Smoking linked to heart disease and stroke

Smoking just one cigarette a day has a higher risk of developing coronary heart disease and stroke than expected. The researchers say their findings have important consequences for many smokers and health professionals who believe that smoking only a few cigarettes carries little or no harm. They argue that smokers should stop completely instead of cutting down to significantly reduce their risk of heart disease and stroke.

Individual studies have reported that smoking only one to five cigarettes per day is associated with a higher than expected risk of heart disease. To investigate this further, a team of researchers led by Professor Allan Hackshaw at the UCL Cancer Institute at University College London analysed the results of 141 studies and estimated the relative risks for smoking one, five, or 20 cigarettes per day. They found that men who smoked one cigarette per day had 46% of the excess risk of heart disease and 41% of the excess risk of stroke associated with smoking 20 cigarettes per day (much higher than the expected 5%).

For women, those who smoked one cigarette per day had 31% of the excess risk of heart disease and 34% of the excess risk of stroke associated with smoking 20 cigarettes per day. Women's heart disease risk was more than doubled with one cigarette per day, when only studies that controlled for several factors were included in the analysis. Large proportion of the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke comes from smoking only a couple of cigarettes each day.

Cardiovascular disease, not cancer, is the greatest mortality risk for smoking, causing about 48% of smoking-related premature deaths. Any exposure to smoking is too much, there is no safe level of smoking. Smokers should quit instead of cutting down, using appropriate cessation aids if needed, to significantly reduce their risk of stroke and heart disease.
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MIND diet for cognitive decline

A diet created by researchers at Rush University Medical Center may help substantially slow cognitive decline in stroke survivors, according to preliminary research to the general population. The diet, known as the MIND diet, is short for Mediterranean-DASH Diet Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay. The diet is a hybrid of the Mediterranean and DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diets. Both have been found to reduce the risk of cardiovascular conditions such as hypertension, heart attack and stroke.

The foods that promote brain health, including vegetables, berries, fish and olive oil, are included in the MIND diet, the diet has slow cognitive decline in stroke survivors. MIND diet based on information from years of research about what foods and nutrients have good, and bad, effects on the functioning of the brain. The diet has been associated with reduced Alzheimer's risk in seniors who adhered to its recommendations. Even people who moderately adhered had reduced risk of Alzeimeir's disease D and cognitive decline.

The MIND diet has 15 dietary components, including 10 "brain-healthy food groups" and five unhealthy groups-red meat, butter, cheese, pastries and sweets, and fried or fast food. To benefit from the MIND diet, a person would need to eat at least three servings of whole grains, a green leafy vegetable and one other vegetable every day along with a glass of wine, snack most days on nuts, have beans every other day or so, eat poultry and berries at least twice a week and fish at least once a week. The diet also specifies limiting intake of the designated unhealthy foods, limiting butter to less than half teaspoons a day and eating less than 5 servings a week of sweets and pastries, and less than one serving per week of whole fat cheese, and fried or fast food.

From 2004 to 2017, Cherian and colleagues studied 106 participants of the Rush Memory and Aging Project who had a history of stroke for cognitive decline, including decline in one's ability to think, reason and remember. They assessed people in the study every year until their deaths or the study's conclusion, for an average of 5.9 years, and monitored patients' eating habits using food journals.
The researchers grouped participants into those who were highly adherent to the MIND diet, moderately adherent and least adherent. They also looked at additional factors that are known to affect cognitive performance, including age, gender, education level, participation in cognitively stimulating activities, physical activity, smoking and genetics.

The study participants whose diets scored highest on the MIND diet score had substantially slower rate of cognitive decline than those who scored lowest. The estimated effect of the diet remained strong even after taking into account participants' level of education and participation in cognitive and physical activities. In contrast to the results of slower decline with higher MIND diet score, stroke survivors who scored high on the Mediterranean and DASH diets, did not have significant slowing in their cognitive abilities.

The Mediterranean and DASH diets have been shown to be protective against coronary artery disease and stroke, but it seems the nutrients emphasized in the MIND diet may be better suited to overall brain health and preserving cognition. According to Cherian, studies have found that folate, vitamin E, omega-3 fatty acids, carotenoids and flavonoids are associated with slower rates of cognitive decline, while substances such as saturated and hydrogenated fats have been associated with dementia.
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Fat distribution increases the risk of heart attack

It's not the amount of fat in the body but where it's stored that may increase the risk for heart attack, stroke and diabetes. People of the same weight or body mass index (BMI) may have different risk profiles, based on genetics, lifestyle and diet. In addition, body composition differs between men and women, with women having proportionately more fat and men having more muscle mass.

Fat distribution is an important determinant of cardiometabolic risk.  There are different body shapes, common descriptors of human body shapes, based on where fat tends to be stored in the body. In apple-shaped bodies, fat is distributed largely around the midsection, while in pear-shaped bodies, fat is distributed lower around the hips and thighs. The type of fat stored also plays a role in cardiometabolic risk. One type of fat-ectopic fat-is dangerous. It may be found in places such as the abdominal region, muscles, liver and other organs.

There are gender-based differences in body composition and ectopic fat depots and that these could be associated with gender-specific risk profiles for diseases like diabetes, heart disease and stroke, researchers examined overweight and obese men and women wit the same BMI who were otherwise healthy. After fasting overnight, the study participants underwent dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and CT scans to determine body composition, as well as magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) for fat quantification and analysis.

The results showed that the women had a higher percentage of fat and more subcutaneous (below-the-skin) fat but lower lean mass, compared to men. However, men had more visceral adipose tissue (VAT), or ectopic fat depots located in the abdomen around the internal organs known as a "beer belly", and more ectopic fat in the muscles and liver. Obese men have relatively higher visceral fat, fat within muscle cells and liver fat, which are all risk factors for cardiometabolic disease, compared to women with the same BMI. However, men have higher muscle and lean mass, which are protective for cardiometabolic health.

Women have a higher relative amount of total body fat and higher superficial thigh fat, which is protective for cardiometabolic health. Compared to women, men had higher measures of cardiometabolic risk overall, but ectopic fat was not significantly associated with cardiometabolic risk in men. Ectopic fat in women, however, was strongly associated with cardiometabolic risk measures. The detrimental fat depots deep in the belly, muscles and liver are more damaging for cardiometabolic health in women compared to men.

The researchers looked at the relationship between sarcopenic obesity-or the loss of skeletal lean muscle mass in the presence of obesity and its relationship to cardiometabolic risk. Many factors can lead to sarcopenic obesity in young adults, particularly obesity and lack of exercise. Growth hormone helps to build muscle mass. Nutrition also plays an important role, and too little intake of protein can lead to muscle loss. The researchers studied  young, overweight and obese adults who were otherwise healthy.

Participants underwent DXA and CT scans and various metabolic tests. Results showed that having a lower lean muscle mass to BMI ratio was associated with cardiometabolic risk, and these effects were stronger in women than in men. Sarcopenic obesity may be an under-appreciated mechanism linking obesity to cardiometabolic disease.
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Traumatic event increase a woman's risk of obesity

According to a new study, women who have experienced traumatic events are more likely to become obese. Researchers discovered that the more traumatic events women reported experiencing in the last five years, the more likely they were to become obese. Obesity can leads to elevated risk for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, stroke, and other serious health problems.

As much as 20 percent of people who experience trauma develop post traumatic stress disorder PTSD, but women are twice likely to suffer from the disorder as are their male counter parts. Stress from sources like bullying and economic strain has well-documented links to eating disorders, including over-eating and obesity. Since women are more prone to both extreme stress or PTSD and obesity, the study authors suggest that more attention needs to be paid to these relationships.

The researchers analysed data on both the women’s body mass indexes BMI and self-reported stress. The divided stressors into two categories: Significant traumatic events like physical violence or the death of a child that could have occurred any time in their lives and still be affecting them, and ‘negative life events’ that had occurred in the last five years.

Living through just one traumatic life event increased the risk of obesity by 11 percent, over that of women who reported no traumatic events. Those that had experienced four or more ‘negative life events’ were at a 36 percent greater risk of obesity.Women are living longer and are more at risk for chronic illnesses, such as cardiovascular disease, obesity is related to increased risks of heart attack, stroke, diabetes and cancer, and contributes to spiraling healthcare costs.
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How the skin controlled blood pressure

Skin plays a surprising role in regulating blood pressure and heart rate, Skin is the largest organ, covering two square metres in humans - helps regulate blood pressure and heart rate in response to changes in the amount of oxygen available in the environment.

High blood pressure is associated with cardiovascular disease, such as heart attack and stroke. For the vast majority of cases of high blood pressure, there is no known cause. It is often associated with reduced flow of blood through small blood vessels in the skin and other parts of the body, a symptom which can get progressively worse if the hypertension is not treated.

Previous research has shown that when a tissue is starved of oxygen - as can happen in areas of high altitude, or in response to pollution, smoking or obesity, for example - blood flow to that tissue will increase. In such situations, this increase in blood flow is controlled in part by the 'HIF' family of proteins.

To investigate what role the skin plays in the flow of blood through small vessels, a team of researchers exposed mice to low-oxygen conditions. These mice had been genetically modified so that they are unable to produce certain HIF proteins in the skin.

The study was set up to understand the feedback loop between the skin and the cardiovascular system. By working with mice. Researchers were able to manipulate key genes involved in this loop. They discovered that in mice lacking one of two proteins in the skin HIF-1α or HIF-2α, the response to low levels of oxygen changed compared to normal mice and that this affected their heart rate, blood pressure, skin temperature and general levels of activity.

Mice lacking specific proteins controlled by the HIFs also responded in a similar way.
In addition, the response of normal, healthy mice to oxygen starvation was more complex than expected. In the first ten minutes, blood pressure and heart rate rise, and this is followed by a period of 36 hours where blood pressure and heart rate decrease below normal levels. 48 hours after exposure to low levels of oxygen and blood pressure the heart rate levels had returned to normal.

Loss of the HIF proteins or other proteins involved in the response to oxygen starvation in the skin, was discovered to change when this process starts and how long it takes. Skin's response to low levels of oxygen may have substantial effects on how the heart pumps blood around the body.
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HIV positive smokers may die of lungs cancer

HIV patients who smoke cigarettes are more likely to die from lung cancer than from HIV, antiviral drugs increased the life span of HIV patients
but there is no drug for preventing lung cancer that is as effective as antiretroviral therapy ART for HIV.

According to researchers, lung cancer prevention through smoking cessation should be a priority in taking care of people living with HIV. Researchers examined people with HIV who were current, former and never smokers.

They discovered that people who consistently take their anti-HIV medications but continue to smoke will die of lung cancer. Lung cancer is one of the leading killers of people with HIV, smoking and HIV put them at risk of developing lung cancer at a rate higher than smokers not infected with HIV.

Smoking and HIV are bad combination when it comes to lung cancer. Smoking cessation is one of the most important things that people living with HIV can do to improve their health and live longer. It will reduce their risk of lung cancer, heart attack, stroke, and emphysema.
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Cholesterol crystal are signs of impending heart attack

According to the latest research by cardiologist, cholesterol crystals are responsible for obstructing the coronary arteries of patients who had suffered a heart attack.

These crystals are released from plaque that can build up in the heart and is often made up of fat, calcium and other substances. When this material hardens over time in the arteries, it's known as atherosclerosis.

When cholesterol goes from a liquid to a solid, or crystal state, it expands in volume. This expansion inside the wall of the artery can tear it and block blood flow resulting into a heart attack or stroke.

Researchers discovered clusters of large crystals in the arteries of patients suffering from heart attack, this crystals are released into the heart and it damaged the heart by blocking blood flow.

Cholesterol crystals activated the production of inflammation molecules, known as Interleukin-1 beta, which inflame coronary arteries. The use of statin drugs can lower cholesterol. Canakinumab drug can also block the Interleukin-1 beta inflammation molecule and reduce the chances of a cardiac event.

 Controlling cholesterol by eating a healthy diet, engaging in exercise and taking statin medications as recommended could prevent crystals from forming and reduce the risk of heart attack.
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Dementia risk factors

Dementia is caused when the brain is damaged by diseases like Alzheimer’s disease or a series of strokes. Healthy lifestyle can reduce the risk of developing dementia.

Older people suffering from Alzheimer's disease are prone to dementia disease because of irregular blood supply to the brain.

Drinking of alcohol regularly increases the risk of dementia. Alcohol can damage the brain directly as a neurotoxin and by reducing nutrients that get to the brain.

The accumulation of fats and cholesterol in the lining of arteries can prevents blood flow to the brain.

Poor management of diabetes can leads to too much sugar in the blood which can damage brain and different organs in the body.

Genetics- Having more than one family member that have the disease increases the risk of developing it.

High blood pressure affects the white matter regions of the brain, and this can leads to dementia.

Depression has been associated with mild mental impairment and cognitive function decline.

Smoking exposes brain to toxins and hinders blood flow, smokers are prone to diseases that reduce blood flow to the brain.
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Links between diabetes and erectile dysfunction

According to latest research, erectile dysfunction affects more than half of diabetes patients, some of the affected men could not maintain an erection.

Diabetes increases a man's risk of suffering from erectile dysfunction.
It can damage the nerves and blood vessels needed to become aroused leading to erectile dysfunction.

Diabetes patients can struggle to maintain an erection even if they produce the necessary hormones or are sufficiently sexually stimulated.

Regular medical examination can reduce the risk of diabetes complications like high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels and kidney disease.

Diabetes increases the risk of heart disease, stroke and kidney problems, it increases the risk of untimely death.
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Healthy heart leads to healthy brain

Healthy lifestyle at 20 protects the brain at 40 and prevents brain shrinkage.
Neuroscientists monitored some participants for more than two decades and discovered that those that follow healthy lifestyle had less brain shrinkage.

Healthy lifestyle of a low-cholesterol diet, regular exercise, no smoking and eating less sugar at 20 prevents brain shrinkage at 40.

The American Heart Association created seven simple steps to improve heart health, these are- maintaining a healthy blood pressure, controlling cholesterol, reducing blood sugar, being active, eating healthy foods, losing weight and no smoking.

There is a link between smoking and smaller brain volume. Smoking can leads to thinning of the brain cortex, the outer part of the brain that is crucial for cognition.

Smoking increases the blood pressure and put the brain at the risk of stroke. A stroke occurs when high blood pressure causes the tiny vessels of the brain to break, causing bleeding.
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Working for long hours causes irregular heartbeat

According to the latest research, working more than 55 hours a week increases the risk of developing serious heart problems.

Long hours of work increases the risk of irregular heartbeat by 40 per cent than those that work for normal hours or less while long shifts increase the risk of stroke.

Atrial fibrillation is the most common heart rhythm problem, it is affecting many people and can lead to stroke, heart failure and dementia. Researchers discovered that long working hours are associated with an increased risk of atrial fibrillation.

Common cause of cardiovascular disease are older age, male sex, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, overweight, smoking and sedentary lifestyle.
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Signs of severe hypertension

Hypertension does not have any symptom but severe high blood pressure can increase the risk of stroke, kidney failure, aortic aneurysm, vascular dementia and heart attacks.

An ideal blood pressure is 120/80, Low blood pressure is considered to be 90/60 or lower. High blood pressure is when your readings are consistently equal to or more than 140/90mmHg.

Severe hypertension is when your systolic blood pressure is consistently at or above 180mmHg and/or the diastolic is consistently at or above 110mmHg.

Seek medical help if you experience any of these signs of severe high blood pressure- fatigue, chest pain, severe headache, irregular heartbeat, blood in the urine and difficulty in breathing.

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Thrombectomy can prevents stroke complications

Inadequate blood supply to the brain can cause stroke or when blood vessel within the brain ruptures, causing brain tissue to die.

 A stroke is a medical emergency, it requires immediate treatment. During a stroke, the brain does not receive enough oxygen and nutrients, which can leads to death of brain cells.

A thrombectomy is a surgical procedure used to remove a blood clot -thrombus from the brain. The thrombus obstructs blood flow and may cause tissue death.

Thrombectomy is effective in patients with blood clots up to 24 hours after a stroke. Stroke can occur when brain blood vessel bursts.

Thrombectomy is safer than clot-busting drugs because it has no side effects.

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Fetus DNA and risk of pre-eclampsia in pregnancy

Pre-eclampsia affects many pregnancies and is suspected when a woman have high blood pressure. It can cause fits, stroke and liver problems.

Researchers studied the genetic make-up of babies born from pre-eclamptic pregnancies and compared their DNA with healthy babies.

Improper formation of placenta is associated with pre-eclampsia. The baby's genes that produces the placenta was examined to see if their is a link between the baby's DNA and pre-eclampsia.

There were some features in a baby's DNA that can increase the risk of pre-eclampsia. Baby's DNA comes from its parent's genes, DNA changes linked with pre-eclampsia are common in people carrying this sequence in their DNA so the inherited changes increase the risk.

Researchers discovered that DNA variations close to the gene that makes a protein called sFlt-1 with significant differences between the babies born from pre-eclamptic pregnancies and normal babies.

At high levels sFlt-1 released from the placenta into the mother's bloodstream can cause damage to her blood vessels, causing high blood pressure, kidneys, liver and brain damage. A baby carrying these genetic variants increases the risk of pre-eclamptic pregnancy.

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Latest facts about dementia

Dementia is decline of the brain and its abilities, causing memory loss and slower thinking.

It’s currently incurable, but early diagnosis usually means less impact on sufferers’ lives and better support provided to them.

People who explained drops in their
blood pressure, causing dizziness when they stand, may have an increased risk of developing dementia.

Speaking another language could prevent dementia. Being bilingual delay
dementia by making the brain more resilient.

A component of turmeric - curcumin - was discovered to potentially prevent age-related cognitive decline.

Consuming more omega 3 a natural fatty acid found in rich levels on oily fish, eggs and seeds have anti-inflammatory effects on the brain.

Surviving a stroke places you at an increased risk of developing dementia.



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Effects of diabetes on vital organs

 The raised blood sugar levels that result from diabetes can cause a wide range of serious health issues. When people have diabetes, the body either does not make enough insulin or cannot use what it has effectively. As a result, the amount of sugar in the blood becomes higher than normal.

 Blood sugar is the main power source for the human body. It comes from the food people eat. The hormone insulin convert glucose into fuel. Diabetes may
cause complications in the circulatory system, which can lead to heart attack and stroke.

Diabetes can damage large blood vessels, causing macrovascular disease.
It can also damage small blood vessels, causing what is called microvascular disease. Microvascular disease can
cause eye, kidney, and nerve problems.

Excess blood sugar decreases the elasticity of blood vessels and causes them to narrow, impeding blood flow.
When people have diabetes, they can develop nerve damage because the blood vessels can not supply enough oxygen.

Nerve damage usually happens some 25 years or more after diagnosis. The most common form is peripheral neuropathy which causes pain and numbness in toes, feet, legs, and arms.

Over time, high blood sugar levels damage blood vessels in the kidneys. This damage prevents the kidneys from filtering waste out of the blood.
According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, diabetes is one of the major
causes of kidney disease.

Diabetes is the most frequently identified cause of gastroparesis. This is a condition that causes the stomach to slow the movement of food into the small intestine.

A person with gastroparesis may experience symptoms such as nausea, abdominal pain, and acid reflux.
Gastroparesis may cause: nausea, vomiting, acid reflux, bloating, abdomen pain and weight loss

Diabetes can interfere with the body's ability to send and implement responses to sexual stimuli. It can cause erectile dysfunction in men. If you have
diabetes, you can manage it by monitoring your glucose level and working closely with your health providers.

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Aspiring not effective for stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation patients

Atrial fibrillation (A-fib) is a condition of irregular heartbeat, it can leads to cardiovascular events like: stroke, blood clots and heart failure.

The most common treatment for A-fib patients is prescribing anticoagulants, or blood thinners. Some people with A-fib may also have a catheter ablation - a medical procedure that uses energy to damage a small part of heart tissue, thus stopping abnormal electrical signals from traveling through the heart.

Some of the risks associated with cardiac catheter ablation include bleeding or blood vessel damage.

However, as Dr. Jared Bunch - the lead author of the new research - explains, when patients with A-fib have had an ablation and also have a low risk of stroke, physicians prefer to treat them with aspirin instead of blood thinners in order to further reduce the risk of stroke.

In the new study, Dr. Bunch and his colleagues examined the effect of long-term aspirin use on patients with A-fib who underwent an ablation.

Putting their new research into perspective, Dr. Bunch explains, "What was unknown was if aspirin was a safe and effective stroke prevention treatment after an ablation in lower-risk AF [atrial fibrillation] patients.

Aspirin has no benefit for stroke prevention in patients with A- fib. The study examined 4,124 patients with A-fib over a period of 3 years. The participants had a low risk of stroke, and they had undergone catheter ablation.

Dr Bunch and colleagues discovered that patients that used aspiring were significantly more likely to have gastrointestinal and genitourinary bleeding than those who took anticoagulants such as warfarin, or compared with those who did not receive any treatment.

Nanoparticles can increase risk of heart attack

Regular inhaling of nanoparticles can increase your risk of developing heart attack and stroke.

Nanoparticles are small objects that can move from the atmosphere to the lungs and the bloodstream. They can build-up in disease blood vessels and worsen coronary heart disease.

Air pollution is responsible for deaths from heart attack and stroke, it damages human cardiovascular health.

We must avoid polluted area and keep our environment clean to avoid nanoparticles build-up.

Exercise linked with improved heart attack survival

The chance of surviving heart attack is high if you are engaged in regular exercise.

According to professor of cardiovascular prevention and rehabilitation, University of Copenhagen, myocardial infarctions are less fatal in animal that exercise.

The study want to see if exercise prevent myocardial infarction in human, 14,223 participants who had never had a heart attack or stroke were examined.

Their level of physical activity was assessed in 1976-1978 and classified as sedentary, light, moderate or high.

The participants were monitored until 2013, A total of 1,664 had myocardial infarction and 425 died immediately.

Researchers discovered that patients who exercised may not die from myocardial infarction, while sedentary patients were more likely to die.

Regular exercise improves blood flow and reduce heart injury, it can also leads to development of collateral blood vessels in the heart which supplies blood to the heart after a blockage.

Huge women at risk of Atrial fibrillation

Atrial fibrillation is an irregular heartbeat that can lead to blood clots, stroke and heart failure.

Annika Rosengren, professor of internal medicine at Sahlegrenska Academy investigated the effects of body size on atrial fibrillation risk in women.

The study examined 1,522,358 women who had their first pregnancy at an average age of 28 years. Clinical data on height, age, pregnancy, history of diabetes, high blood pressure and smoking were considered during the study.

During follow-up, 7,000 women were hospitalized with atrial fibrillation, their average age was 49, the researchers calculated the women's body surface area BSA in square meters.

The women were divided into four groups based on their BSA and discovered that bigger women, older women and those with bigger atrium are at risk of atrial fibrillation.