Ease the Disease
I'm Dr. Melanie Brown and I knew M'Nonc Mitch because I grew up in Gravelbourg, Saskatchewan. I'm lucky enough to be close with his nieces and nephews and got to know him through them. M'Nonc Mitch was very generous and never hesitated to welcome me to his home or the shop where he worked like I was one of his own nieces.
He was too young to be taken by heart disease and I hope this section helps to spread information about heart disease and its prevention.
I am a nephrologist (kidney specialist) in Vancouver, Canada. Unfortunately heart disease is very common when someone has kidney disease and I see its effects frequently. There are many factors that can lead to both heart disease and kidney disease, such as diabetes and high blood pressure.
July 8, 2012
One of the factors that can increase your risk of both heart disease and kidney disease is high blood pressure, and it is unfortunately very common. Most of the time there are no symptoms and in fact, up to 20% of people with high blood pressure don’t realize they have it.
Over time, high blood pressure damages blood vessels, which can lead to heart attack, stroke, heart failure, kidney failure, vision loss, and even dementia to name only a few.
Lowering the sodium in your diet can help significantly in lowering blood pressure. A lot of patients will tell me they have a low sodium diet because they don’t use table salt. While this is a good start, most of the sodium comes from packaged or processed foods. This includes things like canned soups, pickles, cheese, deli meats, pop, soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, mustard etc. Reading food labels for the sodium content is often quite surprising and helpful.
I also hear patients say if they use salt at all, it’s sea salt, which they believe is better. However, table salt, sea salt, and kosher salt all have the same sodium content and all contribute to high blood pressure to the same degree. It isn’t possible to completely eliminate sodium altogether from the diet but using fresh ingredients as much as possible, limiting how often you dine out, and reading nutrition labels can help in having a lower sodium diet.
Dr. Mel
He was too young to be taken by heart disease and I hope this section helps to spread information about heart disease and its prevention.
I am a nephrologist (kidney specialist) in Vancouver, Canada. Unfortunately heart disease is very common when someone has kidney disease and I see its effects frequently. There are many factors that can lead to both heart disease and kidney disease, such as diabetes and high blood pressure.
July 8, 2012
One of the factors that can increase your risk of both heart disease and kidney disease is high blood pressure, and it is unfortunately very common. Most of the time there are no symptoms and in fact, up to 20% of people with high blood pressure don’t realize they have it.
Over time, high blood pressure damages blood vessels, which can lead to heart attack, stroke, heart failure, kidney failure, vision loss, and even dementia to name only a few.
Lowering the sodium in your diet can help significantly in lowering blood pressure. A lot of patients will tell me they have a low sodium diet because they don’t use table salt. While this is a good start, most of the sodium comes from packaged or processed foods. This includes things like canned soups, pickles, cheese, deli meats, pop, soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, mustard etc. Reading food labels for the sodium content is often quite surprising and helpful.
I also hear patients say if they use salt at all, it’s sea salt, which they believe is better. However, table salt, sea salt, and kosher salt all have the same sodium content and all contribute to high blood pressure to the same degree. It isn’t possible to completely eliminate sodium altogether from the diet but using fresh ingredients as much as possible, limiting how often you dine out, and reading nutrition labels can help in having a lower sodium diet.
Dr. Mel
August 22
Women are unique! This is also true for symptoms of a heart attack. The classic symptoms of heart attack in men are crushing, central chest pain or heaviness, pain in the neck or arm, and sweating. The symptoms in women on the other hand can actually be quite subtle and can be mistaken for other things.
They may experience shortness of breath, pain or pressure in the upper abdomen, lightheadedness or fainting, or extreme fatigue. Some may think it’s just a flu. These symptoms should be taken seriously and investigated in all women with risk factors for heart disease. They are particularly concerning if they last more than a few minutes, are brought on by exercise, or are relieved with rest.
Despite the fear of common cancers in women, such as breast cancer, heart disease is in fact the number one killer of women. Fortunately there are some risk factors that can be modified including quitting smoking, regular exercise, controlling diabetes, controlling blood pressure, and lowering cholesterol. Many of these, in turn, can be improved with physical activity, maintaining a healthy weight, and following a healthy diet.
Until next time,
Dr. Mel
Women are unique! This is also true for symptoms of a heart attack. The classic symptoms of heart attack in men are crushing, central chest pain or heaviness, pain in the neck or arm, and sweating. The symptoms in women on the other hand can actually be quite subtle and can be mistaken for other things.
They may experience shortness of breath, pain or pressure in the upper abdomen, lightheadedness or fainting, or extreme fatigue. Some may think it’s just a flu. These symptoms should be taken seriously and investigated in all women with risk factors for heart disease. They are particularly concerning if they last more than a few minutes, are brought on by exercise, or are relieved with rest.
Despite the fear of common cancers in women, such as breast cancer, heart disease is in fact the number one killer of women. Fortunately there are some risk factors that can be modified including quitting smoking, regular exercise, controlling diabetes, controlling blood pressure, and lowering cholesterol. Many of these, in turn, can be improved with physical activity, maintaining a healthy weight, and following a healthy diet.
Until next time,
Dr. Mel
September 28
One of the best things you can do for yourself is to be physically active. Most often when I see patients who seem younger than they are and who have aged well, it is physical activity that is the underlying factor.
Not only does it help to maintain or reach a healthy weight, it also improves blood pressure, improves diabetes control, improves your cholesterol profile, lowers stress, and improves quality of life. This doesn’t have to mean hitting the gym for hours every day. In fact, walking is simple, cheap, safe, and has the lowest drop out rate of any exercise.
Studies show that for every hour of walking, life expectancy may increase by two hours. The goal is for 30 minutes of activity per day, 5 days a week. You will still experience benefits even if you divide that time into 2 or 3 segments of 10 to 15 minutes per day. This may not always be easy to do but here are some tips to help incorporate activity into your day without feeling like you need to do a formal or lengthy workout.
• Do housework or yard work yourself
• Intentionally park further away in a parking lot or from work
• Take the stairs or take the elevator part way then walk up the last few flights
• Get off the bus a few blocks early and walk the rest of the way
• Walk around while talking on the phone
• Schedule exercise time in your calendar and treat it like any other important appointment
• Take a bicycle or walking tour to see a new city
• Take a dance lesson
• Find an exercise partner to keep you accountable and keep you motivated
Stay well,
Dr. Mel
January 28
Why not use the new year as an excuse to accomplish something you’ve been meaning to do? There is a lot of focus on eating better and weight loss but there are other important issues to consider. Quitting smoking.
Smoking is the most important preventable cause of death in Western countries.
Everyone has likely heard that smoking is bad for you but here’s a refresher: it increases your risk of heart attack, stroke, lung disease, cancers, blood clots, aneurysms, and others. It decreases your exercise tolerance, decreases your HDL (good) cholesterol, and decreases your quality and length of life. But as most people who have tried to quit will say, it isn’t easy. Quitting will often require you to think about stress management options before you quit and will require an open mind. Some find the following helpful:
• Plan a date to quit smoking and slowly cut back before it
• Make a contract with a friend or family member
• Cut back on alcohol
• Keep busy with exercise, sports, meeting friends, reading etc.
• Reward yourself with the money you saved after you quit
• Consider whether nicotine replacement or other prescription medication would help you
• Identify your triggers and try to avoid or replace them
• Keep your hands busy- knitting, crosswords, writing etc.
Many people worry about weight gain when quitting smoking. People gain weight because their taste buds come back to life and food tastes better, feeling full reduces the urge to smoke, eating satisfies cravings and it replaces the smoking habit. Eating three meals a day, always including breakfast, and having water, crunchy or chewy healthy snacks, sugar-free gum, or sugar-free hard candy nearby may help to avoid weight gain. Physical activity controls appetite, releases stress, burns extra calories, and improves mood. Remember that even if you do gain a few pounds, that’s not as important as saving your life and the lives of others around you.
Be healthy,
Dr. Mel
One of the best things you can do for yourself is to be physically active. Most often when I see patients who seem younger than they are and who have aged well, it is physical activity that is the underlying factor.
Not only does it help to maintain or reach a healthy weight, it also improves blood pressure, improves diabetes control, improves your cholesterol profile, lowers stress, and improves quality of life. This doesn’t have to mean hitting the gym for hours every day. In fact, walking is simple, cheap, safe, and has the lowest drop out rate of any exercise.
Studies show that for every hour of walking, life expectancy may increase by two hours. The goal is for 30 minutes of activity per day, 5 days a week. You will still experience benefits even if you divide that time into 2 or 3 segments of 10 to 15 minutes per day. This may not always be easy to do but here are some tips to help incorporate activity into your day without feeling like you need to do a formal or lengthy workout.
• Do housework or yard work yourself
• Intentionally park further away in a parking lot or from work
• Take the stairs or take the elevator part way then walk up the last few flights
• Get off the bus a few blocks early and walk the rest of the way
• Walk around while talking on the phone
• Schedule exercise time in your calendar and treat it like any other important appointment
• Take a bicycle or walking tour to see a new city
• Take a dance lesson
• Find an exercise partner to keep you accountable and keep you motivated
Stay well,
Dr. Mel
January 28
Why not use the new year as an excuse to accomplish something you’ve been meaning to do? There is a lot of focus on eating better and weight loss but there are other important issues to consider. Quitting smoking.
Smoking is the most important preventable cause of death in Western countries.
Everyone has likely heard that smoking is bad for you but here’s a refresher: it increases your risk of heart attack, stroke, lung disease, cancers, blood clots, aneurysms, and others. It decreases your exercise tolerance, decreases your HDL (good) cholesterol, and decreases your quality and length of life. But as most people who have tried to quit will say, it isn’t easy. Quitting will often require you to think about stress management options before you quit and will require an open mind. Some find the following helpful:
• Plan a date to quit smoking and slowly cut back before it
• Make a contract with a friend or family member
• Cut back on alcohol
• Keep busy with exercise, sports, meeting friends, reading etc.
• Reward yourself with the money you saved after you quit
• Consider whether nicotine replacement or other prescription medication would help you
• Identify your triggers and try to avoid or replace them
• Keep your hands busy- knitting, crosswords, writing etc.
Many people worry about weight gain when quitting smoking. People gain weight because their taste buds come back to life and food tastes better, feeling full reduces the urge to smoke, eating satisfies cravings and it replaces the smoking habit. Eating three meals a day, always including breakfast, and having water, crunchy or chewy healthy snacks, sugar-free gum, or sugar-free hard candy nearby may help to avoid weight gain. Physical activity controls appetite, releases stress, burns extra calories, and improves mood. Remember that even if you do gain a few pounds, that’s not as important as saving your life and the lives of others around you.
Be healthy,
Dr. Mel
