Heart Disease – A Very Real Threat To All Dogs

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Heart disease is one of the most frequently seen problems in dogs. Different diseases involving the heart valves or heart muscle can lead to heart failure. Mitral insufficiency is by far the most common type of heart disease seen in dogs.

Mitral insufficiency involves the heart valve that separates chambers in the heart. If this valve becomes diseased and fails to close properly, blood is allowed to flow backward, which reduces blood flow forcing the heart to work harder to keep up with the body’s demand for blood. This over working of the hart eventually leads to premature heart failure.

This disease can result from normal wear and tear associated with age, or it can appear secondary to other diseases, normally periodontal disease. Bacteria from the diseased teeth and gums can enter the blood stream and attach to the heart valve, setting up infection and inflammation. Over time, the heart valve becomes damaged and scarred, making it unable to function properly. The end result is heart failure.

The clinical signs associated with a failing heart include coughing, especially at night and after exercise, breathing difficulties, distended abdomen, weight loss, and exercise intolerance. Your veterinarian can diagnose heart disease by x-rays and electrocardiogram.

Many forms of heart disease are accompanied by heart murmurs. A heart murmur is nothing more than an irregular sound caused by the disruption of normal blood flow within the heart. Heart murmurs are usually classified according to their intensity as heard by a stethoscope. Your veterinarian can identify which portion of the heart is affected by pinpointing the area on the dog’s chest where the murmur is the loudest.

Unfortunately, most cases of heart disease are nonreversible. The treatment for any dog suffering from such is to create an environment that relieves some of the workload on the heart. Special diets and medications can be used to improve the quality of life and extend the animal’s life expectancy. Early detection is the key here. At the first sign of clinical problems mentioned earlier you should get the dog to a veterinarian as soon as possible.

Top 10 Causes Of Death In Dubai

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Dubai has come a long way since it was just a fishermens town back in the days when the mores and the British ruled; then, in 1971 it became part of the UAE (United Arab Emirates) and this has made all the difference. Dubai is now considered to be a promised land for the rich and the opulent; with descriptions to the rest of the world from travelers who say that the Dubai Airport has solid gold palm trees; it seems that there is just no limit to the wonders that Dubai has installed for the world.

But just like with any other particularly important and striving place on earth, with great success comes great dismay and the blooming of ailments and health hazards that are more frequent in highly developed countries. The quick rising of the Dubai financial and economical sphere has also caused that each day more and more people are falling ill to these first world illnesses.

The reasons for this are varied, and they change constantly according to the person who is interviewed at the time. For some it is the building boom that has swept across Dubai in past years, to other the reason is simple: while the few are making millions of dollars defying nature building man-made islands and outside-the-atmosphere skyscrapers, the working force is subjected to almost inhuman residential conditions.

The diseases that are taking such a big toll in Dubai are the same that are present in any other highly-developed countries. Regardless of the origin or underlying cause for it, the most common death-inducing illnesses in Dubai are:

1.Heart Disease
2.Stroke
3.Cancer (there are different forms of cancer that are generally considered individually, but this only inflates the statistics)
4.Pulmonary Infections
5.COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)

But these are not the only problems that can cause death in Dubai, especially in the bulk of the population. General and frequent causes are also:

6.HIV/AIDS
7.Tuberculosis
8.Malaria
9.Hepatitis
10.Heat Stroke

Nonetheless, it is also important to note and consider all diseases that are caused by accidents and run-ins with the local wildlife, such as scorpions, spiders and the like. In the case of tourists and expatriates, health services are expensive to say the least and, as a result, people who are traveling to Dubai or any of the United Arab Emirates should take on a thorough physical to make sure that their health is optimal.

As a result, it is important to add these factors to the list, leaving it with the following top 10 causes of death in the city of Dubai:

1.Heart Disease
2.Circulatory problems (stroke, atherosclerosis)
3.Cancer (cervical cancer is the top leading cause of death amongst women in Dubai, followed by breast cancer)
4.Pulmonary Infections (including, though not limited to, COPD)
5.Heat stroke
6.Liver diseases (all types of hepatitis)
7.Construction related accidents
8.Allergic reactions to venoms and other poisonous substances secreted by animals
9.HIV/AIDS
10.Malaria

High Prevalence Of Heart Disease Expands Job Opportunities For Technicians

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Heart disease has become widespread in the United States because of the increasing rate of chronic medical conditions related to a poor diet and the lack of routine exercise. Diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure negatively affect the ability of vital organs to function and can result in debilitating illnesses and even death. The poor health behaviors of the general public along with an increase in the size of the population and the number of Baby Boomers now entering retirement has created a spike in demand for cardiac care services. Because many healthcare facilities lack the advanced personnel and resources needed to meet the current demand, many administrators have begun hiring unlicensed technicians to perform many of the routine tasks associated with the provision of daily care. This trend has created many new job opportunities for EKG technicians as well as those who are working in other specialties.

The heart is one of the most important organs contained within the human body because of its role in circulating blood through the vast network of vessels that supply oxygen to tissues and transport waste to organs that specialize in filtration and excretion. Like all other organs, the heart requires oxygen to survive and must have a healthy network of vessels that supply it with the nutrients it needs. Individuals who suffer from clogged cardiac arteries are highly susceptible to developing heart attacks and may even die if a severe cardiac event occurs. Many of these patients must receive regular treatments in a cardiac unit in order to ensure that their heart remains functional. An EKG technician is someone who works under the supervision of a registered nurse or licensed physician and whose job it is to carry out the basic tasks associated with the delivery of care to heart disease patients.

Some of the most common responsibilities that an EKG technician has include vital sign collection, medical history documentation, procedure preparation, electrocardiogram administration, telemetry, Holter monitoring, new technician training, and a variety of administrative tasks. The contributions of the technician to the patient care team is very important because it allows advanced medical personnel to spend their time evaluating new patients, developing treatment plans, and managing cases that involve complex heart diseases. Without the technician, access to cardiac care would become severely limited and many patients would not receive the life-saving treatment that they need. For this reason, many facilities have begun hiring more technicians to help manage the growing demand for care.

In general, the technician may only perform patient care tasks that are considered routine and that have a predictable outcome. Responsibilities that require advanced medical knowledge, judgment, or skill must be carried out by the nurse or physician and can never be delegated to the technician under any circumstances. The nurse or physician must evaluate a task before delegation to ensure that it has very little chance of jeopardizing the health and safety of patients and they must provide supervision as the technician is performing the task. These requirements are designed to protect patients and to ensure that the interests of medical personnel are preserved in cases of negligence. Most healthcare facilities have policies and procedures that determine how a task may be delegated and the steps that must be taken prior to assigning a responsibility to an unlicensed member of the team.

The fact that the EKG technician is an unlicensed member of the medical team means that most states do not regulate the profession. Employers often set their own education, training, and certification requirements for new technicians. While some employers will consider hiring individuals who have only a high school diploma or GED, they generally prefer those who have at least a two-year college degree and prior patient care experience. Those who do not possess formal credentials may still be able to secure employment after completing a training program provided by the hiring institution and successfully passing a nationally recognized certification exam. Direct contact with potential employers is the best way to ensure that their expectations are being met.

How To Reverse Diabetes The Natural Way

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Diabetes reversal, do you think it’s achievable? With the right information and willpower, it can be done.

Diabetes is a lifestyle disease that has been plaguing the world and it has reached epidemic proportions especially in western and developed countries. As a matter of fact, this global health crisis has no obvious signs of slowing down. More than a hundred fifty million suffer from this disease and a staggering 20 percent of that statistic is from the UK and United States. These two countries have the fastest growing rates of Diabetes nowadays.

Diabetes is a sickness that can be avoided. Pre-disposed by genetics or not, it is mainly caused by lifestyle choices. What we eat, how we eat, how much we eat, and our physical activities dictate the future of our health. Sadly, many of us failed in that department and we are now overwhelmed by this seemingly unstoppable disease.

Diabetes opens you up to various health complications. Another epidemic, such as heart disease, is likely brought about by diabetes. Diabetics are also prone blindness, neurological diseases, kidney failure, and other infections. Every day, US doctors amputate about 150 legs because of diabetes-related infections.
If you are diabetic, your metabolism is unstable which is caused by insulin resistance/underproduction. Blood sugar levels are high and erratic. With that, you function poorly, always feeling weak and hungry, urinate and feel thirsty more often.

Ignorance and neglect of diabetes can lead to more serious health risks. At first, diabetics arrived at a condition known as pre-diabetes. If no improvements in lifestyle were made, you get to a more severe case of diabetes.

Treatment of the disease is usually done with prescription medicines. They do alleviate symptoms but don’t get your hopes up that it might reverse your condition-they won’t. Chances are, you will become entirely dependent of the drugs prescribed by your doctor. To make matter worse, these drugs can have harmful short and long term side-effects, not to mention, expensive.

Pharmaceutical companies have no intention in curing your condition. They just want to treat the symptoms and make you depend on the stuff they manufacture. The best approach in dealing with diabetes is getting the right information from unbiased scientific studies. There is a fundamental scientific proof showing that diabetes can be reversed. It is up to you if you want to know truth and apply it.

The Heart Of Heart Disease

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A multi-billion-dollar industry has been built around the concept that large, cholesterol-filled blockages in the arteries cause heart attacks. That concept is just plain wrong. The reality is that as many as 80 percent of all heart attacks occur when smaller plaques, destabilized by inflammation, rupture and attract a blood clot that blocks blood flow to the heart.
So while cardiologists are placing stents to prop open large blockages or bypassing them altogether with surgery, inflammationthe real culprit in heart diseasecontinues unimpeded.
The Ins and Outs of Inflammation
Inflammation is the bodys frontline immunological response. Without it, youd fall prey to each and every infection that came along. But sometimes inflammation turns from friend to foe, and that is precisely whats going on in coronary artery disease.
Although there are many markers for inflammation, the best studied for relevance to cardiovascular disease is C-reactive protein (CRP). Studies have shown that men with the highest CRP levels have three times the risk of heart attack and twice the risk of stroke as men with the lowest levels. In women, a high CRP level is the single most important predictor of heart attack riskmore so than elevated cholesterol.
This may explain why half of heart attacks occur in individuals with normal cholesterol levels and a quarter occur in people with no risk factors at all. For these clean-living folkswho dont smoke, and dont have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or diabeteschronic low-grade inflammation and the resulting damage to arteries may be the culprit.
A high level of inflammation isnt just a harbinger of heart attack and stroke. Research reveals that individuals who have elevated CRP levels are at greater risk of macular degeneration, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, peripheral artery disease, colon cancer, osteoporosis, and Alzheimers disease. In fact, an elevated CRP level is a marker for increased risk of premature death.
Get the Red Out
How do you reduce inflammation and, by extension, lower your risk of disease? For starters, reduce your weight to a healthy level. Fat cells are not just a parking lot for excess calories but are metabolically active, churning out hormones and inflammatory chemicals. Excess body fat, especially in the abdomen, closely correlates with chronic inflammation.
Second, eat a low-fat, high-fiber diet with plenty of antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables and healthy fats from olive oil and cold water fish. At the same time, reduce your intake of saturated and trans fats and refined carbohydrates. In a 2004 study by UCLA researchers, postmenopausal women who followed this type of diet reduced their CRP levels by 45 percent in just two weeks.
Third, exercise. People who exercise regularly have lower CRP levels than sedentary folks. In a JAMA study, middle-aged couch potatoes who took up a walking program (just 30 minutes five times a week) reduced their CRP levels by 35 percent in only six months.
Fourth, take a high-potency multivitamin and mineral supplement. A 2003 survey of more than 14,000 Americans revealed that those with the highest blood levels of vitamins A, C, and E, selenium, beta-carotene and other carotenoids had significantly lower levels of CRP than those with the lowest levels. And in a six-month study at the Cooper Clinic, taking a high-dose multivitamin and mineral supplement lowered CRP levels 14 to 30 percent, with those with the highest levels experiencing the greatest reductions.
My Plaque-Busting Regimen
Next, get serious about oral health. Plaque that builds up in your gum line and plaque in your arteries are connected. Dental plaque causes gingivitis (inflammation of the gums), and as it progresses, your mouth becomes a breeding ground for bacteria that pass into the blood and cause inflammation elsewhere. People with gum disease invariably have higher CRP levels than those with healthy gums. They also have greater risk of heart attack and stroke.
Start by investing in a Sonicare toothbrush. Studies show that this toothbrush, which uses high-frequency vibration, outperforms its competitors in reducing the bacterial biofilms that take hold between the teeth and below the gum line. I also recommend that you use an antibacterial mouth rinse that contains chlorhexidine gluconate. (Get a prescription for Peridex or make your own rinse by combining a half ounce of Hibiclens, an over-the-counter antibacterial scrub, with 16 ounces of mouthwash.)
Another suggestion is to chew xylitol gum throughout the day, especially after meals when you cant brush. Unlike table sugar, this natural sweetener creates an unfavorable environment for bacterial growth and has been shown to reverse the progression of early tooth decay.
More Ways to Deflate Inflammation
Youve probably heard that statin drugs not only lower cholesterol but also lower CRP. However, these drugs have myriad side effects, including muscle pain and weakness, blurred vision, gastrointestinal problems, and liver damage. In fact, in a recent clinical trial, more than one in five participants dropped out during the first year and one in three disappeared by year two due to intolerable side effects of these drugs.
The real wonder drug when it comes to reducing inflammation and protecting against heart disease risk is aspirin. This little white pill relaxes the arteries, enhances blood flow, and discourages the formation of blood clots, but its anti-inflammatory effect may be its most important feature. In one study, small doses of aspirin cut the risk of heart attack in half in men with the highest levels of CRP.
Unfortunately, aspirin isnt for everyone, but there are several safe, natural anti-inflammatories. Kaprex, an herbal product that contains extracts from hops, rosemary, and olive leaf, was recently shown to significantly lower CRP levels. Fish oil (2,000 mg per day), curcumin (1,4001,800 mg), and guggulipid (2,000 mg three times a day) also curb inflammation.
Because chronic inflammation adversely affects virtually every organ system in the body, by following this program you will reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease as well as Alzheimers, cancer, macular degeneration, and other aging-related diseases.
Recommendations
If your CRP level is above 1.0 mg/L, get serious about implementing the therapies discussed here.
Look for Sonicare toothbrushes in your local drugstore or department store.
The suggested dose of aspirin is one baby aspirin (81 mg) every day, with food. Consult your doctor first if you are on Coumadin or have a stomach ulcer, an aspirin allergy, or a history of gastrointestinal bleeding.
The suggested dose of Metagenics Kaprex is one tablet three times a day.
Look for fish oil, curcumin, and guggulipid in your health food store.
References:
Church, TS et al. Am J Med. 2003 Dec 15;115:702-7.
Ford, ES et al. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2003 Sep;57(9):1157-63.
Harris TB et al. Am J Med 1999;106:506-12.
Ridker PM et al. N Engl J Med 1997;336:973-9; 2002;347:1557-65.
Smith JK et al. JAMA 1999;281:1722-7.
Wegge JK et al. Metabolism 2004;53:377-81.
For more information visit https://www.searchhearthealth.com