FOR THOSE WITH CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE (DEFINED ANYWHERE FROM MILD STAGE I TO SEVERE FAILURE STAGE 5), TAKING AT LEAST ONE ANTI-HYPERTENSIVE MEDICATION AT BEDTIME  RESULTED NOT ONLY IN BETTER PRESSURE CONTROL, BUT A 30% LESS CARDIOVASCULAR RISK AS WELL. IT HAS BEEN WELL KNOWN THAT THOSE WHO HAVE HIGHER NIGHTTIME BP (SHOULD DIP LOWER USUALLY) HAVE HIGHER CARDIOVASCULAR RISK, BUT THE RESEARCHERS ALSO ADDED THAT URINE ALBUMIN(PROTEIN) EXCRETION (A MARKER OF WORSENING KIDNEY FUNCTION) MAY ALSO BE REDUCED WITH NIGHTTIME THERAPY.

IN A 19,000 STRONG STUDY FROM HARVARD, YOUNG MEN 18-28 WITH OBESE STATUS DEFINED BY BMI, ACHIEVING WEIGHT LOSS BY MID 40S LOWERED THEIR CARDIOVASCULAR MORTALITY. GUYS, ITS NEVER TOO LATE TO CHANGE YOUR LIFE!

BASED ON STUDIES, NEARLY 40% OF PHYSICIANS AND 25% NURSES HAVE A BMI (BODY MASS INDEX: HEIGHT AND WEIGHT RATIO) >25 (CONSIDERED A MARKER OF OBESITY). DOES A HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONAL THAT TAKES HIS OR HER OWN HEALTH SERIOUSLY MATTER WHEN THEY MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS TO YOU? 

52,000 NORWEGIAN MEN AND WOMEN HAD THEIR SLEEP HABITS FOLLOWED FOR 11 YEARS.  THOSE WITH INSOMNIA HAD A 45% INCREASE IN ACUTE HEART ATTACK AND THOSE WHO COULD NOT STAY ASLEEP HAD A 30% INCREASE. WE REPORTED IN AN EARLIER STUDY THAT <5HOURS OF SLEEP NIGHTLY MAY INCREASE CARDIOVASCULAR RISK, ESPECIALLY HYPERTENSION.  IN A RELATED STORY, SALES OF AMBIEN IN NORWAY JUST SKYROCKETED.

PREVIOUSLY, WE NOTIFIED YOU OF A 45% CHANCE OF A SECOND HEART ATTACK IN THOSE THAT TAKE NSAIDS (IBUPROFEN, NAPROXEN ETC) FOR PAIN AFTER THEIR FIRST EVENT. CURRENTLY, THERE APPEARS TO BE NO SAFE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR NSAID USE IN PATIENTS WHO HAVE PRE-EXISTING HEART DISEASE. DICLONFENAC (VOLTAREN, CATAFLAM), APPEARS TO GIVE THE HIGHEST RISK,  EVEN THE SELECTIVE NSAID CELECOXIB (CELEBREX) IS NOT WITHOUT RISK. WE ALSO NOTIFIED YOU EARLIER THAT NAPROXEN (ALIEVE, NAPROSYN), APPEARED TO BE POTENTIALLY LESS HARMFUL IN A META-ANALYSIS OF 7 NSAIDS. OUR RECOMMENDATIONS TO OUR HEART PATIENTS: ITS OK TO TAKE ONE AS NEEDED FOR A REALLY PAINFUL DAY, BUT AVOID DAILY USE AND SEE YOUR DOCTOR FOR ALTERNATIVES. 

IN A 10 YEAR RETROSPECTIVE STUDY OF 138,000, WIVES THAT SAY “HONEY, I HAVE SOMETHING TO TELL YOU”, IS GOOD NEWS FOR THEIR HUSBANDS, MARKING LESS DEATH FROM HEART DISEASE. SPECIFICALLY, MEN WITH 2 OR MORE CHILDREN HAVE LESS CARDIOVASCULAR MORTALITY VS CHILDLESS MARRIED MEN WITH A 17% INCREASED RISK OF DYING. HYPOTHETICALLY, MALE HORMONAL DYSFUNCTION LEADING TO INFERTILITY MAY BE CONTRIBUTE. 

THANKS TO CONTROLLING BLOOD PRESSURE, SMOKING, AND LDL (BAD) CHOLESTEROL, WE ARE LIVING LONGER. YOU CAN DO IT TOO!

IN OUR PRACTICE WE EMPLOY THE HEALTH DIAGNOSTIC PROFILE, A PORTION OF WHICH DISPLAYS “E ALLELES” OR GENETIC MARKERS. THEY LET US KNOW IF YOU ARE WHO YOU ARE BORN TO, YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT, OR A COMPOSITE OF BOTH. RECENTLY A CHROMOSOME VARIANT FOR EARLY HEART DISEASE AND HEART ATTACKS HAS BEEN IN THE NEWS. A “PRUDENT” DIET OF RAW AND GREEN LEAFY VEGGIES, FRUITS ESP. BERRIES, AND NUTS, APPEARED IN AN ANALYSIS OF SEVERAL LARGE STUDIES TO MODIFY THIS HIGH RISK.

IN A RECENT STUDY OF OVER 30,000 SWEDISH WOMEN AGE 49 TO 83, THOSE WHO CONSUMED A LITTLE OVER 2OZ/WEEK (2 CANDY BARS EQUIVALENT), HAD 20% LESS STROKES. NOTE: DARK CHOCOLATE, IN PARTICULAR THAT WHICH IS HIGH IN % CACAO (BETTER ANTIOXIDANT CAPABILITY AND LESS SUGAR), WAS NOT FACTORED IN. IT SHOULD BE CONSIDERED FOR OVERALL HEALTH BENEFIT. DOES THIS GIVE NEW MEANING TO THE TERM “SWISS MISS?”

A RECENT STUDY FROUGHT WITH CONTROVERSY HIT THE PRESS:  “An increase in mortality for those taking multivitamins, B6, folic acid, iron, copper, magnesium and zinc”. THIS WAS A STUDY OF OLDER WOMEN AND HAD MANY ERRORS IN DESIGN. 2 STUDIES REPORTED IN 2009 AND ONE FROM THIS YEAR FAILED TO AGREE WITH THIS FINDING SHOWING NO HARM FROM TAKING THESE OR ANY VITAMINS. BUT….. ARE THEY OF ANY HELP? MANY WILL AGREE THAT A HEALTHY DIET OF FRUITS AND VEGETABLES PROVIDES ALL ESSENTIAL VITAMINS AND NUTRIENTS. SOME NEED MORE SUPPLEMENTATION. BUT AT WHAT PRICE? A RECENT REPORT ASSOCIATES ITAMIN E SUPPLEMENTATION AND HIGHER PROSTATE CANCER. FOR MORE INFO PLEASE LISTEN TO “THE A,B,C,D AND Es OF VITAMINS AND THE HEART” ON YOUR SHU!