National Diabetes Awareness Month 2019: Preventing Cardiovascular Diseases

November is the National Diabetes Awareness Month, a month when different communities from across the nation come together and step forward to raise awareness about diabetes - a group of diseases that elevate sugar level in the blood. This year's National Diabetes Awareness Month aims to bring attention to the link between diabetes and cardiovascular attention. 

According to studies, diabetic adults are almost twice as likely to die from a stroke or heart attack as people without diabetes. This is because extra sugar in the blood from diabetes increases blood clots or deposition of fat on the walls of blood vessels and damages the nerves that control your heart. However, you can take steps to manage your blood sugar level, which will also mitigate the risk of a heart attack or stroke caused by diabetes. 

Here are the steps:

· Quit smoking or usage of other tobacco products

·  Avoid drinking soda, alcohol, etc.

· Monitor your A1C, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels with the help of ambulatory ECG

· Develop healthy eating habits

· Exercise for at least 4 hours a week 

· Find ways to manage stress

· Take your prescription medicines 

With the increasing number of diabetes cases in the US, there has never been a better time to raise awareness about diabetes and its impact on cardiovascular than November. This November, come together and help make America healthy again. 

If you or your loved one has diabetes, keep a check on A1C, blood pressure with ambulatory ECG.

Is Your Pounding Heart A Sign Of Anxiety Or Is It Afib?

You could feel your heart racing or pound arrhythmically and it could be happening due to various reasons. From being excited after getting a piece of good news to feeling nervous due to a job interview, it could be possibly due to anything. People who consume too much coffee or any other thing, which is high in caffeine content, may also experience a phenomenon called 'caffeine jitters'. While you may misconstrue your irregular heartbeats with anxiety, it can sometimes be a serious condition known as atrial fibrillation or AFib.

AFib is a heart rhythm disorder or better known as arrhythmia, in which electrical signals in the heart don’t travel the way they do in a healthy heart. Consider it a miscommunication that results in your heart’s upper two chambers - atria - to beat too quickly. 

Symptoms of AFib include;

● A skipped heartbeat followed by a pound

● Heart palpitations or a fluttering sensation

● Sweating

● Chest pain

● Dizziness

● Fatigue and weakness

 

What’s important to understand is that the symptoms of AFib overlap the symptoms of anxiety, which is why it’s hard to tell if you have anxiety or AFib. 

How to Tell the Difference?

Studies reveal that people with stress or anxiety may develop the condition of AFib or those who already have it may worsen their symptoms. The best course of action, as described by medical professionals, is to keep a check on your heartbeat with the help of a Holter monitor system. It can detect less frequent heartbeat and consequently help you figure out if you have AFib while ruling out the possibility of anxiety. 

If you often have patients with the symptoms of AFiB or anxiety and you face difficulty with the right diagnosis, consider getting a PC-based Holter monitor system to record electrical signals in the heart.

Make A Difference This National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month

Childhood obesity is a serious medical condition, as per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in five children in the US is obese. This poses a health risk because it often leads to health problems that were once considered adult problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. Additionally, many end up suffering from depression and have low self-esteem with the average child suicide rates also seeing a spike.

One of the best ways to reduce childhood obesity is to improve eating and exercise habits among children. By taking a preventative measure, many conditions that can have a direct bearing on the child’s health in the future can be controlled or even altogether nullified. 

September: Make a difference this National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month

September being National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month is a great opportunity for both parents and children to raise awareness about the obesity epidemic and look for solutions that are practical and easily implementable. 

Here is how you can get involved:

1. Make people aware of the food they eat and encourage families to make small changes, like keeping fresh fruit within reach or going for walks.
2.  Spread awareness in the community school, and motivate teachers and administrators to make schools healthier. Ask them to provide healthy food options and daily physical activities for students.
3.  Request doctors and nurses to be leaders in their communities and offer programs and seminars on the subject, “How to prevent childhood obesity”.

Since obesity is consistently associated with an increased risk for metabolic diseases and cardiovascular disease, community health care providers or clinics can use ambulatory ECG to measure children’s heart rate and pulses. This way, parents can track their children’s health and diet. 

Make a difference in children’s lives this National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month. Join a community to raise awareness about the problems associated with obesity and health risk associated with generations to come.