American Heart Association encouraged by CDC report, urges caution

Dallas, TX – The American Heart Association is encouraged by the reduction in the prevalence of coronary heart disease (CHD) reported in the current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. However, the association is concerned to see the disparities that remain with certain groups and urges all people to improve their health, as cardiovascular diseases remain the No. 1 killer of men and women.

The CDC reported a 0.7 percent drop in the prevalence of self-reported coronary heart disease – from 6.7 percent in 2006 to 6.0 percent in 2010. [Read more]

Healthy lifestyle habits lower heart failure risk by significant percentages

Dallas, TX – If you don’t smoke, aren’t overweight, get regular physical activity and eat vegetables, you can significantly reduce your risk for heart failure, according to research reported in Circulation: Heart Failure, an American Heart Association journal.

In a new study, people who had one healthy lifestyle behavior decreased their heart failure risk, and each additional healthy behavior further decreased their risk. [Read more]

Rate of stroke increasing among women during, soon after pregnancy

Dallas, TX – The stroke rate for pregnant women and those who recently gave birth increased alarmingly over the past dozen years, according to research reported in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.

Researchers gathered data from a large national database of 5 to 8 million discharges from 1,000 hospitals and compared the rates of strokes from 1994-95 to 2006-07 in women who were pregnant, delivering a baby and who had recently had a baby. [Read more]

Eleven Strategies for Stroke Prevention

May is National Stroke Awareness Month

Yonkers, NY – About every 40 seconds, someone in the U.S. suffers a stroke, and more than 77 percent are first events. In a new report available online at www.ConsumerReportsHealth.org, Consumer Reports Health identifies eleven strategies for stroke prevention.

“Many people don’t realize that by making healthier lifestyle changes, they can cut their risk of stroke dramatically,” says Orly Avitzur, M.D., medical adviser, Consumer Reports Health, and a board-certified neurologist. “American adults have their work cut out for them; only a very small fraction of people in their 40s and 50s have a handle on the major cardiovascular risk factors for stroke. Fortunately, many of those risk factors can be reduced or eliminated by controlling blood pressure, improving cholesterol levels, reining in diabetes, and quitting smoking.” [Read more]

Less Salt means more Health

World Salt Awareness Week is March 21st-27th, 2011

Nashville, TN - Salt shakers may be as common on our dining tables as plates and silverware, but Tennesseans are reminded of the importance of reducing salt intake to improve health. The Tennessee Department of Health is working to educate Tennesseans about the link between high salt intake and disease during World Salt Awareness Week, observed March 21st-27th this year.

“Cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death in Tennessee, and diabetes is number seven, but we can reduce our risk of these diseases by lowering our salt intake,” said Health Commissioner Susan R. Cooper, MSN, RN. “There are simple ways to lower the amount of salt in our meals without sacrificing the good tastes we all enjoy.” [Read more]

Treating Diabetes With Less Need for Insulin

New approach lowers blood sugar in both type 1 and type 2 diabetes

Boston, MA – Diabetes can result from either a deficiency of insulin (type 1 or insulin-dependent diabetes) or decreased sensitivity to insulin (type 2 diabetes). Researchers at Children’s Hospital Boston have discovered a mechanism for normalizing blood sugar that doesn’t involve insulin and could offer a new therapeutic approach to both kinds of diabetes.

Reporting in Nature Medicine online on February 13th, Umut Ozcan, MD, and colleagues in Children’s Division of Endocrinology show that a regulatory protein called XBP-1s, when activated artificially in the liver, can normalize high blood sugar in both lean, insulin-deficient type 1 diabetic mice and obese, insulin-resistant type 2 diabetic mice. This suggests that approaches aimed at increasing XBP-1s activity may benefit patients with either type of diabetes. [Read more]

Reduce Diabetes Risk with good Nutrition and Exercise

November is American Diabetes Month

Nashville, TN – Diabetes takes the lives of more Americans every year than breast cancer and AIDS combined, according to the American Diabetes Association. But with a healthy eating plan and regular exercise, people may reduce their risk for diabetes. As part of November’s observance of American Diabetes Month, the Tennessee Department of Health is reminding Tennesseans of free tools and tips available from Get Fit Tennessee to help reduce the risk for diabetes and its complications by improving nutrition and increasing physical activity.

“With more than an estimated 500,000 Tennesseans living with diabetes, it has become an alarming epidemic in our state,” said Health Commissioner Susan R. Cooper, MSN, RN. “The good news is that most cases of Type 2 diabetes are preventable with good nutrition and regular physical activity.” [Read more]

“Eat Well, Play More” Plan to reduce Obesity in Tennessee

Nashville, TN – Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen and Health Commissioner Susan R. Cooper, MSN, RN, released Tennessee’s comprehensive, statewide nutrition and physical activity plan, Eat Well, Play More Tennessee on Thursday, September 16th, 2010. This five-year plan, developed by the Tennessee Obesity Taskforce, provides a comprehensive roadmap to reduce obesity and chronic disease in Tennessee by 2015.

“Eat Well, Play More Tennessee is a call to action for all Tennesseans to take a more active role in improving their personal health and the health status of our state,” said Governor Bredesen. “We are setting a goal of improving the health of Tennessee, and I appreciate the work of the Taskforce members to help us accomplish that goal.”

[Read more]

Paris Health Expo focuses on YOUR health and well-being

Paris and Henry County has shown it loves a good expo, an opportunity to peruse the diversity of opportunities that abound within this geographic area. February 7th’s Health Expo proved to be no exception. The Paris Civic Center was filled with healthcare consumers visiting the over thirty healthcare providers and allied services present to display their various wares and services and discuss health care  information and options.

In a four hour block of time, from 8 a.m. to 12 noon, the Paris Civic Center was a buzz of activity as over six hundred visitors passed through the center’s doors during the sixth annual Healthcare Expo .

Visitors were greeted by Paris Chamber of Commerce representatives Jenifer Williams and Stacie Plunkett, and asked to sign-in and register for free door prizes and give-a-ways. Each visitor received a free gift bag to fill with the free hand-outs and gifts provided by the diverse vendors. Stacie is chairperson of the Chamber’s Healthcare Committee which coordinates the health expo.

At the center of the expo hall’s setup was Henry County Medical Center’s free testing and screening multi-station. Blood pressure checks, blood sugar reading, cholesterol reading, hand grip strength testing and osteoporosis screenings were provided free. The results were recorded and given to each visitor for review with their personal medical care provider. [Read more]