart disease (Sunday Times 2020-02-27)
Source: Saturday Special Report of Straits Time Times dated 27th February 2010
· STOP SMOKING
SMOKERS - whether of cigarettes, pipes or cigars - are more than twice at risk of a heart attack than non-smokers.
Studies have found that even one to two cigarettes a day greatly increase the risk of heart attack, stroke and other cardiovascular conditions.
Non-smokers who are exposed to constant smoke also have an increased risk.
If you quit smoking, the health benefits start almost immediately, and within a few years, your risk of stroke and coronary artery disease becomes similar to non-smokers'.
· LOWER YOUR TOTAL CHOLESTEROL, LDL (BAD) CHOLESTEROL AND TRIGLYCERIDE LEVELS
EXCESSIVE lipids (fatty substances including cholesterol and triglycerides), especially in the form of LDL cholesterol, cause the build-up of fatty deposits within your arteries, reducing or blocking the flow of blood and oxygen to your heart.
There is a sharp increase in the risk of cardiovascular disease when total cholesterol levels are 240 mg/dl and above. Aim for a total cholesterol level of less than 200 mg/dl.
LDL cholesterol should be less than 70 mg/dl for patients at very high risk of cardiovascular disease. For all others, LDL cholesterol should be less than 130 mg/dl.
Triglyceride is a form of fat. People with high triglycerides often have a high total cholesterol level, including high LDL (bad) cholesterol and low HDL (good) cholesterol levels. Triglyceride levels should be kept below 150 mg/dl.
It is recommended that you have your cholesterol level checked as early as age 20 or earlier if you have a family history of high cholesterol.
The cholesterol profile includes an evaluation of total cholesterol, HDL, LDL and triglyceride levels.
· RAISE YOUR HDL (GOOD CHOLESTEROL)
HDL cholesterol takes the LDL (bad) cholesterol away from the arteries and back to the liver, where it can be passed out of the body. High levels of HDL seem to protect against cardiovascular disease.
Aim for HDL levels greater than 40 mg/dl; the higher the HDL level, the better. An HDL of 60 mg/dl and above is considered protective against heart disease.
· LOWER HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE
BLOOD pressure measures the pressure or force inside your arteries with each heartbeat.
High blood pressure increases the workload of the heart and kidneys, increasing the risk of heart attack, heart failure, stroke and kidney disease. Aim for a reading of 120/80 mmHg or lower (high blood pressure is 140/90 or higher).
Control blood pressure through diet, exercise, weight management and, if needed, medication.
· PREVENT DIABETES. IF NOT, CONTROL IT
DIABETES occurs when the body is unable to produce insulin or use the insulin it has. This results in elevated blood sugar levels. Those with diabetes have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease because diabetes increases other risk factors, such as high cholesterol, LDL and triglycerides; lower HDL; and high blood pressure.
Keeping diabetes under control is essential in reducing your risk.
· MAINTAIN A HEALTHY BODY WEIGHT
THE more you weigh, the harder your heart has to work to give your body nutrients.
Research shows that being overweight contributes to the onset of cardiovascular disease.
Excess weight also raises blood cholesterol, triglycerides and blood pressure, lowers HDL cholesterol and increases the risk of diabetes.
· EAT HEALTHY FOOD
VEGETABLES and fruit are high in vitamins, minerals and fibre - and low in calories.
Eating a variety of fruit and vegetables may help you control your weight and your blood pressure.
Unrefined whole-grain food contains fibre that can help lower your blood cholesterol and help you feel full, which may help you manage your weight.
Eat fish at least twice a week. Recent research shows that eating oily fish containing omega-3 fatty acids (for example, salmon, trout and herring) may help lower your risk of death from coronary artery disease.
Choose lean meat and poultry without skin and prepare them without added saturated and trans fat.
· EXERCISE
THE heart is like any other muscle - it needs a workout to stay strong and healthy. Exercising helps improve how well the heart pumps blood through your body. Aim for moderate exercise 30 minutes a day, on most days.
Exercise should be aerobic, involving the large muscle groups. Aerobic activities include brisk walking, cycling, swimming, jumping rope and jogging. However, consult your doctor before starting any exercise programme.
· STOP SMOKING
SMOKERS - whether of cigarettes, pipes or cigars - are more than twice at risk of a heart attack than non-smokers.
Studies have found that even one to two cigarettes a day greatly increase the risk of heart attack, stroke and other cardiovascular conditions.
Non-smokers who are exposed to constant smoke also have an increased risk.
If you quit smoking, the health benefits start almost immediately, and within a few years, your risk of stroke and coronary artery disease becomes similar to non-smokers'.
· LOWER YOUR TOTAL CHOLESTEROL, LDL (BAD) CHOLESTEROL AND TRIGLYCERIDE LEVELS
EXCESSIVE lipids (fatty substances including cholesterol and triglycerides), especially in the form of LDL cholesterol, cause the build-up of fatty deposits within your arteries, reducing or blocking the flow of blood and oxygen to your heart.
There is a sharp increase in the risk of cardiovascular disease when total cholesterol levels are 240 mg/dl and above. Aim for a total cholesterol level of less than 200 mg/dl.
LDL cholesterol should be less than 70 mg/dl for patients at very high risk of cardiovascular disease. For all others, LDL cholesterol should be less than 130 mg/dl.
Triglyceride is a form of fat. People with high triglycerides often have a high total cholesterol level, including high LDL (bad) cholesterol and low HDL (good) cholesterol levels. Triglyceride levels should be kept below 150 mg/dl.
It is recommended that you have your cholesterol level checked as early as age 20 or earlier if you have a family history of high cholesterol.
The cholesterol profile includes an evaluation of total cholesterol, HDL, LDL and triglyceride levels.
· RAISE YOUR HDL (GOOD CHOLESTEROL)
HDL cholesterol takes the LDL (bad) cholesterol away from the arteries and back to the liver, where it can be passed out of the body. High levels of HDL seem to protect against cardiovascular disease.
Aim for HDL levels greater than 40 mg/dl; the higher the HDL level, the better. An HDL of 60 mg/dl and above is considered protective against heart disease.
· LOWER HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE
BLOOD pressure measures the pressure or force inside your arteries with each heartbeat.
High blood pressure increases the workload of the heart and kidneys, increasing the risk of heart attack, heart failure, stroke and kidney disease. Aim for a reading of 120/80 mmHg or lower (high blood pressure is 140/90 or higher).
Control blood pressure through diet, exercise, weight management and, if needed, medication.
· PREVENT DIABETES. IF NOT, CONTROL IT
DIABETES occurs when the body is unable to produce insulin or use the insulin it has. This results in elevated blood sugar levels. Those with diabetes have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease because diabetes increases other risk factors, such as high cholesterol, LDL and triglycerides; lower HDL; and high blood pressure.
Keeping diabetes under control is essential in reducing your risk.
· MAINTAIN A HEALTHY BODY WEIGHT
THE more you weigh, the harder your heart has to work to give your body nutrients.
Research shows that being overweight contributes to the onset of cardiovascular disease.
Excess weight also raises blood cholesterol, triglycerides and blood pressure, lowers HDL cholesterol and increases the risk of diabetes.
· EAT HEALTHY FOOD
VEGETABLES and fruit are high in vitamins, minerals and fibre - and low in calories.
Eating a variety of fruit and vegetables may help you control your weight and your blood pressure.
Unrefined whole-grain food contains fibre that can help lower your blood cholesterol and help you feel full, which may help you manage your weight.
Eat fish at least twice a week. Recent research shows that eating oily fish containing omega-3 fatty acids (for example, salmon, trout and herring) may help lower your risk of death from coronary artery disease.
Choose lean meat and poultry without skin and prepare them without added saturated and trans fat.
· EXERCISE
THE heart is like any other muscle - it needs a workout to stay strong and healthy. Exercising helps improve how well the heart pumps blood through your body. Aim for moderate exercise 30 minutes a day, on most days.
Exercise should be aerobic, involving the large muscle groups. Aerobic activities include brisk walking, cycling, swimming, jumping rope and jogging. However, consult your doctor before starting any exercise programme.