A new report has been released showing that while most Americans know that high blood pressure is not good for you, this has not led to a drop in the number of people who have hypertension.

In other words, in this case, awareness has not led better outcomes.

The study put a cost of $73.4 billion, in 2009, on the American health system due to high blood pressure. That would buy a lot of copies of our My Blood Pressure software

The report puts the blame on the usual suspects; being overweight, too little exercise, bad diet, too much salt.

As well as the usual suspects, the report also mentions that 86% of the people who have uncontrolled hypertension do visit their doctor, but it appears that their doctors are not following the treatment guidelines for hypertension. It was recommended that more research should be done to figure out why doctors are ignoring the guidelines.

According to the study: “Nearly one-third of U.S. adults have high blood pressure, and it accounts for about one in six adult deaths annually, a 25 percent increase from 1995 to 2005″.

If you need a reminder of why, have a look at the animated video below:

For more information see the press release.

Do you feel that your doctor correctly follows the treatment guidelines for your hypertension situation?

I was interested to read that the ‘tried and true’ diuretics have been shown in a recent study to be the best first line treatment for high blood pressure. They are still the best!

The study is part of the ALLHAT Antihypertensive and Lipid-Lowering Treatment to Prevent Heart Attack Trial which has been going since 1994. That’s a long time!

Considering this is the largest hypertension trial to date I am always interested in the results of this ongoing study.

Before I get into the study, Steve sent me this video about how diuretics work. It is longer, and more technical than the videos I would normally include. There is no need to watch the video to understand the rest of the story, so feel free to skip the video if it is too technical, or if you don’t feel like having a chemistry lesson

The hypertension medication study

The original ALLHAT trial started in 1994 with over 42,000 people with high blood pressure. The people were randomly assigned to take one of the following common anti-hypertensive medications:

• The diuretic – chlorthalidone
• A calcium channel blocker – amlodipine besylate
• An ACE inhibitor – lisinopril
• An alpha-receptor blocker – doxazosin mesylate

The study looked at the outcomes of those on the long-term medications in regards to coronary heart disease, death, heart failure and cardiovascular disease.

The study results

The study showed that diuretics were as good or better than other newer blood pressure lowering drugs for treating hypertension in patients and reducing the risk of stroke and heart disease.

Diuretics increase the discharge of urine and thus reduce the ‘pressure’ in the body which in turn reduces blood pressure.

The lead researcher Dr. William Cushman said at the annual meeting of the American Heart Association in Orlando this month,

“None of the newer drugs were superior to chlorthalidone (diuretic) for reducing death from cardiovascular disease or end-stage renal disease. Chlorthalidone (diuretic) treatment is superior to each in preventing one or more major cardiovascular events as long as participants continued taking the drug.”

The last time I reported on the results of the ALLHAT trial was in February 2008 which also showed the success of diuretics for treating hypertension.

What about natural diuretics?

Alcohol and caffeine are well known as natural diuretics, however, I wouldn’t say they are always healthy. Everyone knows that too much caffeine and alcohol will have you running to the the toilet frequently, but they also dehydrate the body. If you drink alcohol and caffeine be sure to drink plenty of water too.

There are, however some natural diuretic foods, such as fruits and vegetables that act as a mild diuretic and help cleanse the urinary system.  

Some diuretic drinks include: 

• Green tea
• Cranberry juice
• Apple cider vinegar
• Dandelion leaf tea

Some diuretic foods include:

• Asparagus
• Brussels Spouts
• Beets
• Oats
• Cabbage 

What about you?

Do you take diuretics to help manage your blood pressure? I know Steve is a big fan of drinking green tea which is a much healthier diuretic than the 6 to 8 cups of coffee he used to drink.

Leave a comment below and share if you have had success with diuretics.

I am always on the lookout for good health videos.

A good video can bring an abstract health topic to life, and have an impact far greater than a list of warnings or research studies.

I found the following video simply explained the complex topic of diabetes.

Thank you to AnswersTV for providing the following video: “What Does Diabetes Do?”

The first half of the video explains what diabetes is by showing animations of what happens with glucose and insulin after eating. It then explains the complications of diabetes with another series of animations.

Hope you like it!

Related

• Diabetes is on the increase in the U.S.
• Control your blood glucose levels

I don’t buy magazines, they cost a lot and cluster up the house. I do tend to flick through the fashion magazines while wasting time in the supermarket queue though.

I always figured that the pictures of glamorous women in magazines had been ‘altered’ a bit. No one is that perfect after all!

What I didn’t know was how much they change a person to fit the ‘perfect’ image. Yes, the pictures of beautiful women in magazines are often fake. Watch how they do it in this wonderful Dove advertisement.

I found this Dove advertisement fascinating as it takes a normal looking woman and between make-up and computer skills produce a photo to place on a billboard that is a ‘fake’ image. Personally, I thought she looked great in the before picture!

Dove Evolution video

This is a great video everyone should watch. It shows that the pictures of beautiful women are not always real. Thank you to Dove and director Tim Piper for use of the video and embarking on this reality campaign to present a realistic view of body image.

Body image

It’s pretty normal for children, teens and adult to look up to and aspire to the images portrayed by the movies stars in magazines and on the big screen. 

But what about when those pictures are actually not real! Where does that leave normal people? 

Many people suggest that it damages self esteem, especially of young girls who can not compete with images of women who have had makeup and Photo shop photography done to the extent that they no longer look like a ‘real’ person.

My thoughts and your thoughts

As a Mum of a young girl and boy it is important to me that I minimize the exposure to these ‘fake’ images.

I also explain to my children that these are not really real people and that they are not going to meet people ever that look like that. I just don’t want those images to be what they aspire to be. I love this Dove ad for showing the behind the scenes!

Were you also surprised by the Dove ad? Do you try to shelter yourself, your children or grandchildren from unrealistic images? Or do you just ignore it?

Leave a comment below and share your thoughts.

Apologies for the lack of news over the past month or so. I have had a few weeks break, and Kellie at the moment doesn’t have as much time to spend working on the news.

Kellie sent me a link to an article and video by her friend Daniel Munday. It is part of a series of articles in progress: the 7 Pillars of Health and Wellbeing.

Daniel talks about a simple principle to determine if food is healthy for you, based on how much processing of food has gone through. He says it better than I could: “Eat clean, stay lean”.

Below is Daniel’s video. You can visit his site for more information.

(Note: The video stops at 1:03)

Personally I think there is a lot of truth in what Daniel says. It is a simple rule, but good rules always are.

Over the past few years, it is something that I have been doing both consciously and unconsciously, and I know that I feel better and healthier for it. I have also talked to Kellie about this in the past, and I know that over the past five years, her diet has gone from eating processed foods to much “cleaner” foods.

For more information about eating less processed foods, have a look at this BBC news article from 2003: Eat less processed food, say experts.

I am in Australia, so I don’t watch the TV show “The Daily Show”, however I occasionally get sent clips from it. Someone sent me this clip a while ago, and I have never forgotten it.

Using Daniel’s advice, the following is a perfect example of what not to eat

High Blood Pressure – The Facts

What is blood pressure?

Blood pressure is the force of the blood pushing against the walls of the arteries. Every time the heart beats, it pumps blood into the arteries. The pressure is determined by the force and amount of blood pumped, and the size and flexibility of the arteries.

Blood pressure measurements contain two numbers. The top number is called systolic blood pressure and measures the pressure in the arteries when the heart pumps blood (contracts). The lower number is called the diastolic pressure and measures the pressure in the arteries when the heart relaxes.

Steve’s note: below is an interesting video from eHow that gets a bit more technical:

What is high blood pressure?

High blood pressure or hypertension is a blood pressure reading of 140/90 mmHg or higher.

*American Heart Association recommended blood pressure levels.

High blood pressure usually has no symptoms, and is often referred to as the Silent Killer. The incidence of high blood pressure is more common in people over the age of 35 years, and the risk increases with age. High blood pressure increases the stress on the heart and arteries which increases the risk of:

• Heart failure
• Kidney failure
• Heart attack
• Stroke
• Blindness

High blood pressure management

High blood pressure can be managed by a range of lifestyle modifications including:

• Losing weight
• Increasing physical activity
• Reducing salt (sodium) in the diet
• Decreasing saturated fats in the diet
• Quitting smoking
• Reducing or eliminating caffeine intake

A range of medications are also available to effectively treat high blood pressure. These medications include; diuretics, alpha-blockers, beta-blockers, angiotensin receptor blockers, ACE inhibitors, and calcium channel blockers. The medications reduce blood pressure in different ways, yet they all aim to reduce the pressure and stress on the arteries.

Home blood pressure monitors are recommended to monitor blood pressure readings on a regular basis to gain an accurate picture of blood pressure levels and to monitor the success of a treatment regime.

Patients can either record their readings on paper or a spreadsheet or use special software like My Blood Pressure which enables patients to print off a chart and email information to their Doctor.

Sources and Further Reading

• The National Heart, Blood and Lung Institute (NHBLI)
• The American Heart Association (AHA)
• The National Heart Foundation Australia

We are pleased to announce the release of new versions of all of our software programs. The new versions are free upgrades for all users.

Thank you to everyone who has helped to test the new versions, and to those people who have sent in suggestions and feedback. Thank you!

The new versions contain multiple bug fixes, and a couple of minor new features. Unlike the last release, there are no major changes in these versions, and there is no need to reinstall your license after downloading the update.

To read what is new, and for upgrade instructions, please go to the following pages:

• My Blood Pressure
• My Weight Software
• My Blood Glucose
• My Peak Flow
• My Body Temperature
• My Cholesterol
• My INR
• My Blood Oxygen

If you have any questions, or run into any problems, please don’t hesitate to e-mail us at support@my-health-software.com

Thank you again to everyone who has helped with the new versions!

Steve and Kellie

If you haven’t broken your New Year’s resolution by now, then you are one of a very few!

It’s less than a week since the new year started, and by now most of us have already broken that resolution. They just don’t seem to stick, do they?

My thoughts are that New Year’s resolutions are made when we are fueled with inspiration and hope for the new year, but very little planning. Any goal needs a serious plan to get you there.

I also feel that New Year’s resolutions are always the big ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ goal. For example, “I want a body like Elle Macpherson”. Now that is just not going to happen to me unless I grow more than a foot and are transformed by photo shop!  Let’s get realistic about our goals and break them down into smaller achievable goals. How about, “I will walk for 20 minutes on a Monday, Wednesday and Friday and once on the weekend.” The goal is specific and doable.

To help you create and plan your New Year’s resolutions I came across this fun VideoJug video which has good practical advice on sticking to a New Year’s resolution. It gets the message through in a light hearted way and will help if you are keen to stick to any goal.

What’s your New Year’s resolution?

This year I thought I’d like to get one more gym session in a week. That would get me to the gym 4 times a week. Is that ‘achievable and doable’? So far it has been. But I am on holidays with plenty of time on my hands. I hope I can keep it up once my children are back at school and I’m back to work. I’ll let you know!

What was your New Year’s resolution for 2010? Did you make one or has past experience told you not to bother.

Either way – Happy New Year! Kellie

For everyone celebrating Christmas … Merry Christmas!

Thank you to everyone for your support and help this year.

Wishing you and your family all the very best for 2010!

Steve and Kellie

Eat well this Christmas

I copped a bit of flak (especially from my sister ) after posting the weight reduction surgery video last week. Just to be clear, I didn’t mean to recommend or endorse surgery, I just found the video interesting.

To balance things out, here are two great links on how to eat wisely these holidays:

• Daniel Munday’s Three super foods for this Christmas
• The Mayo Clinic’s Tips for preventing holiday weight gain

Santa!

I found this lovely “NORAD Tracks Santa” video which is suitable for both kids and adults

Videos like that always helps to put me in the mood for Christmas!

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays from Kellie and Steve!

It is that time of the year when I normally end up eating and drinking way too much

I came across this video animation explaining how the various weight reduction surgery (bariatric surgery) techniques work. I did not realize the variety of operations that were available.

Somehow it seemed a fitting reminder to not go too overboard this Christmas

I also had no idea just how radical some of these surgeries are. These doctors really go for some big internal “re-organizations”. I found it very interesting to see what they could do.

I know somebody who is considering this kind of surgery. I can see why it is such a hard decision to make.

About half way through the video it will explain the roux-en-y gastric bypass and start graphically explaining the various procedures; Gastric Banding, Vertical banded gastroplasty, Lap-Band, Biliopancreatic diversion.

I know this is a deadly serious topic, but I couldn’t help but think of kids playing with train tracks and reorganizing them to make different tracks, and adding bridges, tunnels, loops and other obstacles. It is amazing what doctors can do these days!

Thank you again to Nucleus Animation, who also did the heart attack animation we featured a few weeks ago, for their excellent videos!