People who are very concerned of what they eat and those who have pre-existing heart conditions are very concerned with their cholesterol level. Some might even take oral medications for it. But do you know that there are certain foods that can lower cholesterol? These are highly beneficial food items that every person might want to add in their daily diets for better health and longevity.

Here are just good examples of foods that lower cholesterol:

1. Safflower oil
Safflower oil is the best alternative to most types of cooking oil available in the market. Safflower oil can actually help lower cholesterol, unlike most oils that may increase it. This is because safflower oil contains polyunsaturated fats. These fats work against bad cholesterol in the bloodstream. Sunflower oil and corn oil contain them too. But not like safflower oil, corn oil and sunflower oil needs to go through an intensive process during production. Safflower oil can be bought unrefined and that's the reason why this oil is the better choice.

2. Fish
Fish and fish oils are high in Omega 3 fatty acids. This fatty acid belongs under the polyunsaturated fat group. And as such, it can help lower one's cholesterol level. This makes fish an official member of the types of foods that lower cholesterol. But more than that, Omega-3 can also improve the functions of the heart. It can reduce the tendency of the blood to clot as well. However, you should not confuse Omega-3 with Omega-6 fatty acids. The latter is not as beneficial as the Omega 3.

3. Almonds
Almonds are perfect for snacks. So if you wanted a healthier alternative to chips and French fries, go for almonds. Almonds contain monounsaturated fats. And monounsaturated fats can reduce the oxidation of bad cholesterol in the blood. Furthermore, it increases the number of good cholesterol in the body. Good cholesterol can help rid the blood of bad cholesterol too.

4. Avocados
Of all fruits, avocados are the ones that officially belong to the foods that lower cholesterol group. Like almonds, it also contains high levels of monounsaturated fats that lower the amount of bad cholesterol in the blood. It is best that you take avocados for breakfast or snacks. It is also the perfect dessert to take after eating lunch or dinner.

5. Oatmeal
Oatmeal, along with other wholegrain and most vegetables, are high in soluble fiber. Fiber is one substance that is very helpful in fighting off cholesterol. Soluble fiber has the ability to dissolve unwanted cholesterol, leaving you with a perfectly healthy internal system. Oatmeal is best taken during breakfast.

6. Soy
Soy is a good source of protein. It is the best substitute for animal protein too. If you have high cholesterol problems, taking soy protein on a regular basis can help you manage your condition. It is also for individuals who have heart problems and those who are at high risks of developing heart diseases. Soy milk and soy products are foods that lower cholesterol. Try to include them in your daily diet whenever you can.

7. Extra-virgin olive oil
Aside from safflower oil, extra-virgin olive oil is another type of oil that can help lower cholesterol in the blood. However, this is more expensive and is a lot harder to find than safflower oil. Take note that it has to say extra-virgin in the label. Otherwise, it won't be helpful in lowering down your cholesterol level. Extra-virgin olive oil works by keeping triglyceride levels at minimum while raising the number of good cholesterol in the blood.

8. Green Tea
Green tea is a good source of antioxidants. Cholesterol oxidizes in the blood. And you need antioxidants to keep them from synthesizing. By drinking a cup of green tea everyday, you can stop the formation of plaque in the blood. Antioxidants intercept free radicals, react with them, trap them, and flush them out of the body.

These are the foods that lower cholesterol. They can help you fight off heart diseases and other concerns brought about by high levels of cholesterol in the blood. By adding these foods in your daily diet, you should be able to limit the formation of bad cholesterol. But more than that, most of these food items contain other nutrients that are very beneficial to the body to keep it healthy and strong.

If you suffer from high blood pressure, the very first thing that you have to change is your diet. When your blood pressure is high, it means that your heart is working very hard to distribute blood all over your body. This can be caused by clogged arteries. Clogged arteries prohibit blood from passing through freely. And so the heart has to push the blood more strongly. This is why high blood pressure arises. Other than prescription medicines, a high blood pressure diet would help a lot in correcting this condition.

And when it comes to creating a high blood pressure diet, there are just two general rules: eat more foods that can help get rid of cholesterol in your blood and eat fewer foods that could pile them up. Your arteries and blood vessels get clogged because of too much fat or cholesterol present in it. You have to get rid of cholesterol to make blood move faster and make your blood pressure normal.

What You Should Take

A high blood pressure diet requires a very healthy diet plan. This means less fats and more fiber, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. This is the rule of the thumb when it comes to creating a diet for patients with heart problems. The AHA, or the American Heart Association, recommends a diet composed of 25% total calories from fat, 50% carbohydrates, 15% protein, and 10% fiber. By following this guideline, you should be able to slowly put your cholesterol level and your blood pressure back to normal.

1. Wholegrain
A good high blood pressure diet would contain more than six servings of wholegrain in a given day. Wholegrain, wholegrain products, and other food items such as rye bread, brown rice, muesli, cereals, and oatmeal are perfect for breakfast and snacks. Switch to these foods rather than eating fast food meals and sugary beverages.

2. Vegetables
Everybody knows that vegetables are very nutritious foods. They can help high blood pressure patients a lot in managing their disease too. Vegetables are healthy alternatives to meats and other food items that can otherwise elevate your blood pressure. Legumes work as well too. Add more kidney beans, split peas, and lentils into your daily diet. They are rich sources of fiber, which can dissolve cholesterol in the blood. But more than that, vegetables and legumes have high vitamins and minerals content. And your body needs these for strength and longevity. Include as many as five servings of vegetables per day in your high blood pressure diet.

3. Fruits
How many times do you eat fruits in a day? In this fast-paced world, more and more people are neglecting fruits in their dinner table. But do you know that fruits can help a lot in controlling the pressure of your blood? As many as four servings of fruits in a day are recommended for high blood pressure patients. Fruits are great for snacks, breakfast, and dessert too.

What You Should Avoid

High blood pressure patients are given strict instructions by their doctors when it comes to the types of foods they should avoid. There are certain foods that trigger changes in the way your blood pressure behaves. Of course, if your blood pressure is already high, you should not complicate the matter by taking in more foods that could worsen your condition.

1. Alcohol
Never drink too much alcohol if you know for a fact that you suffer from high blood pressure. Of all types of alcoholic beverages, you should keep clear of beers the most. Beers can drastically raise your blood pressure to the extent that the walls of your blood vessels get damaged. While red wine is believed to be beneficial to the health, experts say that this is only true for people who don't have pre-existing heart conditions.

2. Fatty foods
Fatty foods pertain to all food items that are cooked, prepared, or mixed with fats. Limit your in take of red meat. Switch to lean meat and white meat instead. Animal fats should be avoided at all cost. Don't use saturated fats and trans fats in preparing your meals. Go for the healthier types of oils like canola oil, sunflower oil, soybean oil, olive oil, rice bran oil, and grape seed oil. But just the same, you have to practice moderation when using them.

Create your very own high blood pressure diet by following these guidelines. You can also ask the help of your doctor or a dietician. They should be able to help you construct different combinations of effective but satisfying meals for you to lower your blood pressure.

Before you do any heart attack prevention, it's better if you know and understand your risks first. Then do something about them. Do your researches, consult with your doctor, make a planning, and commit to it.

Heart attack prevention doesn't always have to be complicated. At first, you may feel that way, because there're so many things that you have to adjust. Some people find that changing their habits are quite difficult, others may find it quite easy. What you need to do just do it once at a time, until they automatically become your lifestyle. Finally, you have a heart healthy life without even realize it and you enjoy it.

Having an emergency action plan is important if you or one of your families actually has a chance to have a heart attack, especially if you have heart attack family history. So when it happens, you or the rest of the member won't get panic and know what to do. This should be included in your heart attack prevention plan.

Your heart attack prevention plan may include these basic things:

* Stop your smoking habit. It is consider on the top list because, it's realized as the most preventable factor and decrease your risk dramatically within one year since you quit.
* Find your own healthy diet with fruits, vegetables, food that are rich in antioxidants, whole grains, low fat food, lower in salt (which can cause high blood pressure). You may discuss them with a nutrition professional.
* Drink a lot of water. You need at least 8 ounce glasses or 1/2 gallon of water everyday.
* Drink alcohol at moderate level. One or two a day would be enough for men, but only one for women.
* Do some exercises. It's important to do it regularly. 30 minutes a day, 3-5 times/week is considered enough. You can do any of these things: walking, walking your dog, tai chi, aerobics, bicycling, running, or taking the stairs. Doing this will increase your blood flow and make your heart stronger, help to lose weight, lower high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol and reduce stress and many other tremendous health benefits.
* Lose weight. To be overweight can give you extra burden to your heart and blood vessels. On the contrary, ideally 10% weight loss will give you significant effects, however any small changes can be helpful also.
* Manage your stress. Every second in a day we have to deal with our stress. Without the right management, it can develop to vascular inflammation then finally lead to heart attack.
* Take some natural supplement, especially for your heart health. With today improvement in supplement world, you may want to take advantages of this. Heart health supplement is recommended for heart attack prevention and can help you enhance your heart health too.
* Get heart measurement such as blood pressure every 2 years and cholesterol level every 5 years. Try to control them also.
* Control your diabetes.

Remember, that the more you do what in a heart attack prevention plan, the more you will reduce your risk.

The discovery of the link between high cholesterol and heart disease or strokes is probably one of the greatest breakthroughs in medical science of the past century. If only more people would become aware or their cholesterol level and act decisively if it is too high. There would then be a major reduction in the incidence of these diseases. And lets not forget that the above two conditions are highly prevalent and a major cause of death and disability in the western world.

After having your cholesterol level checked you might well discover that it's too high. Don't become too alarmed by this, as a high level is in fact, quite common in the western world. Fatty diet and a lack of exercise are an obvious cause, but in some cases where the level is extremely high, a genetic factor has to be taken into account. If your level is in fact extremely elevated, then medication and a low fat diet are the only answer. If however your level is only slightly higher than normal (and this accounts for the majority of cases) then natural cures for high cholesterol are of real benefit.

Do natural cures for high cholesterol actually exist? Well believe it or not, some of these remedies have been around since the dawn of history and are readily available. Perhaps the most famous one is our old friend garlic. Garlic as an ingredient for cooking is of course well known but its many medicinal properties are also legendary. Not only is it a natural antibiotic but also its benefit to the heart and circulation has been backed up by modern scientific research. You don?t have to chew on raw garlic as the cowboys did; odorless garlic capsules are readily available at your local drug store.

Raw nuts have also been found to be of benefit. Wall nuts are particularly good and the quantity you need to be of benefit, is only eight half nuts (they are sold in halves) a day. Recently, a huge breakthrough has been made in terms of natural cures for high cholesterol with the discovery of plant sterols. These are a type of plant hormone and yes, plants have them too, which have been found to have a dramatic effect on cholesterol levels. Just less than two grams of sterols a day can reduce your cholesterol level by as much as ten per cent. And the product is now available in handy yogurt drinks and spreads.

So what is an electrocardiogram (SECA ECG or EKG, shortened from the German Elektrokardiogramm)? It is a visual graphic produced by an electrocardiogram machine, which prints onto a piece of scaled tape the electrical signals of the heart recorded from the time the equipment is attached. Electro, which is the first part of the word is related to the electrical impulses or activity that are given out by the heart, Cardio is Greek for heart and Gram, has a Greek root meaning "to write". In the US, the abbreviation "EKG" which as mentioned earlier is the german abbreviation is often preferred over "SECA ECG". "SECA ECG" is used a lot in the United Kingdom and many other countries.

The Sinoatrial node is the place that the heart's electrical pulses come from, the electrical pulse, pulses through the heart's conductive tissue and makes it contract. The electrical pulse that is given out by the Sinoatrial node is then measured by placing electrical pads on each side of the heart. The pulse of electricity moves through the heart it is printed down by the SECA ECG machine. The figures displayed on the electrocardiograph SECA ECG are then interpreted to let the health professional understand what is happening through the heart. Giving indications of the beat of the heart and any drop of the electrical impulse through the heart.

If a health professional is attempting to ascertain the working function of the heart a health professional will look to the newer processes of ultrasound or nuclear medicine testing. SECA ECG's are the most practical way of seeing if there is an unbalanced heart beat particularly in the case of conductive tissue damage in the heart or high and low amounts of dissolved salts.

Congestive heart failure treatment by traditional methods usually includes a regimen of medicine, proper diet, and modified daily activities. There are a range of options for congestive heart failure treatment. In a lot of cases the best congestive heart failure treatment is surgery. Heart Valve Surgery becomes a necessary congestive heart failure treatment when a heart valve ceases to open and close in the correct manner. Valve replacement is the most invasive congestive heart failure treatment and is classified as open heart surgery.

Congestive heart failure is precisely what it sounds like; it is a failure of the heart to properly function, and its effects on the body can be disastrous. Doctors do their best to treat the symptoms and give the patient the best prognosis possible; however, no real and conclusive cure for congestive heart failure exists currently.

Heart failure happens when the heart is unable to properly pump blood throughout the body; as a result of this, including distributing nutrients and oxygen to the tissues and then excreting the excess fluid into the urine the blood pools. This results in either a systemic or local edema as fluid builds up in the veins and organs, causing swelling of the extremities as well as the organs themselves (this fluid gathering is responsible for an excessive amount of stress on the heart as fluid accumulates in the pleural cavity as well as the dyspnea, or difficulty breathing, often symptomatic of heart failure). The swelling and lack of oxygen and nutrients can result in permanent damage to the organs if left untreated, providing a very poor outlook for the patient.

The first stage of treatment for congestive heart failure generally consists of the administration of extra oxygen to attempt to return the oxygen levels in the tissues to normal. Once oxygen has been administered and a pulse oximeter reveals blood oxygen levels to be acceptable the focus will shift to attempting to treat the fluid accumulation in the body. Diuretics will be given to assist the excess fluid on its path via the urinary tract out of the body , and nitrates are administered to cause the vessels to dilate, allowing blood to flow more freely without the heart having to work as hard. Treatment with diuretics is frequently accompanied by supplemental potassium, as the body will excrete potassium in the urine and long term hypokalemia can result in muscle weakness or paralysis, as well as an increased risk of fatal cardiac arrhythmia.

Patients will often be sent home from the hospital with diuretics, as well as a medication known as an ACE inhibitor (an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor) which stops the body from making angiotensin, a substance that raises blood pressure and causes the blood vessels to constrict. An angiotensin II receptor blocker may also be given if the patient continues to make angiotensin. Patients may also be treated with vasodilators other than ACE inhibitors, especially if they have responded badly to treatments with ACE inhibitors in the past. Nitroglycerin is a commonplace example of this kind of medication.

Digitalis, or Digoxin, can also be prescribed to strengthen the force of the heart's contractions, aiding it to send blood through the entire body. Treatment with a beta blocker is also advantageous in cases of congestive heart failure, preventing the heart from beating more rapidly in an effort to compensate for the poor movement of the blood in the body and placing more stress on the weakened muscle.

Blood thinners are administered to help stop the formation of clots in the body that may be caused by the decreased movement of the blood in the vessels. Coumadin and heparin are the most commonly prescribed blood thinners in use; however, due to an increased risk of bleeding, patients taking these medications must undergo coagulation tests often.

Lifestyle changes are as important as medications in the long term treatment of congestive heart failure. Patients should consult with their physician to create an appropriate (low sodium) diet and exercise program, and should do a minimum of some moderate exercise every day. Just as important is taking enough time to rest daily. The heart pumps more easily when the body is resting, which is vital to an already overstressed muscle. The nicotine from cigarettes causes an increase in the heart rate, blood pressure, and the tendency for clumping in the blood vessels; patients with congestive heart failure should refrain from smoking. Flu or pneumonia can be very hard for hearts that are failing as they try to compensate for the lack of oxygen in the bloodstream. It is very vital that patients receive an annual Flu vaccine, as well as a dose of the pneumococcal vaccine, which will protect them from the pneumococcal bacteria that cause over eighty percent of cases of bacterial pneumonia. Wearing loose clothing will help in preventing blood clots and easing blood flow to the extremeties, and in cases of very warm or very cold temperatures it is important that the patient take all precautions necessary to keep the body at an appropriate temperature..

Researchers are still looking for a cure for congestive heart failure; however, until then it is very important that patients suffering from congestive heart failure follow the treatment plan outlined by their doctor. With careful attention to maintaining their condition, the outlook associated with congestive heart failure increases dramatically.

Today, a lot of importance is placed on how much a person weighs. We go on a diet to improve our appearance according to what people think we should look like. Improved health and energy are other reasons we want to lose weight.

If your heart health is a matter of concern to you, you should certainly keep an eye on the scale. Nevertheless, your weight isn't just about pounds. The ratio of your hips to waist is actually more significant than what the scale reads.

We are cautioned by the American Heart Association that men with a waistline larger than 40 inches, and women with a waistline measuring more than 35 inches are at increased risk of developing heart disease. In fact, if your waist to hip ratio is high, you have a greater chance of heart trouble than an obese person with a lower percentage.

Visceral fat, a specific type of fat that is stored in your body, is what causes the higher likelihood of developing heart problems. This fat is located below your muscle and collects around your internal organs. Visceral fat is more stressful to your heart than any other accumulation of fat.

Among the problems it creates are high cholesterol, elevated blood sugar, and hypertension. In combination, these factors greatly increase your prospects of developing heart problems.

But one of the advantages of losing even a bit of weight from your abdomen is that it lowers your heart disease risk by a considerable amount. And surprisingly, a great way to specifically work on your waist area is by practicing yoga.

It's not at all necessary to spend your life at the gym, either. A session of exercise lasting anywhere from twenty to forty minutes each day will leave you healthier and slimmer in no time.

You can also handle your weight problem by changing your diet to include lots of fruits, vegetables, lean meat and whole grains. Eliminate food products that contain high levels of fats, particularly saturated or trans, as well as sugar.

A healthier diet helps you to lose excess fat, and it also regulates your blood sugar and blood pressure, as well as lowering your cholesterol. Together, this addresses your worries about heart disease and is the path to a healthier heart.

By getting rid of that extra weight around your waist, you might be able to fit into that new outfit. But more importantly, it will help you to stay healthy and have a more enjoyable life.

Though sub-Saharan Africa continues to fight the battle of infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS , TUBERCULOSIS AND MALARIA and with all the international effort geared towards this diseases and with progresses made in different countries,Subsaharan Africa is heading into a different epidemic ,this time of cardiovascular diseases.Recent statistics have shown that cardiovascular diseases will become the number one cause of death in developing country within the next 10 to 15 years ,but it may well be that sub-Saharan Africa is is already in an epidemic,since there are no data to determine the magnitude and burden of the disease, the distribution amongst the population of cardiovascular diseases.

When sub-Saharan Africa is bogged down on its fight to win the battle of communicable disease, little attention if any is given to chronic and non communicable disease, mered with competition from other social and health programmes. This brings us to why the world is watching and a looming epidemic is about to sweep through susbsaharan Africa ,simply because cardiovascular disease has no face ,It does not paint a face of despair,an adult male wasted as a result of Tuberculosis , a child malnourished from being an orphan having lost mom from Aids.

those are the faces floated , that have lead to massive programmes and funding. Cardiovascular disease use to be a disease of the affluence ,but not anymore, with increasing GDP in this countries is accompanied with increasing waist line , with women being empowered come to changes In lifestyles resulting to new and emerging risk factors. Just as some may suggest, Africa has a lot to worry than good quality research,but without it one may not know the best way to tackle this problem. There has been enough talk without enough action ,this is the time to devote resources to this disease without a face that will deprive sub-saharan Africa of the needed work force, leave families shattered as their loved ones passes on suddenly and above all sub-saharan Africa will be in double jeopardy.

People have used garlic for thousand of years as both food and medicine as well as to ward off vampires. Well, although modern research has not confirmed yet that rubbing garlic on doorknobs and window frames can protect us against vampires or evil spirits, it has confirmed what our ancestors believed about the health benefits of this herb: its consumption can protect us from many ailments.

Unfortunately, for several decades, the widespread use of antibiotics has ignored the medical properties of garlic. Lately, however, interest in garlic has escalated and nowadays research is focusing on the role garlic plays in the prevention and control of heart disease.

How can garlic help prevent and control heart disease? Through the following mechanisms:

1. Garlic can lower your high blood pressure
High blood pressure is one of the health conditions where garlic treatment brings the fastest results. Studies suggest that garlic dilates blood vessel walls, increasing the diameter of the arteries. Garlic also helps prevent high blood pressure by stopping blood cells from sticking together.

In a clinical trial, the subjects ingested standardized garlic powder capsules for four years. The results showed a 9 to 18 percent reduction in plaque volume and a 7 percent decrease in blood pressure. This resulted in an increase in the diameter of the arteries by 4 percent, which is associated with an 18 percent improvement of blood flow. These effects of garlic resulted in a risk reduction for heart attacks and strokes by more than 50 percent.

2. Garlic can lower your blood cholesterol
Studies indicate that the populations that eat garlic consistently have the lowest level of blood cholesterol. Pennsylvania State University showed that men with high total blood cholesterol were able to lower its concentration by 7 percent and LDL, the bad cholesterol, by 10 percent when taking garlic supplements. The study indicated that the sulfur compounds in garlic were responsible for the results, especially S-allylcysteine, which prevents the formation of cholesterol by the liver.

3. Garlic can lower your blood platelets
Platelets are tiny cells in the blood that, when arteries get damaged, rush to the lesion site to repair them. They become sticky and form a clot. Unfortunately, although platelets' intentions are good, these clots are the first step toward the formation of a thrombus, an accumulation of platelets and protein. A thrombus may in time obstruct the flow of blood in the blood vessels. Studies have shown that small doses of garlic can prevent platelets from becoming sticky and piling up together. In a study carried out by Liverpool John Moores University, the subjects experienced a reduction of platelet stickiness after ingesting 5 milliliters of garlic extract per day for 13 weeks.

4. Garlic can reduce your plaque in the arteries
Plaque starts to form when arteries are damaged. It is made up of mounds of fat and debris deposited in the wall of the arteries that reduce the space available for blood to circulate. Plaque keeps growing and with time may block the flow of blood in the arteries.

One study showed that continuous intake of high doses of garlic powder capsules for four years reduced the plaque volume by 5 to 18 percent. It is also a fact that most people between 50 and 80 years of age have an increase in the amount of plaque. During the four years this study lasted, the volume of plaque remained constant in people within this age frame demonstrating that garlic has a preventive as well as a curative role in heart disease.

5. Garlic is an antioxidant
Garlic has been shown to protect blood vessels from the destructive effects of free radicals. Ankara University of Turkey conducted a study to investigate the effects of garlic extract on the oxidation of red blood cells. For six months, 11 patients with atherosclerosis ingested a daily dose of 1 milliliter of garlic extract per kilogram of body weight. The study showed a reduction on the level of oxidation of red blood cells in the patients.

How to get the medicinal properties out of garlic

To get the medicinal properties of fresh garlic, however, you must follow several steps, a "protocol" as I call it before consuming it. Here is what you need to do

- Peel the cloves
- Cut them in small pieces
- Crush them in a mortar.
- After you have crushed the garlic, let it sit uncovered in the mortar for 10 or 15 minutes before you put it in the food. This allows the formation of allicin, a compound necessary to unleash the medicinal properties of garlic.

Conclusion
Remember that people around the world, especially those who enjoy few chronic diseases, use garlic extensively in their daily diets. A truly wonder of nature with more than 200 chemical compounds, garlic has been a crucial contributor to the curative effects of the Mediterranean diet. So, how about going back to the basics and put some garlic in your life as a preventive measure?

Blood is carried from the heart to all parts of your body in vessels called arteries. The pumping action of the heart must create enough force to push blood through the major arteries, into the smaller arteries, and finally into the tiny capillaries, where the porous walls permit fluid exchange between the blood and body tissue. The actual mechanisms which explain why the blood pressure is high has to do mainly with the constriction of the small arterioles which are in all of the tissues of the body. The body is usually successful at providing enough blood around the obstruction, but the pressure is low, including the pressure to the kidneys. In this way, that kidney may produce enough blood pressure to satisfy itself, while the rest of the body sees very high pressures as a result.

With high blood pressure, the heart works harder, your arteries take a beating, and your chances of a stroke, heart attack, and kidney problems are greater. It can enlarge the heart, create small bulges (aneurysms) in blood vessels, damage the blood vessels in the kidneys, harden arteries, produce bleeding in the eyes. In this situation, the kidney which is blocked doesn't "see" enough blood pressure, and releases chemicals causing the blood pressure to go up. If left unchecked, it can cause blood vessels in the kidneys to become thickened and narrowed, possibly leading to reduced blood supply and reduced kidney function. It is a major cause of kidney failure (renal failure) which may require dialysis Heart Failure is a frequent occurrence in long standing hypertension. Treating and controlling your hypertension can help prevent damage to your heart, brain, kidneys, blood vessels, and eyes.

Experts recommend investigation of patients who seem to be at above average risk on such epidemiological grounds as age and sex or on the presence of symptoms or signs of specific disorders. Many patients eventually require two or more drugs to effectively control their blood pressure. However, in some patients-- especially those who have made lifestyle modifications such as losing weight-- may be able to modify their anti-hypertensive medication regimen after hypertension has been controlled for at least one year. In patients with high blood pressure, side effects and costs of medications are also factors which weigh heavily on which agent if any is prescribed. For any number of reasons, patients may not take their drugs as prescribed or may not take them at all.

High blood pressure is a problem that won't go away without treatment and changes to your diet and lifestyle. The goal of treatment is to reduce your pressure to normal levels with medicine that's easy to take and has few, if any, side effects. Your physician will use both the systolic and the diastolic to determine your blood pressure category and appropriate prevention and treatment activities. For the physician, it is a difficult area due to the fact that patients don't feel bad, yet must be prescribed medicines which can be costly and have side effects which make the patient feel worse than they did prior to treatment. If your blood pressure has remained stubbornly high despite taking at least three medications, including a diuretic, you may have resistant hypertension - blood pressure that is resistant to treatment. If these causes of resistant hypertension aren't to blame or treatment doesn't work, talk to your doctor about joining a clinical trial for high blood pressure.

If you have a better idea of what cholesterol is and how you can manage it in your life, this information will lead to better heart health, and all round better feeling of well being. Cholesterol is a waxy like substance that is found in the walls of all your body cells, from your nervous system to your liver and in your blood stream as well. Your body uses this cholesterol to make necessary hormones, bile acids, vitamin D and other vital substances that your body needs to survive. There are good and bad types of cholesterol as well

Where does the Cholesterol in your body come from?

Your body manufacturers all the cholesterol your body requires from the foods you eat. This cholesterol will circulate in your bloodstream in packages known as lipoproteins, which consist of fat inside and protein on the outside. Cholesterol which is a fatty substance does not mix with the blood, just as oil does not mix with water. Your blood carries it to the parts of the body where it is required as mentioned above

Your Body has 2 Types of cholesterol in your body, both good and bad!.

Your body carries two types of cholesterol one which is good for your health and the other bad... These are known as low density lipoprotein or LDL which is the bad cholesterol which carries cholesterol that builds up in your body tissues including your heart arteries. Most cholesterol in your blood at any given time is the LDL cholesterol. The higher the levels are of LDL cholesterol in your blood stream; the higher your dangers are of contracting heart disease. So remember LDL is the bad cholesterol and you don't want high levels of this type in your body.

The good Cholesterol in your body is called HDL cholesterol. This cholesterol carries cholesterol away from your tissues to your liver where it is harmlessly removed from your body by natural secretion. Low levels of HDL increase heart disease. Healthy levels of HDL are good for you. Do not get mixed up between the two.

Why are high levels of LDL Cholesterol bad for your body?

Too much cholesterol in your blood leads to blocked and clogged up body tissues including your heart arteries. This build up is called plaque and as a result your arteries become less flexible. You may have heard the term atherosclerosis; which is hardening of your arteries and as you know the end result can be a heart attack. It is not just your heart blood vessels that can suffer from too much cholesterol, but any of the arteries in your body as well. If your coronary artery becomes blocked by too much plaque you will suffer angina because your blood is unable to get the oxygen it needs or the nutrients to the heart muscle. Hardening of the coronary artery is called coronary heart disease which you may likely by now have heard somewhere or another. This form of heart disease is becoming common in the western world due to high cholesterol in the blood from; Yes; and you guessed it; from unhealthy eating habits!

The risk factors.

Certain risk factors nothing can be done about regarding heart diseases and cholesterol levels. These factors where risks of heart disease are increased, are age groups for men and women over 45, which are ages that will increase the likelihood of coronary heart disease from atherosclerosis. Family history of early heart disease is also a factor that must be taken into consideration. The lack of regular exercise and bad eating habits increase the risk of heart disease from cholesterol as well. Most fast foods are prepared in unhealthy fats which is a high risk factor more than anything else as well...

How to lower your risks of high cholesterol.

Perhaps you have heard some of these tips before but it is prudent to go over them again for your information:

1 Avoid foods with high animal fat content. Trim excess fat off meat
2. Eat Lots of fruit, vegetables, and fiber for your health
3. Eat less salt in your diet and limit salty snacks and foods.
4. Lose some weight if you are carrying too much according to your BMI (Body Mass Index)
5. Regular sensible exercise in moderation and plenty of fresh air.
6. Stay calm and avoid stressful situations.
7. Limit your alcohol intake to a sensible level.
8. Smoke less, or give up altogether if possible.

Other treatments that can be used if your doctor has found you to have unhealthy levels of cholesterol are certain drugs called 'statins' that will control the rate which your body produces cholesterol. These drugs increase HDL and lower the bad LDL cholesterol. See above about what we mentioned about the good and bad cholesterol.

Watch your diet and eat healthily

Choose healthy fats like olive oil, avocado pears, peanut butter, unsalted nuts and fish oils. Try and limit intakes of salt, polyunsaturated fats, sunflower oils, soft margarines and salad dressings like mayonnaise. (Some newer soft low cholesterol margarine is available on the market that is completely safe to use nowadays though).

Watch out particularly to avoid eating too much animal fats on meats, eat less eggs, cheese, fatty meats, butter, and ice creams and of course take out foods. Naturally you can eat any of the above as long as you are sensible about it. Everyone tells you to eat more fiber, and by now with this advice it should be a given. If you are not eating enough greens or fresh vegetables then take some sort of antioxidants or supplements. Cut down drinking of alcohol to one or two drinks a day.

There is some great advice and diets that have been designed to help people with high cholesterol reduce these high levels. With a little research you will find the right ways to control your cholesterol.

In addition to diet, a few other reasons for high cholesterol are genetics, life-style and the sex and age of the individual. By keeping your cholesterol levels in the normal range, being thin and in good shape will probably not stop the attempted increase of bad cholesterol. Also because of the risk of heart problems some individuals need a strong plan of attack and medications that help lower cholesterol. Following are very important simple factors that affect cholesterol being up or normal.

Diet:
# Eating lower fat foods is an important factor to consider.

# Purchase and use only unsaturated cooking oils. When possible substitute heavy oils with cooking sprays that are low fat. Use cooking methods that call for none or at least little oil, this act will further lower the use of oils.

High cholesterol and Life-style effects:
# We are asking for trouble when we choose to eat fast foods versus good healthy foods. When eating so many fats and salty foods we are taking steps to raise the bad cholesterol level in our body. Opting to live a inactive life-style can also indirectly increase those levels also. There is a movie documentary titled "Supersize Me" that will reinforce this. You might want to rent it and observe a person tries to live on fast food and doing very little exercise. What happens to him in just 1 month will be an awakening impact to you and your family. In only 30 days his cholesterol and overall health will scare you.

# It is never too late to begin this new life-style. The best thing to do is take on professional help like a dietician or nutritionist and they can teach you the right reasons for the best health. An expense out of our pocket but well worth doing it.

# A good and regular exercise program will immediately lower cholesterol and keep your body in good shape and you will feel better about yourself. Believe it or not, going for a 30 minute walk three times a week or 30 minutes of aerobic exercise will lower cholesterol. No need for a lot of time spent or buying special clothing to perform those exercises. This is not a fashion show but your health.

When exercising, try to find one that you can enjoy. This can make the whole thing easier. What is needed is just take the first step. Keep it simple.

Hereditary:
# What your ancestry or parents have may affect your health also. Those genes can be passed down to you. If your family have problems with cholesterol and health, this info needs to be given to your doctor or health care provider. You can start earlier in your life and work harder to embrace a healthy food plan and begin a healthy life-style now.

Sex and Age:
# Studies show that the older we get cholesterol normally will go up. Women normally will have a lower cholesterol level than men in the age category of 50 to 55.

The cholesterol level begins to climb when a woman begins menopause.
# We all know that age will increase no matter what, but you can make sure that those added years will be heart healthy with a good diet and exercise. Monitor your cholesterol level and keep it controlled.

If you're like most people, you probably think of heart attack and stroke when you think of the risks of high blood pressure. Actually, most people with hypertension never suffer these most extreme consequences. But sadly, few ever escape scot-free. That's because high blood pressure wrecks invisible havoc on your body, doing serious damage undetected.

Hypertension puts a severe load on every organ of the body, not just your heart. The kidneys are one of the organs most susceptible to damage from excess pressure. Damaged kidneys fail to sufficiently remove waste and excess fluid from the blood and excess fluid acts to further increase blood pressure. The final result of this vicious circle is kidney failure, for which the only effective treatment is a transplant.

The eyes are very sensitive to high blood pressure. If your eyes become more sensitive to touch than usual it could be a sign of hypertension as it actually increases the internal pressure in the eyeball. This can also be the cause of blurred vision or other sight problems. Tiny capillaries in the eye can burst causing a bloodshot appearance or doing even more serious damage.

But all this pales in comparison to the biggest, yet invisible, risk of the so-called "silent killer": vascular disease, more commonly called hardening of the arteries. Constant high pressure on the walls of blood vessels builds up resistance, thickening and hardening them. It's a natural defensive reaction of your body to high blood pressure; it wants to protect your blood vessels from bursting under the pressure and bringing on a stroke or other severe consequence.

Sadly, in trying to protect you from a sudden health crisis your body's reaction to hypertension is creating a long-term health crisis. Hardened arteries become thicker, restricting blood flow and contributing to a condition called ischemia or lack of blood supply. This causes further damage to the organs.

Hardened arteries also become less flexible and this has specific effects on your health. Imagine a tough old garden hose that has baked under the sun. Instead of wrapping smoothly around corners like a new hose it collapses on itself, cutting off water flow. The flexibility of blood vessels is a major factor in determining how you age. Healthy, flexible arteries can make all the difference between aging gracefully, full of good health and energy, or growing old before your time while suffering constant health problems.

Speaking of aging, there's one further problem related to blood flow that's often (incorrectly) associated with growing old. At least when it comes to men... yes, it's erectile dysfunction. I say the association is incorrect because it's actually high blood pressure and hardened arteries that are at fault. Any organ or physiological process dependent on blood flow (which is pretty much everything) is going to suffer when you have high blood pressure. If this doesn't motivate at least half the population towards lower blood pressure then nothing will!

Heart attacks and strokes are just two possible outcomes of damage that started years before, damage that accumulates invisibly when you live with high blood pressure. You may never experience these frightening results but the damage is being done. Luckily, there's a 100% surefire way to prevent all these problems: lower blood pressure. It's not difficult. Doctors agree that up to 95% of hypertension cases can be treated with lifestyle changes and other natural methods. And there are a number of powerful medications, strictly as a last resort, for those rare cases that refuse to respond to nature.

Get your blood pressure checked and take immediate action if it's too high. Don't be fooled just because you feel well.