High Blood Pressure – what is it?

High Blood Pressure or Hypertension affects 80 million Americans and nearly half of the people in the UK between the ages of 65 and 74, and a large percentage of those between the ages of 35 and 65. One of the problems associated with high blood pressure is that you will probably not even know you have it until you happen to have your blood pressure taken during a routine physical examination.

Upon diagnosis, you may wonder why you never saw it coming.  Most people don’t. Only those with severe high blood pressure experience any warning signs at all.  These signs can include headaches, impaired vision, and black-outs.

What is blood pressure ?

It is the measurement of the force that blood applies to the walls of the arteries as it flows through them carrying oxygen and nutrients to the body’s vital organs and systems. Naturally, our blood is under pressure as it rushes through our arteries. Even those with blood pressure in the normal range will experience an increase in their blood pressure during rigorous physical activity or during times of stress.  It only becomes a problem when the blood continues to run high.  This condition of blood pressure is known as hypertension or high blood pressure and in 95% of the cases, the cause of it is never known.  However, we do know the factors that set a person up to develop hypertension.

Factors influencing High Blood Pressure

They are as follows:

NON-MODAFIABLE RISK FACTORS ARE 4: HEREDITY-HIGH B/P RUNNING IN THE FAMILY

AGE-THE OLDER, THE HIGHER PROBABILITY YOU WILL END UP WITH B/P DEPENDING ON YOUR HEALTH AND HOW GOOD YOU TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF.

SEX-MALES VS FEMALES

RACE-HIGHIER IN AFROAMERICAN AS OPPOSED TO WHITE.

MODAFIABLE RISK FACTORS=FACTORS YOU CAN CONTROL IN YOUR LIFESPAN.

Obesity – those with a body mass index of 30 or more

–Drinking more than 2 – 4 alcoholic drinks a day                                                                                

-Smoking

–High cholesterol

–Diabetes

–Stress and anxiety

–Excessive salt consumption

Possible causes of High Blood Pressure

Sometimes the cause of a person’s high blood pressure is determined, but this happens in only 5% of the cases.  When a cause is found, the person is diagnosed with secondary high blood pressure [hypertension].  In most of these cases, the cause can be linked to an underlying illness such as kidney disease, adrenal gland disease, or narrowing of the aorta.  Contraceptive pills, steroids, and some medications can also cause secondary high blood pressure [hypertension], though instances of this are not all that common.

 High Blood Pressure and the important numbers

We hear the numbers, but do we really know what they mean?  Since your blood pressure numbers can help you to understand your overall health status, it is important that you keep track of it.  By knowing where your numbers are right now, you can head off such serious high blood pressure complications as angina, heart attacks, stroke, kidney damage, and many others that might surprise you – like eye problems and gangrene.

Medical professionals generally provide your blood pressure to you in terms of two numbers – a top one and a bottom one.  For example, if your blood pressure is 120/80, they may say that you have a blood pressure of 120 over 80.  Here is a definition for these numbers:

The top figure– this is your systolic blood pressure. It measures the force of blood in the arteries as your heart beats.  The top number means the pressure is reading your heart at work.  This is why the top number will always be greater than the bottom number.

The bottom figure – this is your diastolic blood pressure. It is the pressure of your blood when the heart is relaxed in between the times when it is pumping.  Means the pressure is reading your heart at rest.

Your blood pressure requires monitoring when you have a systolic blood pressure of 140 or over and/or a diastolic blood pressure of 90 or over.  Those with diabetes must maintain a lower blood pressure that those who don’t have the condition.  Diabetics should maintain a blood pressure of less than 130/80.

Monitors for measuring High Blood Pressure

It is wise to monitor your blood pressure at home in addition to having it taken at your doctor’s office. This will allow you to provide your doctor with readings that have been taken over time, providing a more in depth look at your personal health condition.  This will help him or her to prescribe the right hypertensive medication and treatment for your specific condition.

The best blood pressure monitors are those that take your measurement from the upper arm.  Those that provide readings from the wrist or finger are not as reliable. You’ll also want to make sure that the blood pressure monitor you are considering has been proven in clinical trials. Trusted name brands include those made by Omron, LifeSource, Mark of Fitness, Micro Life, and A and D Instruments. There are other brands available – the important thing is to do your research.

Check in tomorrow and learn ways to reduce your blood pressure in Part 2.

What is heart disease?

Heart disease occurs when the arteries that supply blood to the heart are clogged.  Deposits of fat and cholesterol prevent the blood from flowing as it should.  If the blood supply is completely blocked, you are in danger of having a heart attack.

What is cholesterol?

Cholesterol forms in the liver.  It is a waxy substance that has many important functions in the body.  It is part of various hormones, the makeup of the walls of your body’s cells,  a component of bile, and many other purposes.  How the body processes it is very complex.  It joins with a protein and forms a package called lipoprotein.  These lipoproteins carry cholesterol through the blood.

Foods of animal origin contain cholesterol.  These foods include eggs, dairy products, shellfish, and meat.  Foods of plant origin-fruits, grains, and cereals—do not contain cholesterol.

How is cholesterol measured?

Cholesterol is measured in metric system units.  The LDL’s (low density lipoproteins) have the bad cholesterol.  LDL’s are the main source of blockage in the arteries.  HDL’s (high density lipoproteins) have the good cholesterol.  HDL’s help keep cholesterol from building up in the wall of the arteries.

A total cholesterol level less than 200mg/dl is considered good.  It represents the least risk of heart disease.  At 200, your level is borderline high.  If you are above 200 your level of cholesterol is high.

Why is my cholesterol so high?

Some cholesterol is essential to many body processes. However, problems can develop when there is too much cholesterol.

Your cholesterol level is high because of the amount of cholesterol and fat in the food you eat.  It’s also affected by how quickly your body makes LDL cholesterol and disposes of it.

The following factors determine whether your LDL level is high or low:

-Heredity –Your Diet –Your weight –Your exercise program –Your age & sex –Other medical conditions you may have, such as diabetes.

How can I control these factors?

1-You can’t do much about heredity, age, sex or race (non-modifiable factors – meaning you have no control on these factors to keep cholesterol low).

2-You can do a lot through diet.  To lower cholesterol, limit your daily calories from fat to 30 percent should be saturated fat and not more than one third from polyunsaturated fat.  At least one third of the total fat calories should be from mono-saturated fat.  Weight loss helps to lower LDL’s and raise HDL’s.

3-Physical Exercise can also do a lot in lowering cholesterol.  It can help in lowering LDL’s and raise the HDL’s.

4-Some women find that estrogen replacement following menopause lowers cholesterol.

5-You should take care of other medical problems like diabetes as best as you can.

6-Medications are a very important part of treating high cholesterol.  Studies have shown that your life span can be improved by taking mediations if you have high cholesterol.

What else can you do?

You should lower a high LDL cholesterol level whether you have heart disease or not.  Our doctor may prescribe medication to help you do this.  He or she can provide information about low fat food plans.  You can also get specific food listings for fat and cholesterol.

You must do most of the work, though.  For the same number of calories, you can develop a food plan that includes enough food with lower fat and cholesterol.  This type of plan will satisfy your hunger and be enjoyable, as well.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

National Heart Lung and Blood Institute

P.O. Box 30105

Bethesda, MD 20824-0105

The foods we eat that has calories=sugar, starches and carbohydrates are made up of sugar molecules either single or in groups (glucose and fructose for instance).  When food reaches our stomach in time digestion starts to take place where the sugar is broken down in the stomach and the intestines  into individual glucose units.  It turns out glucose is the most common and important one.  The glucose then passes into the liver where 60 to 80 % gets stored=inactive glucose that’s converted to glycogen in this organ.  The remainder of glucose not stored goes in our bloodstream=active sugar & is ready to be utilized by the body where it is needed by many organs.  It’s used as the principle source of energy (brain for energy, the muscles for both energy and some storage, liver for more glucose storage=that’s converted to glycogen, and even fat tissue using it for triglyceride production).  Glucose does get sent to other organs for more storage.  Insulin plays an important role in the glucose being distributed throughout the body.  Without insulin the glucose has nowhere to go.  When digestion occurs a process happens which is the BREAKDOWN of the sugars , released into the circulatory system which gives you extra glucose, than the pancreas senses that and releases insulin, the insulin allows sugar to pass into the blood cells & to be stored somewhere or utilized by the body (without this process hyperglycemia would occur like in a diabetic).   When the glucose in the blood reaches the liver a cell sensor picks it up and allows the glucose to go into the organ where glucose is stored as glycogen.  Insulin plays a key role in multiple parts of your metabolism.  Insulin allows protein synthesis, fat synthesis and cell growth to occur in the body.  Now understanding how the body works lets understand how this has anything to do with controlling obesity.

When you eat a meal let’s say breakfast (fasting from the night before) your sugar level in a normal person is about 80.  After the meal in 1hr the sugar level starts peaking as soon as the pancreas senses glucose it starts releasing insulin that does its storage in the different ways previously discussed and by 2 hrs after the meal the glucose level is down again but in people eating 3 large hyperglycemic meals a day you cause these spikes in your glucose levels and are turning on insulin by the pancreas which stimulates up your FAT STORAGE system.  You need to make a change in that diet by eating 6 small low glycemic meals a day (have one meal every 2 to 3 hours).   This shuts down your fat storage.  When eating low glycemic foods like lentils they raise sugar in the body 28% (slightly) as opposed to high glycemic (sugar) foods like pizza, soda, bread, cornflakes.  Your body can handle high glycemic foods occasionally but not daily since it will allow constant high levels of glucose with the pancreas stimulated to frequently release insulin into the bloodstream and this turns on fat storage and converts all extra energy to Fat.   

This extra energy is because the meal was high glucose and what the body needed was used but the excess glucose from the high glycemic meals goes to FAT storage.  So what’s the key resolution to weight loss eat 6 low glycemic meals a day= low fat, low carbohydrates, low sugar keeping your baseline glucose at a steady and low sugar level on a regular basis with still treating yourself to occasional high glycemic meals.  Follow this plan and in the first week eating like this I lost 5lbs and in the second week another 5lbs and since 1 to 2 lbs. per week .  Remember don’t start occasional high glycemic meals till you reach your ideal weight that you want to be at.  If you don’t, you put your diet 2-3 days back.   To learn more about healthy habits in your life with diet, some exercise, and how to reach your ideal weight like I am almost at come to my website.   I lost 22lbs already and I’m not obese by the body mass index.  Join me and go to healthyusa.tsfl.com.  No charge, no fee, no gimmick, no donations and no hacker.  It’s just you obtaining information about how to live your life healthier, even your family or friends (if interested) who can get involved in being healthier with you possibly spreading this great news to make a healthier USA for all age groups.  Thank you for your time and I hope I have spread some light on someone.  When I made this a routine in my life it got so EASY!

Heart disease continues to be the number one killer; cancer, the number 2 killer, not far behind. The tragic aspect of these deadly diseases is that they could all be cured, I do believe, if we had sufficient funding.

Arlen Specter ((February 12, 1930　– October 14, 2012) was a United States Senator from Pennsylvania

Risk Factors

Factors that increase your risk of Cushing’s syndrome include:

• Chronic use of corticosteroid medicines
• Age: 20-50 years
• Sex: female (much more common in women)

LIFESCRIPT Healthy Living for Women

Cushing’s syndrome describes the signs and symptoms associated with prolonged exposure to inappropriately high levels of the hormone cortisol. This can be caused by taking glucocorticoid drugs, or diseases that result in excess cortisol, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), or CRH levels.

^{Cushing’s syndrome appears when the body’s tissues are display to immoderate levels of cortisol for long periods of time.} 

There are two types of the disease and they are known as exogenous and endogenous.  Exogenous Cushing syndrome is caused by something outside of the body, like when hormones are given to a patient during a RX for another condition.  Endogenous is caused by natural causing problems within the body.  Endogenous is likely to be hereditary and not caused by an outside force like a steroid complex.

Causes of Cushing Syndrome

The most common cause of Cushing’s syndrome is

^{exogenous administration of glucocorticoids prescribed by a health care practitioner to treat other diseases (called iatrogenic Cushing’s syndrome). This can be an effect of corticosteroid treatment of a variety of disorders such as asthma and rheumatoid arthritis, or in immunosuppression after an organ transplant.}

Administration of synthetic ACTH(adrenocorticotropichormone) is also possible, but ACTH is less often prescribed due to cost and lesser utility. Although rare, Cushing’s syndrome can also be due to the use of medroxyprogesterone

In this form of Cushing’s, the adrenal glands atrophy due to lack of stimulation by ACTH, since glucocorticoids downregulate production of ACTH. Cushing syndrome in childhood usually results from use of glucocorticoid medication.

^{Endogenous Cushing’s syndrome results from some derangement of the body’s own system of secreting cortisol. Normally, ACTH is released from the pituitary gland when necessary to stimulate the release of cortisol from the adrenal glands.}

In pituitary Cushing’s, a benign pituitary adenoma secretes ACTH. This is also known as Cushing’s disease and is responsible for 70% of endogenous Cushing’s syndrome.

In adrenal Cushing’s, excess cortisol is produced by adrenal gland tumors, hyperplastic adrenal glands, or adrenal glands with nodular adrenal hyperplasia.

Tumors outside the normal pituitary-adrenal system can produce ACTH (occasionally with CRH) that affects the adrenal glands. This etiology is called ectopic or paraneoplastic Cushing’s disease and is seen in diseases like small cell lung cancer.

Finally, rare cases of CRH-secreting tumors (without ACTH secretion) have been reported, which stimulates pituitary ACTH production.

^{[16]HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cushing%27s_syndrome” \l “cite_note-Voyadzis_JM.2C_Guttman-Bauman_I.2C_Santi_M.2C_Cogen_P._2004_212.E2.80.936-16” [16]}

Pseudo-Cushing’s syndrome

Elevated levels of total cortisol can also be due to estrogen found in oral contraceptive pills that contain a mixture of estrogen and progesterone, leading to

^{Pseudo-Cushing’s syndrome. Estrogen can cause an increase of cortisol-binding globulin and thereby cause the total cortisol level to be elevated. However, the total free cortisol, which is the active hormone in the body, as measured by a 24 hour urine collection for urinary free cortisol, is normal.}

Epidemiology

^{Iatrogenic Cushing’s syndrome (caused by treatment with corticosteroids) is the most common form of Cushing’s syndrome.}

Symptoms of Cushings Syndrome

Symptom of cushings syndrome include fat deposits close to the face neck and trunk; weariness; muscular weakness; salt and water retention; acne; leisurely bruising; menstlruall irregularities; and signs (in women) of virilisation, such as increase of the voice, commute in body, shape, loss of scalp hair, and extend in facial and

^{body hair. Complications of cushings syndrome include advanced blood pressure, The symptoms and signs of cushings syndrome induced by a chronic redundant of corticosteroid hormones in the blood. The redundant may be acquired by a tumour of the outer part (cortex) of the adrenal gland, or may be referable to over inspiration of the adrenal glands by a tumour the pituitary gland.}

Many children and teenagers with Cushing’s syndrome will exhibit various of the following:

growth retardation

missed periods in teenage girls

excess hair growth

acne

reddish-blue streaks on the skin 

high blood pressure 

tiredness and weakness either very early or late puberty.

Adults with the disease may also have symptoms of intense weight gain, redundant hair growth, high blood pressure, and skin difficulties. In addition, they may show:

Complications include:

Diabetes (High or Low blood glucose levels)

Enlargement of pituitary tumor and other complications from the tumor growth

Fractures due to osteoporosis which are common in older people

High blood pressure which could be life threatening

Kidney stones from the increase in cortisol and other chemicals filtered through the kidneys

Serious infections which could lead to further secondary infections

Treatment of Cushings Syndrome

Treatment of cushings syndrome is by castigation of the under lying cause. Treatments for Cushing’s syndrome are contrived to pass your body’s cortisol production to normal. By indurate, or even distinctly lowering cortisol levels.  You’ll feel evedent improvements in your signs and symptoms  Left untreated, however, Cushing’s syndrome can finally induce death.  The treatment choice depends on the cause.  For example                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

If a tumour in an adrenal gland is the reason, an operation to withdraw it will cure the condition. For adrenal hyperplasia, both adrenal glands may require to be withdraw. You will then require to take lifelong replacement therapy of several adrenal hormones. Other tumours in the body that produce ‘ectopic’ ACTH may be able to be removed, depending on the kind of tumour, where it is, etc.

Medication to block the production or consequence of cortisol may be an choice.

How is Cushing’s syndrome diagnosed?

Diagnosis is established on a survey of the patient’s medical history, somatic examination andlaboratory tests.  Frequently xray exams of the adrenal or pituitary gland are beneficial for locating tumors.  These tests assist in finding out if excess levels of cortisol are present and why.

“No matter what your brain status or age, there is much we can do to significantly improve brain functions and slow brain aging.”

Dr. Larry McCleary  (Former Acting Chief, Pediatric Neurosurgery, Denver Children’s Hospital Author of The Brain Trust Program)

First let us look at the functions the brain has in its operations:

–Memory

Memory is probably the easiest of the cognitive domains to understand. Memory is the process through which new information about our world is encoded, stored and later retrieved by our brain cells. The ability to remember new facts and new ways of doing things is not only key to our ability to maintain independent lives, our memories are what individualizes each and everyone of us. Our personal memories of past experiences and of family and friends are valuable treasures. Sadly, these treasures are often lost or become tarnished as we age and in tragic cases, with the onset of dementia. For this reason alone, it is necessary that we continue to exercise and activate the neural networks that form our memories. It is also important that we continue to find new strategies and tools to help us form new memories.

–Focus

We live in a world of instant communication and sometimes the demands of work and family can become unbearable and seemingly never-ending. When we become mentally fatigued or over burdened we can lose our ability to prioritize, our ability to identify important information and our ability to stay on task. At home, at the office and at school, we are constantly pulled in multiple directions at the same time and losing focus and concentration can result in us failing to meet our obligations. In addition to providing our brains with the rest and relaxation it needs to operate at its best, it is also important that we engage in brain exercises that can improve our ‘mental endurance’, focus and concentration.

It is also important that we exercise this cognitive domain to find new strategies to overcome specific challenges such as ADD/ADHD. You need to provide your brain with the best and newest brain fitness tools that will improve your concentration and strengthen your mental endurance. Which can be done through games and exercises that will engage your brain and sharpen your focus and teach you new ways to stop wasting time. With stronger concentration skills, improved attention to detail, and sharper focus you can expect to live life with less confusion, less stress and a greater feeling of mental clarity. Strengthening your focus is a surefire way to improve your performance at work or at school.

–Word Skills

Language is the highly evolved human skill that enables us to effectively communicate our thoughts and emotions with the rest of the world. Language is what allows us to grow as people, to share ideas with others and to form the social bonds that bring true value and meaning to our lives. And the fabulous fact about our word skills and capacity for language is that we can continue to improve these skills over the course of our lives.

Unfortunately, on the other side of the coin is fact that our spoken and written word skills can degrade over time with out practice. I’m sure we can all remember a time during conversation when we found ourselves dumbfounded and embarrassed as we struggled to find a word stuck on the tip of our tongue. Or maybe we can remember a time when we mis-used or mis-spelled a fancy word in an important email. As we grow, it is important that we continue to expand our vocabulary, improve our language comprehension skills and find new ways to make our words mean more to the people in our lives.

You can do this through fun and effective brain fitness games and tools to help them continue to grow their capacity for language. Improving word-skills with brain fitness games and exercises is a sure fire way to increase your verbal communication confidence and reduce social anxiety.

– Coordination

From the moment we wake up in the morning until we fall asleep at night, we humans are constantly on the move! And for most of us, our ability to make purposeful, timely and accurate movements is often taken for granted as we go about our day. But the truth is that our ability to perform the seemingly infinite number of goal directed movements we make is the result of our brain precisely detecting sensory information from the world around us and integrating it with our internal motivations to accurately execute the appropriate motor commands that tell our muscles how to move.

Unfortunately, as we age, this process becomes more difficult and moving about the world can become more challenging than it once was before. For most of us, our senses tend to dull, our reaction times become a bit slower and seemingly simple motor tasks such as writing, driving our car and moving about to enjoy the things we love to do can become more difficult. For this reason, it is important that we not only exercise our muscles to maintain strength and flexibility to stay mobile, but that we also exercise the areas of our brain that are involved in coordinating our movements.

You need to provide yourself with fun and challenging brain fitness tools that will help  improve your sensory perception, manual dexterity, spatial awareness and precision of movement. By doing you can continue to make the most of your independent lifestyle.

– Critical Thinking

Critical thought can also be referred to as our brain’s ‘executive function’. And as such, we can think of our critical thinking skills, as the analysis tools used by the CEO of our brain.

Critical thinking skills are the tools we use to objectively analyze information, recognize patterns, follow logical rules, strategize, and solve problems. It is also the brain function that provides us with the ability to form the complex chronological and spatial plans we use to navigate our lives. Everyday we use our critical thinking skills to objectively analyze the world we live and thrive as individuals.

Along with Language, higher order critical thinking skills are what separate us humans from the rest of the Animal Kingdom. And anatomically speaking, the parts of our brain that allows us to think critically reside in the most highly evolved parts of our brain, the frontal and temporal lobes of the cortex. Sadly, it is most often our critical thinking skills that decline with age-related dementia. Our critical thinking skills also need to be fostered at an early age and throughout our lives in order for our brains to operate at their best.

Fortunately, research investigating the phenomenon of neuroplasticity has taught us that we can actually change the way our brains are wired. By engaging in intellectually stimulating activities and by taking on cognitive challenges we actually have the ability to strengthen our critical thinking skills and improve our executive function. But if we want to enhance our critical thinking skills globally, it is important that we exercise our executive functions individually and as a whole. For example, it is important to engage in a variety of different brain exercise designed to improve deductive reasoning, logical reasoning, pattern recognition skill, strategic decision-making skill and the efficiency of our brain’s ability to process information.

By taking a ‘whole- body approach’ and incorporating brain fitness into your daily routines you will be making the lifestyle changes needed to sharpen your minds and reduce your risk of dementia.

Since the human brain peaks in size at about age 20 and then starts to shrink, you might think that by age 70 or 80, you’d be lucky to remember your name. The good news is that memory loss is not inevitable. “There are examples of people who have lived to 123 years of age who died with completely intact memories and no evidence of neuropathology,” said Sam Gandy, MD, PhD, director of the Center for Cognitive Health at The Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City.