Menopause And Risk Of Heart Disease!

Recent study confirmed that women who entered into menopause stage are at higher risk of heart disease. Researchers explain that understanding the risk factors is an important step and also there are various methods to lower the risk.

Some women who are younger than 50 and not gone through menopause stage still have higher levels of estrogen hormone, which protects their heart health.

After entering into the menopause stage, levels of estrogen hormone drop significantly and can lead to higher risk of cardiovascular disease. Another factor that can increase the risk of heart disease is weight gain, which occurs after entering into the menopause stage. So, women should maintain a healthy weight once they enter into the menopausal stage.

Additional weight can cause various changes in your body such as high blood pressure, physical inactivity, high cholesterol and diabetes, which are the leading causes of stroke and heart attack.

Adopting a healthy lifestyle can greatly help to decrease the risk of heart disease even you enter into the menopausal stage. Smoking women should immediately stop smoking, consume a healthy diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables and regular workouts can help to maintain a healthy body weight.

Consult your health care provider regularly to check the levels of blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol.

Importance Of Annual Physicals!

Yes, health physicals or regular annual physical exams are essential to live a healthy lifestyle, to reduce yearly healthcare costs, to prolong your life, and also to offer you great piece of mind.

The components of a physical exam vary from one person to another.

Some physical exams are standard; some are especially for women while some are especially for men.

Also, tests will vary depending upon the person’s age.

Standard physical examinations for all people:

• Everyone should carefully monitor their blood pressure during every doctor’s visit.


• Height should be measured during every visit, because any decrease in height indicates osteoporosis. Also, spinal cord compression can lead to decreased height.


• Your weight will be measured during every doctor’s visit. Any loss or gain in weight without trying can indicate a serious health problem. Gaining weight can indicate hormonal imbalance, fluid retention, kidney or liver disease, or potential heart. Losing weight can indicate any infection or cancer.


• Have a blood test. Regular blood tests include blood cell count, blood sugar levels to find whether you have diabetes, blood electrolytes panel to find kidney disorders, thyroid function test to exclude any thyroid problems, and any other early heart disorders.


• Have chest X-ray. This is essential to identify emphysema, early tuberculosis and lung cancer.


• You may also receive ECG or electrocardiogram at early ages of 50 to check your heart’s health. After age 50, you should get the test for every 2-3 years.


• Some other tests include: virtual colonoscopies and various methods that use flexible lighted tubes to discover polyps and tumors in your gastrointestinal tract.
  

Health physicals for women:

An annual mammogramphy is recommended for women over 40 years or for women who are at higher risk. An early mammogram performed can decrease the chances of developing breast cancer.

Also, regular Pap smear along with pelvic exam is essential for every year to detect cancer of the cervix, STD’s, vaginal cancer and other gynecological concerns.

Testing bone mass is also essential to detect osteoporosis. This is particularly important for menopausal women.

How To Diagnose Respiratory Diseases?

Chronic respiratory diseases are chronic diseases of the airways and other structures of the lung.

Among those, the most common illnesses include: respiratory allergies, asthma, occupational lung diseases, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and pulmonary hypertension.

The most important risk factors for preventable chronic respiratory diseases include:

• Indoor air pollution


• Allergens


• Tobacco smoking


• Occupational risks


• Outdoor pollution
  

Nowadays, hundreds of millions of people are suffering from chronic respiratory diseases. According to the recent studies, presently 210 million people are suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), 300 million people from asthma, and millions of people from allergic rhinitis.

Respiratory system has a great role in our body. Not only it supplies oxygen to various cells of the body, but also it washouts the wastages, supplies air required for speech and filters out infectious agents. So, it is very much essential to protect our respiratory system in all aspects.

In order to investigate your chronic respiratory diseases, you need to undergo one or more of the following tests:

Pulmonary function test: It is a group of tests used to evaluate how well the lungs take in and release air and how well they move gases such as oxygen from the lungs.

Chest X-ray: This test is used to diagnose the conditions that affect your chest, its content and nearby structures. It generates the image of your chest.

Bronchoscopy: This method is used to observe inside of your airways for therapeutic and diagnostic purpose. In this procedure, an instrument is placed in your airways through mouth or nose. With the help of this test, your practitioner can observe the abnormalities of your airways like bleeding, foreign bodies, inflammation or tumors.

Computed tomography scan: CT scan is a medical imaging method employing tomography created by computer processing. This type of digital geometry processing is used to produce a three-dimensional image of the inside of your body from a large series of two-dimensional X-ray images taken around a single axis.

Biopsy: In this procedure cells or tissues are removed from the lung or pleura for examination. This method helps to find out the presence of the disease. The cells are examined under a microscope and also analyzed chemically.

Ultrasound: This method is used to detect fluid such as pleural effusion.

Ventilation – Perfusion scan: It is used to evaluate circulation of blood and air within your lungs. Perfusion part assesses how well the blood circulates within the lungs, whereas ventilation part observes whether the air reaches all parts of the lungs or not.

Culture of microorganisms: This method is used to determine the cause of infectious diseases. For instance, your throat culture is taken by scratching the lining of tissue in the back of your throat and blotting the sample into a media to be able to screen for harmful microorganisms, like streptococcus pyogenes, the causative means of strep throat. 

Does Obesity Cut Your Lifespan?

Researchers said that your lifespan could be shrinking in proportions to your growing waistline. Obese people die ten years before they should. Also, moderate obesity cuts your lifespan by three years.

Studies showed that people with BMI of 30-35 will die three before than they should and people with BMI of 40-45 will die ten years before.

If you are becoming obese or overweight, it is advised to avoid further weight gain for adding years to your life. Studies said that people should put a conscious effort against piling on the pounds, which most often happens between 25-50 years of life.

Obesity is linked with high risk of heart disease and stroke. According to the international BMI scale, BMI above 25 is considered as overweight and above 30 is considered as obese.

Even you have low BMI, having high body fat can also cut your lifespan. It is found that death ratio is lowest in those who were on the high part of obesity on the normal range and had a BMI from 23-24.

Also, studies showed that people with BMIs less than 22.5 have a higher risk of during than those who weighed slightly more, largely because of respiratory illnesses, such as lung cancer. The researchers say this is probably the result of skinny people who were smokers.

16 Risk Factors Of Heart Disease In Women!

Women are at high risk for heart disease and stroke when compared to men.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in women above 65 years of age.

The American heart association has found that various factors can increase the risk of heart disease in women.

The greater the risk factors a woman have, the more her risk of getting a heart attack.

There are certain risk factors that you can not control, such as advancing age, gender, family history and race.

Also, you can alter certain risk factors to lower the risk of heart disease.

Risk factors of heart disease that you can’t control:

1. Gender: Every year, about 60,000 more women when compared to men have heart disease. More than 60% of the total stroke deaths occur in only women.

2. Advancing age: Usually, women develop heat disease 10-15 years later than men. Until you enter into the menopause stage, your ovaries can produce enough estrogen and it protects you against building the plaque in arteries.

But, once you enter into menopause, your ovaries stop production of estrogen thus increasing your risk of heart disease.

Not only menopause is the only reason for heart attack, but as you age, arteries become stiffer and thicker thus keeping at risk.

3. Family history: Woman whose father or brother had developed heart disease before 55 years of age is at greater risk and woman whose mother or sister had developed heart disease before 65 years of age is also at risk.

4. Race: Black women have higher risk of heart disease than white women. Compared to white women, African-American women are more likely to die of heart attack.

5. Ethnicity: African or South Asian people are more likely to have diabetes and high blood pressure and therefore are at high risk of heart disease and stroke than general population.

6. Prior stroke: Women who have had a heart attack are at greater risk of having another attack.

Risk factors of heart disease that you can control:

7. High blood cholesterol: It is a major risk factor of heart disease and also increases the occurrence of stroke. Research showed that women have high blood cholesterol when compared to men from age 55 onwards.

High LDL cholesterol levels increase the risk of heart disease and heart attack, whereas high HDL cholesterol levels decrease the risk.

8. Physical activity: Lack of exercise is a risk factor for heart disease and also increases the risk of heart attack. Inactive and dull women are at high risk of heart disease than active women.

Also, overeating can lead to high levels of blood cholesterol, diabetes, high blood pressure and finally increase the risk of heart disease and heat attack.

9. Diabetes: Diabetic adults are 2-4 times at higher risk of heart disease when compared to adults without diabetes. Often diabetics have high cholesterol and blood pressure and are overweight keeping them at higher risk.

10. Tobacco smoke: Smoking is the major cause of cardiovascular disease among women. Smoking women are at high risk of ischemic stroke and subarachnoid hemorrhage. Also, smoking women who use birth control pills are even at greater risk of stroke.

11. High blood pressure: It is the major risk factor for stroke. Obese women who have family history of high blood pressure, take birth control pills and enter into menopause are at high risk of heart disease.

12. Obesity: High fat levels, particularly if they are located in the waist area can keep you at greater risk for heart disease.

13. Depression: Depression is twice as common in women as in men. It increases the risk of heart disease by two to three times when compared to women who are not depressed.

14. Excessive alcohol consumption: Moderate drinking can decrease the risk of heart disease, but drinking excessively and binge drinking can make you obese and increase triglyceride levels and finally lead to heart attack.

15. High levels of triglycerides: It is a type of fat in your body. High triglyceride levels indicate that you have high LDL levels and low HDL levels thus keeping you at risk of heart disease.

16. Stress: Stress also has a major role in the development of heart disease. High stress levels can make you to develop unhealthy habits like overeating and smoking.

Good News For Diabetics!

There are many coffee and tea lovers. For some extent, it is good to drink coffee and tea, especially for diabetics. Coffee and tea protect you against the disease.

A recent study showed that drinking an extra cup of coffee or tea a day may reduce risk of type 2 diabetes by 7%.

People who consume three to four cups of coffee or tea a day are at 25% less risk when compared to those who drink between zero to two cups.

People who drink three to four cups of tea a day are at one fifth lower the risk of diabetes when compared to those who don’t drink tea. But, the study didn’t seem to be linked to caffeine.

Another Australian study conducted on 458,000 people showed that drinking three to four cups of decaffeinated coffee a day reduce the risk of diabetes by 33% than those who drank none.


Does Obesity Cut Your Lifespan?

Researchers said that your lifespan could be shrinking in proportions to your growing waistline.

Obese people die ten years before they should. Also, moderate obesity cuts your lifespan by three years.

Studies showed that people with BMI of 30-35 will die three before than they should and people with BMI of 40-45 will die ten years before.

If you are becoming obese or overweight, it is advised to avoid further weight gain for adding years to your life. Studies said that people should put a conscious effort against piling on the pounds, which most often happens between 25-50 years of life.

Obesity is linked with high risk of heart disease and stroke. According to the international BMI scale, BMI above 25 is considered as overweight and above 30 is considered as obese.

Even you have low BMI, having high body fat can also cut your lifespan. It is found that death ratio is lowest in those who were on the high part of obesity on the normal range and had a BMI from 23-24.

Also, studies showed that people with BMIs less than 22.5 have a higher risk of during than those who weighed slightly more, largely because of respiratory illnesses, such as lung cancer. The researchers say this is probably the result of skinny people who were smokers.

8 Diabetes Dangers For Women!

Nowadays, diabetes has become a common condition for several women.

Having blood glucose levels more than the usual range specify that you are with diabetes mellitus.

Diabetes is of three types, such as type 1, type 2, and gestational diabetes.

Diabetes looses the ability of your immune system to convert the food into energy.

Type 2 diabetes can occur at any age and even in the childhood also.

Here are the effects of diabetes on your health:

1. Diabetes and menstrual cycle

During your menstrual cycle, you body undergoes various hormonal changes. These hormonal changes can greatly affect your blood sugar levels. When there are high estrogen levels, your body is resistant to its own insulin or injected insulin.

Usually women have high blood sugar 3-5 days before their menstrual cycle i.e. a week prior to ovulation. Once your period starts, your blood glucose levels will naturally fall down. This fluctuation is due to the increase in estrogen and progesterone levels, which greatly interfere with insulin activity.

Premenstrual symptoms become worse with poor blood sugar control. Young women with cycles of more than 40 days or cycles that were too irregular to estimate were found to be twice as likely to develop diabetes as those with normal cycles.

2. Diabetes and sex life

A new study conducted recently said that diabetes can cause women sexual dysfunction. All women have some kind of sexual health problems. Sexual problems occur in same rate in women with type 1 diabetes as women without diabetes. But the problems are severe in women with type 2 diabetes. Here are some of the sexual health problems:

• Vaginal dryness: Vaginal lubrication decreases with low hormone levels, damage to the blood vessels, or nerve damage. Age, pregnancy, medications and stress can also reduce vaginal lubrication.


• Yeast infection: High glucose levels in your blood increases the fungus called as yeast around your vaginal area. If the condition is not treated, then it can lead to severe urinary tract infection.
  

3. Diabetes and birth control

You will find various types of birth control methods. The risk of blood clotting is higher for women with type 2 diabetes who use oral contraceptives.

The risk of blood clots can also increases if you don’t exercise, are overweight, smoke, have high blood pressure or high levels of cholesterol.

So, women with any of these risk factors should choose low dose oral contraceptives.

4. Diabetes and menopause

Women with type 1 diabetes enter into menopause stage earlier than women without. But, women with type 2 enter into menopause stage later than normal women. Women with diabetes can experience major hormonal changes.

These hormonal fluctuations can cause women to suffer from mood changes, menstrual periods that are more or less frequent, greater PMS symptoms, lighter or heavier blood flow during menstrual cycle.

Women with type 1 diabetes can experience hypoglycemia as the first sign that indicate that hormonal levels are decreasing and it is essential for insulin adjustment. Women with type 2 diabetes experience major weight gain and greater increase in blood glucose levels.

5. Diabetes and eyesight

Nowadays, diabetes is the leading cause of blindness. About 10% of women with diabetes are blind. Recent research showed that more Americans than ever are facing the threat of blindness.

6. Diabetes and other health conditions

Also, there are various ways in which diabetes affects a woman’s life. Diabetes can cause a woman to enter into coma, nerve damage, hypertension, stroke, and urinary tract infection.

7. Diabetes and reproductive problems

Diabetes can cause various reproductive abnormalities in women. Among which the most serious effects of diabetes is on fertility. Diabetes can lead to miscarriage and polycystic ovary syndrome.

5% of all pregnancies in United States experience gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes can lead to high blood pressure, bladder infection, birth defects, premature delivery, spontaneous abortion, kidney and urinary tract infection.

8. Diabetes and heart disease

Heart disease is the most common threat of diabetes in both women and men. It is estimated that 45% of women with diabetes have heart disease. Women with heart disease have poorer prognosis than men.

After suffering from a heart attack, women are at higher risk of dying or having another heart attack.

5 Arthritis Types Most Commonly Affect Women!

Nowadays, arthritis is the most common condition that affects every one out of six women in United States.

About 50 million people have some form of arthritis.

Arthritis simply refers to an inflammation of joints. There are about 100 types of arthritis.

Among those, five affect nine out of ten arthritic cases, such as: fibromyalgia, gout, osteoarthritis, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. Among those, rheumatoid and osteoarthritis are most common in women.

Arthritis can affect anyone, no matter what your age, gender, or race.

But, it is especially important for women to know about these conditions because arthritis affects women at much higher rate when compared to men.

60% of people who have arthritis are women only. Here are the most common forms that affect women.

Fibromyalgia: This syndrome is characterized by musculoskeletal pain. Usually, this condition is associated with muscular pain, stiffness, fatigue, depression, anxiety and loss of sleep.

Fibromyalgia is a kind of soft tissue or muscular rheumatism. This means, there is no joint deformity when you affect with this condition. Currently 3.7 million Americans are suffering from fibromyalgia.

Sometimes, people confuse with chronic fatigue syndrome as a sign of some other conditions.

Gout: Also called as metabolic arthritis, is a crystal deposition disease hallmarked by elevated levels of uric acid in your bloodstream. About 5 million people in United States have gout. Gout affects women after entering into the menopause stage.

Factors such as obesity, high blood pressure, high alcohol consumption, excessive weight gain and certain drugs can increase the levels of uric acid in your blood thus leading to gout.

Osteoarthritis: Also called as degenerative joint disease, is the most common type of arthritis. Among the 27 million people who have osteoarthritis, 16 million are women.

Usually, women can affect with this condition after the age of 40 years. This degenerative joint disease causes damage to your bones and cartilage thus causing joint pain, stiffness, loss of function and swelling.

Rheumatoid arthritis: This condition affects women between 25-50 years of age. However, children can also be affected with this condition. It is a systemic disease that can affect your whole body.

Abnormalities in your body’s immune system make it to work improperly thus leading inflammation in lining of the joints and various internal organs. Sometimes, chronic inflammation can cause pain, deterioration and restricted movement.

Lupus: Also called as systemic lupus erythematosus, is an inflammatory condition, which affects your joints, kidneys, skin and various other body parts. Lupus usually affects women during their childbearing age. African American women are more susceptible to this condition when compared to Caucasian women. Also, Asian and Latino populations can get this condition.

Osteoporosis is also a form of arthritis that causes loss of bone mass and makes them brittle. This condition can lead to painful fractures, rounded shoulders and loss of height.

About 28 million Americans have osteoporosis among those every four out of five affected people are women. Postmenopausal women are more prone to this condition.

Women with rheumatoid arthritis and who take glucocorticoid medications are at high risk of osteoporosis.

5 Common Types Of Arthritis That Affect Women!

Nowadays, arthritis is the most common condition that affects every one out of six women in United States.

About 50 million people have some form of arthritis.

Arthritis simply refers to an inflammation of joints. There are about 100 types of arthritis.

Among those, five affect nine out of ten arthritic cases, such as: fibromyalgia, gout, osteoarthritis, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

Among those, rheumatoid and osteoarthritis are most common in women.

Arthritis can affect anyone, no matter what your age, gender, or race. But, it is especially important for women to know about these conditions because arthritis affects women at much higher rate when compared to men.

60% of people who have arthritis are women only. Here are the most common forms that affect women.

Fibromyalgia: This syndrome is characterized by musculoskeletal pain. Usually, this condition is associated with muscular pain, stiffness, fatigue, depression, anxiety and loss of sleep.

Fibromyalgia is a kind of soft tissue or muscular rheumatism. This means, there is no joint deformity when you affect with this condition. Currently 3.7 million Americans are suffering from fibromyalgia.

Sometimes, people confuse with chronic fatigue syndrome as a sign of some other conditions.

Gout: Also called as metabolic arthritis, is a crystal deposition disease hallmarked by elevated levels of uric acid in your bloodstream. About 5 million people in United States have gout. Gout affects women after entering into the menopause stage.

Factors such as obesity, high blood pressure, high alcohol consumption, excessive weight gain and certain drugs can increase the levels of uric acid in your blood thus leading to gout.

Osteoarthritis: Also called as degenerative joint disease, is the most common type of arthritis. Among the 27 million people who have osteoarthritis, 16 million are women.

Usually, women can affect with this condition after the age of 40 years. This degenerative joint disease causes damage to your bones and cartilage thus causing joint pain, stiffness, loss of function and swelling.

Rheumatoid arthritis: This condition affects women between 25-50 years of age. However, children can also be affected with this condition. It is a systemic disease that can affect your whole body.

Abnormalities in your body’s immune system make it to work improperly thus leading inflammation in lining of the joints and various internal organs. Sometimes, chronic inflammation can cause pain, deterioration and restricted movement.

Lupus: Also called as systemic lupus erythematosus, is an inflammatory condition, which affects your joints, kidneys, skin and various other body parts. Lupus usually affects women during their childbearing age. African American women are more susceptible to this condition when compared to Caucasian women. Also, Asian and Latino populations can get this condition.

Osteoporosis is also a form of arthritis that causes loss of bone mass and makes them brittle. This condition can lead to painful fractures, rounded shoulders and loss of height.

About 28 million Americans have osteoporosis among those every four out of five affected people are women. Postmenopausal women are more prone to this condition.

Women with rheumatoid arthritis and who take glucocorticoid medications are at high risk of osteoporosis.

How To Prevent Osteoporosis?

Are you entered into menopause stage? Then you are at a greater risk of osteoporosis.

Osteoporosis is a condition in which inside of your bones become permeable due to loss of calcium and is usually called as losing bone mass. Eventually, this condition weakens your bones and makes them much more prone to break.

Osteoporosis is most common condition in women when compared to men because women usually contain less bone mass than men.

Also, women are more likely to live longer and take less calcium and they require estrogen hormone to keep the bones stronger. Men who live longer can also at a risk of getting osteoporosis in their later life.

After entering into the menopause stage, your estrogen levels fall and loss of bone mass speeds up gradually. Removal of ovaries can also lead to faster bone loss because ovaries are responsible for estrogen production.

You don’t know that you have osteoporosis until you experience any serious signs and symptoms. Some of the signs include: low back pain, hunched back or broken bones.

Osteoporosis can cause your vertebrae to collapse. This type of problems can occur if you lost greater amounts of bone calcium.

There are various risk factors that cause osteoporosis. They include: menopause before the age of 48 years, not getting enough physical activity, not getting enough amounts of calcium, surgery for removal of ovaries before menopause, alcohol consumption, smoking, family history of osteoporosis, hyperthyroidism, having fair skin, long-term use of oral steroids, thin body and small bone frame.

Some of the drugs that can prevent bone loss include:

Calcitonin helps to prevent additional bone loss and also reduces the pain that you experience with osteoporosis. You can take this drug as a shot or nasal spray.

Ibandronate sodium is a new medicine that needs to be taken once in a month. It decreases bone loss by increasing bone density. It results in some side effects like nausea, heartburn, diarrhea and upset stomach.

Alendronate and risedronate, they are not hormones, but they can help to prevent and treat osteoporosis. These dugs decrease the bone loss thus reducing the risk of fractures. Usually, these drugs can result in upset stomach.

Raloxifene helps to prevent and treat osteoporosis. It acts same like estrogen. This drug causes hot flashes and risk of blood clots.

Teriparatide is an injectable synthetic hormone. This can be used daily for treating osteoporosis. This drug can causes new bone growth. It commonly results in dizziness, nausea and leg cramps.

For preventing the risk of osteoporosis, you need to take about 1,000 mg of calcium a day. After entering into menopause stage, you need 1,000 mg of calcium if you take estrogen and 1,500 mg of calcium if you do not take estrogen. Lactose and vitamin D can help your body to absorb the calcium.

Here are some tips to keep your bone stronger:

• Quit smoking


• Do regular exercise


• Consume a well-balanced diet


• Contact your practitioner to know about HRT and other medicines to treat osteoporosis

Know Your Diabetes Type?

Diabetes is a disease, which affects your body’s ability to produce or respond to insulin.Insulin is a hormone, which allows blood glucose to enter into the cells of your body and also be used for energy.

Basically, diabetes is of two types. One is type-1 diabetes, which affects during childhood or adolescence and the other is type-2 diabetes, which occurs usually after the age of 45 years.

About 9.1 million American women have diabetes and about one third of them don’t know even they have it.

Occurrence of diabetes is two to four times greater among African American, Asian/Pacific islander women, and American Indian women when compared to white women.

Women who have diabetes are at an increased risk of vaginal infections and various complications during pregnancy.

Pregnancy can also bring the threat of diabetes for the women who don’t have diabetes and is called as gestational diabetes. 2-5% of all pregnancies can get gestational diabetes and it disappears after your delivery. Gestational diabetes can increase the occurrence of type-2 diabetes in later life.

Complications of diabetes in women:

Women with diabetes are at greater risk of cardiovascular disease than men. Death rates from heart disease in women with diabetes are high when compared to women without diabetes.

Threat for diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is 50% higher in women than men. Diabetic ketoacidosis is also called as diabetic coma. This condition occurs when diabetes is poorly controlled and noticeable high blood sugar and ketones are present. DKA is not due to high blood sugar, but it is due to lack of insulin.

Diabetes can keep women 7.6 times higher at risk of peripheral vascular disease (PVD) when compared to women without diabetes. PVD causes less oxygen and blood supply to the tissues in your legs and feet.

Also in pregnant women, diabetes poses special challenges when compared to women who do not have diabetes. Diabetic women are up to five times at greater risk of developing toxemia.

Toxemia is mainly due to high blood pressure, protein in the urine, headache, swelling, and various visual disturbances.

Gestational diabetes can lead babies to born with high birth weight, birth defects and various other complications for the mother.

Babies born to mothers with gestational diabetes are more likely to be overweight or obese in their adolescence and consequently are at greater risk for diabetes in later life. Women with gestational diabetes are at higher risk for getting type-2 diabetes in the future.