Short Sleepers At Higher Risk Of Heart Disease.

People who sleep less than six hours a night may be three times more likely to develop a condition which leads to diabetes and heart disease, according to researchers at the University of Warwick.A study by a team of researchers from Warwick Medical School and the State University of New York at Buffalo has found short sleep duration is associated with an elevated risk of a pre-diabetic state, known as incident-impaired fasting glycaemia (IFG).IFG means that your body isn't able to regulate glucose as efficiently as it should. People with IFG have a greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes and are at an increased risk of heart disease and stroke.The study has just been published in the Annals of Epidemiology journal. The researchers looked at six years of data from 1,455 participants in the Western New York Health Study.All participants were aged between 35 and 79 years old and all completed a clinical examination that included measures of resting blood pressure, height and weight. They also completed questionnaires about their general health and wellbeing and sleeping patterns.Lead author at Warwick Medical School Dr Saverio Stranges said: “We found that short sleep, less than six hours, was associated with a significant, three-fold increased likelihood of developing IFG, compared to people who got an average of six to eight hours sleep a night.”

Blueberries Help Fight Artery Hardening

Blueberries may help fight atherosclerosis, also known as hardening of the arteries, according to results of a preliminary U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)-funded study with laboratory mice. The research provides the first direct evidence that blueberries can help prevent harmful plaques or lesions, symptomatic of atherosclerosis, from increasing in size in arteries. Principal investigator Xianli Wu, based in Little Rock, Ark., with the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Arkansas Children's Nutrition Center and with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, led the investigation. The findings are reported in the current issue of the Journal of Nutrition. Atherosclerosis is the leading cause of two forms of cardiovascular disease--heart attacks and strokes. Cardiovascular disease is the number one killer of Americans. The study compared the size, or area, of atherosclerotic lesions in 30 young laboratory mice. Half of the animals were fed diets spiked with freeze-dried blueberry powder for 20 weeks; the diet of the other mice did not contain the berry powder. Red Orbit News, Sept 29, 2010

Foods With Added Sugar Raise Cholesterol Levels

(NaturalNews) A diet lower in sugar corresponds directly to lower cholesterol and other markers of improved heart health, according to a study conducted by researchers from Emory University and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. "We found that the lower the amount of added sugar people ate, the better their good cholesterol and their blood triglyceride levels," said researcher Miriam B. Vos, author of The No-Diet Obesity Solution for Kids. Researchers questioned 6,113 adults participating in the National Health and Nutrition Survey about what they had eaten the prior day, then used this information to calculate how much added sugar was included in each person's diet. Blood samples were also taken from each participant and evaluated for a number of cardiovascular risk factors. The researchers then divided participants into groups based on whether they got less than 5 percent of their total calories from added sugar, between 5 and 10 percent, between 10 and 17.5 percent, between 17.5 and 25 percent, or more than 25 percent. A full 18.5 percent of participants were getting a quarter or more of their daily calories from added sugar, amounting to 46 teaspoons of sugar per day. People in this group tended to be young, low-income, non-Hispanic blacks.

High Cholesterol Causes Heart Disease!

By K.S. RAMKUMAR, RAMKUMAR@ARABNEWS.COM Published: Sep 8, 2010 16:12
Cardiologists say high cholesterol levels are a major cause of heart disease, the No. 1 cause of death in this part of the world. Over 25 percent of deaths in Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Gulf are caused by cardiovascular disease. In fact, recent studies show that more than half of the Gulf population suffers from abnormal cholesterol levels, a quarter has high blood pressure and 15 to 25 percent have diabetes. These numbers coupled with a rapid increase in the rate of obesity adds up to alarming statistics. Substantiating this is Dr. Omar K. Hallak, board member, Emirates Cardiac Society, and consultant interventional cardiologist at the chief intervention cardiology department, American Hospital, Dubai. “Most patients don’t achieve the desired reduction in their cholesterol levels because they don’t follow the treatment, such as diet and exercise recommendations, despite being treated with cholesterol-lowering medication. Like any muscle, the heart needs a constant supply of oxygen and nutrients, which are carried to it by the blood in the coronary arteries. Narrowing of the arteries decreases that supply and can cause angina (chest pain) when the heart muscle does not receive enough oxygen. Cholesterol plaques can rupture, resulting in a blood clot formation that completely blocks the artery, stopping all blood flow and causing a heart attack, in which heart muscle cells die from lack of oxygen and nutrients. High cholesterol is more common in men younger than 55 years and in women older than 55 years. The risk for high cholesterol increases with age.

Americans Not Alone With High Cholesterol

Thirty somethings in metros found to have high cholesterol levels - BS Reporter / Chennai/ Kochi September 25, 2010, 0:42 IST

Indians are at a high risk of coronary heart disease, suggests a pan-India survey conducted by Metropolis Healthcare Private Limited ahead of the World Heart Day. The survey found that a majority of people above 30 have alarmingly high cholesterol levels. The survey covered major cities and wes divided into four zones -- South, North, East and West. Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, Indore, Surat in the West zone, Delhi in the North zone, Chennai, Bangalore, Coimbatore and Thissur in the South zone and Kolkata in the East zone were part of the survey. It screened 35,566 people and found that other than the genetic factor, obesity and sedentary lifestyle were the main factors for Indians becoming prone to the Coronary Artery Disease (CAD). The survey found Delhi to be the capital for a large number of young people with high risk of coronary artery diseases, followed by Bangalore and Mumbai. In Delhi, a large percentage of the 5,721 respondents, which included men and women aged between 30 and 40, were found in the highest risk group for heart disease.

Grouchy People Risk Heart Disease and Heart Problems

TUESDAY, Sept. 14 (HealthDay News) -- Heart patients with a pessimistic "Type D" personality may be at increased risk for future cardiovascular problems, according to a new review article. U.S. researchers analyzed data from more than 6,000 patients in 49 studies that looked at the link between heart and psychological health and Type D personality, which is characterized by negative emotions, pessimism and social inhibition. The analysis revealed that heart patients with a Type D personality had a three-fold increased risk for future cardiovascular problems, such as peripheral artery disease, angioplasty or bypass procedures, heart failure, heart transplantation, heart attack or death. The article is published Sept. 14 in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes. "Type D patients tend to experience increased levels of anxiety, irritation and depressed mood across situations and time, while not sharing these emotions with others because of fear of disapproval," senior author Viola Spek, a researcher at Tiburg University in the Netherlands, said in an American Heart Association news release. "We found that Type D personality predicts (illness and death) in these patients, independent of traditional medical risk factors." The researchers also found that patients with a Type D personality had a three-fold increase in the long-term risk of psychological conditions such as depression, anxiety or poor mental health.

Lower Your Cholesterol, Reduce The Risk Of Type II Diabetes

By now, most of us know that high cholesterol levels can lead to heart disease. We also know that we need to moderate or reduce our intake of fat and get our levels checked periodically by means of a simple blood test. The reality though is many continue to eat poorly, gain weight, fail to exercise and compound their health problems regarding high cholesterol, diabetes and heart disease. Are we really happy with that person who looks back at us in the mirror? If you haven’t had your cholesterol level checked in awhile, it’s time to go to the doctor. A simple blood test can tell your exact levels of good and bad cholesterol, and your doctor can tell you your health status, and describe how poor choices are increasing your risk for Type II diabetes and heart disease. Most people know about the connection between high cholesterol and diabetes. But now scientists are finding evidence that diabetes itself wreaks havoc with cholesterol, significantly increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke even higher. The close ties between these two risk factors means that if you are diabetic, you have to be extremely vigilant about controlling your cholesterol. On the reverse side of this, if you have high cholesterol, your likelihood of developing diabetes increases dramatically. Indian Country Today, Sept 23, 2010