The art of caring for your heart
November 16 2009
You can’t live or love without it. Sex and laughter is good for it and bad news can break it. Let’s get to the heart of the matter shall we?
The heart has baffled humans since the dawn of time as the blood pump is ever so complex. It is a muscle that pumps blood to all the parts of your body. It provides your body with the oxygen and nourishment it needs to function effectively.
When your blood flows through your body and returns to the heart, it follows a complicated pathway. To keep it simple, look after your heart. A healthy heart is the most prized possession one can have today.
I met with Parul Dubé who works as a nutrition adviser at the Heart foundation. She filled me in on the heart foundation’s initiative to develop an ethnic-specific shopping guide for the various cultural groups who are at higher risk for lifestyle diseases. Almost every other food and shopping guide available today is targeted at the European population. A shopping guide was therefore developed by the heart foundation for our Indian community containing culturally familiar foods that meet the nutrient requirements within an affordable budget.
The Heart Foundation is a charity organisation established 41 years ago with an aim to stop New Zealanders dying prematurely from heart disease. Since then heart disease death rates in New Zealand have halved. Yet tragically, cardiovascular disease (which includes heart disease and stroke) remains the number one cause of death in the country – accounting for 40% of all deaths annually. Statistics show that the rate of cardiovascular disease amongst Indian people is high and on the rise (Dr Geeta Gala, Public Health Medicine Registrar, Mar 08).
Indians, New Zealand’s second-largest Asian group, have more fat for their size than Europeans and Polynesians – and generally have a higher diabetes and heart attack rate than both Pacific Islanders and Maori.
A major dietary factor responsible for this is a high saturated fat intake amongst the Indian community. Saturated fat is a type of fat commonly found in animal products which is the main cause for raised blood cholesterol levels increasing risk of heart and blood vessel disease. High saturated fat ingredients include Ghee, cream, butter and coconut milk which are often used to enhance traditional Indian foods. Additionally there is a higher intake of westernised takeaway foods which can be high in total fat, saturated fat, sugar and salt. “These dietary factors are modifiable” says Parul.
“Small changes in the types of foods chosen at the supermarket to the preparation techniques employed at home can make some big improvements. Combined with diet other key changes to reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease include being physically active and not smoking”.
In order to shop wisely the heart foundation is designing a basic healthy shopping list that would guide the choice of foods which are culturally familiar to both meet the nutrient requirements and provide best value for money for an Indian family of 4 members (2 adults and 2 children aged between 8-14 yrs).
The shopping list is in its developmental stage and should be available by early next year. “We are hoping to have the shopping lists (downloadable versions) accessible to different ethnic groups on the Heart Foundation website”.
The Heart Foundation has previously published an Indian specific resource (Good Health in your hands! Written in Gujarati with English translation) that outlines culturally appropriate exercises (dancing/ gardening/ social sports). The Heart Foundation recently produced the Active Hearts exercise DVD – to promote physical activity as part of a healthy lifestyle. It is specifically designed for people who have had a heart event or procedure – or who are at risk of heart disease.
Parul’s message to Indian Weekender readers is to firstly maintain a heart healthy eating pattern, have a heart health check regularly, know your numbers e.g. Cholesterol/ Blood Pressure/ Waist circumference, be active everyday and lastly if you smoke, seek help from your GP to quit.
Amazing facts about your heart
* Heart disease has been viewed as a man’s illness. The truth is the heart disease kills women as it does men. Women don’t tend to experience the Bollywood standard heart attack in which gripping chest pain sends you keeling over. Instead women report tightness, aching or pressure in the heart, other symptoms like nausea, back, left hand or jaw pain.
* Some people really do have bigger hearts than others. It’s not a sign of affection but a signal of underlying heart disease. If left untreated, a big heart can lead to heart failure.
* A hearty laugh, the kind that sends a stream of tears from your eyes does more than warm the soul. Research has shown the guffaw can cause the lining of blood vessel walls called endothelium to relax, increasing blood flow for up to 45 minutes after the laugh attack.
* A study found that having an orgasm atleast 3 times a week cut in half the likelihood of death from coronary heart disease. By some estimates, a vigorous sex session can double a person's heart rate and burn up about 200 calories, or the equivalent of a brisk 15-minute run.
* A glass of Merlot can go straight to the heart, and recent research shows that so too can the white variety. Scientists have attributed the heart benefits of reds to grape skins, which are chock full of certain antioxidants. Since the purple-hued skins get removed to make Chardonnays, many scientists had assumed white wine probably wouldn't do the heart any good. A lab experiment on rats showed that a grape's pulp conceals cardio-protective compounds that rival those found in reds. Red or white? Just follow your heart. Only don’t overdo it.
* In under a minute, your heart can pump blood to every cell in your body. And over the course of a day, about 100,000 heart beats shuttle 2,000 gallons of oxygen-rich blood many times through about 60,000 miles of branching blood vessels that link together the cells of our organs and body parts. That's a hefty job for a fist-sized muscle.
Source: http://www.livescience.com/health/top_10_amazing_heart_facts-1.html These facts are not verified by the National Heart Foundation.
You can also visit http://www.goredforwomen.org.nz for more information.
Please continue to support the Heart Foundation; together we will beat heart disease. For more information on the Heart Foundation visit http://www.heart foundation.org.nz/
* Rashmi Shenoy works with Hewlett Packard as a services account manager and writes for Indian Weekender in her spare time.
You can’t live or love without it. Sex and laughter is good for it and bad news can break it. Let’s get to the heart of the matter shall we?
The heart has baffled humans since the dawn of time as the blood pump is ever so complex. It is a muscle that pumps blood to all the parts of your body. It...
You can’t live or love without it. Sex and laughter is good for it and bad news can break it. Let’s get to the heart of the matter shall we?
The heart has baffled humans since the dawn of time as the blood pump is ever so complex. It is a muscle that pumps blood to all the parts of your body. It provides your body with the oxygen and nourishment it needs to function effectively.
When your blood flows through your body and returns to the heart, it follows a complicated pathway. To keep it simple, look after your heart. A healthy heart is the most prized possession one can have today.
I met with Parul Dubé who works as a nutrition adviser at the Heart foundation. She filled me in on the heart foundation’s initiative to develop an ethnic-specific shopping guide for the various cultural groups who are at higher risk for lifestyle diseases. Almost every other food and shopping guide available today is targeted at the European population. A shopping guide was therefore developed by the heart foundation for our Indian community containing culturally familiar foods that meet the nutrient requirements within an affordable budget.
The Heart Foundation is a charity organisation established 41 years ago with an aim to stop New Zealanders dying prematurely from heart disease. Since then heart disease death rates in New Zealand have halved. Yet tragically, cardiovascular disease (which includes heart disease and stroke) remains the number one cause of death in the country – accounting for 40% of all deaths annually. Statistics show that the rate of cardiovascular disease amongst Indian people is high and on the rise (Dr Geeta Gala, Public Health Medicine Registrar, Mar 08).
Indians, New Zealand’s second-largest Asian group, have more fat for their size than Europeans and Polynesians – and generally have a higher diabetes and heart attack rate than both Pacific Islanders and Maori.
A major dietary factor responsible for this is a high saturated fat intake amongst the Indian community. Saturated fat is a type of fat commonly found in animal products which is the main cause for raised blood cholesterol levels increasing risk of heart and blood vessel disease. High saturated fat ingredients include Ghee, cream, butter and coconut milk which are often used to enhance traditional Indian foods. Additionally there is a higher intake of westernised takeaway foods which can be high in total fat, saturated fat, sugar and salt. “These dietary factors are modifiable” says Parul.
“Small changes in the types of foods chosen at the supermarket to the preparation techniques employed at home can make some big improvements. Combined with diet other key changes to reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease include being physically active and not smoking”.
In order to shop wisely the heart foundation is designing a basic healthy shopping list that would guide the choice of foods which are culturally familiar to both meet the nutrient requirements and provide best value for money for an Indian family of 4 members (2 adults and 2 children aged between 8-14 yrs).
The shopping list is in its developmental stage and should be available by early next year. “We are hoping to have the shopping lists (downloadable versions) accessible to different ethnic groups on the Heart Foundation website”.
The Heart Foundation has previously published an Indian specific resource (Good Health in your hands! Written in Gujarati with English translation) that outlines culturally appropriate exercises (dancing/ gardening/ social sports). The Heart Foundation recently produced the Active Hearts exercise DVD – to promote physical activity as part of a healthy lifestyle. It is specifically designed for people who have had a heart event or procedure – or who are at risk of heart disease.
Parul’s message to Indian Weekender readers is to firstly maintain a heart healthy eating pattern, have a heart health check regularly, know your numbers e.g. Cholesterol/ Blood Pressure/ Waist circumference, be active everyday and lastly if you smoke, seek help from your GP to quit.
Amazing facts about your heart
* Heart disease has been viewed as a man’s illness. The truth is the heart disease kills women as it does men. Women don’t tend to experience the Bollywood standard heart attack in which gripping chest pain sends you keeling over. Instead women report tightness, aching or pressure in the heart, other symptoms like nausea, back, left hand or jaw pain.
* Some people really do have bigger hearts than others. It’s not a sign of affection but a signal of underlying heart disease. If left untreated, a big heart can lead to heart failure.
* A hearty laugh, the kind that sends a stream of tears from your eyes does more than warm the soul. Research has shown the guffaw can cause the lining of blood vessel walls called endothelium to relax, increasing blood flow for up to 45 minutes after the laugh attack.
* A study found that having an orgasm atleast 3 times a week cut in half the likelihood of death from coronary heart disease. By some estimates, a vigorous sex session can double a person's heart rate and burn up about 200 calories, or the equivalent of a brisk 15-minute run.
* A glass of Merlot can go straight to the heart, and recent research shows that so too can the white variety. Scientists have attributed the heart benefits of reds to grape skins, which are chock full of certain antioxidants. Since the purple-hued skins get removed to make Chardonnays, many scientists had assumed white wine probably wouldn't do the heart any good. A lab experiment on rats showed that a grape's pulp conceals cardio-protective compounds that rival those found in reds. Red or white? Just follow your heart. Only don’t overdo it.
* In under a minute, your heart can pump blood to every cell in your body. And over the course of a day, about 100,000 heart beats shuttle 2,000 gallons of oxygen-rich blood many times through about 60,000 miles of branching blood vessels that link together the cells of our organs and body parts. That's a hefty job for a fist-sized muscle.
Source: http://www.livescience.com/health/top_10_amazing_heart_facts-1.html These facts are not verified by the National Heart Foundation.
You can also visit http://www.goredforwomen.org.nz for more information.
Please continue to support the Heart Foundation; together we will beat heart disease. For more information on the Heart Foundation visit http://www.heart foundation.org.nz/
* Rashmi Shenoy works with Hewlett Packard as a services account manager and writes for Indian Weekender in her spare time.
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