Cherries have powerful antioxidants, known as anthocyanins that are thought to help fight inflammation and risk of heart disease. A study conducted by Dr. Steven F. Bolling at the University of Michigan, shows that eating cherries may lower body fat, weight, cholesterol and inflammation. Our bodies use inflammation to fight off infection and injury. A chronic state of inflammation can raise your risk of heart disease.  With 2 out of 3 people overweight or obese in the United States, especially around their middle, this problem is more prevalent. In the study rats were feed a (Western Diet) which was high in fat and moderate carbohydrates.  The study added tart cherry powder to some of the rat’s diet, which caused them to maintain... [Read more]

I received some very interesting information this morning from Kaylea Livingston of Ohio State University Medical Center and Nationwide Children’s Hospital. I found that children born with heart defects are all but forgotten when they reach 18. Caitlyn MacKay underwent heart surgery when she was just 90 days old, for an extensive heart defect. Throughout child-hood she had consistent care; she is living proof of what has been accomplished in recent years. It is estimated that 30 to 40 thousand children out of a million are now receiving specialized care. The way health care stands today 95% of the children that have gotten specialized care throughout their child-hood will find that it stops at 18. Doctor Curt Daniels of Ohio State University... [Read more]

My sister married when I was 8 years old, her husband was like another father to me. Don was my hero he was always so full of life and included me in his mad adventures, with his children. Don was over six feet three inches tall and weighed about 240, he was always outdoors, his only faults were smoking and eating fatty foods. He was never sick so there was no need to go to the doctor, so he thought. Imagine our surprise when we found that he was an extremely ill man with diabetes. He fought a good fight in every way, but he would not give up his smoking. The doctors told him that the medicine that he was taking could not help him if he continued to smoke. Don died in a nursing home with heart failure, unable to walk; he took a large part of... [Read more]

The traditional way of angiography is accomplished by snaking a catheter through a patient’s blood vessels, where a dye is injected near the heart. Patients receiving this test will receive the same amount of radiation, which is found in other standard test such as nuclear stress test. When patients undergo CT scans they receive radiation equivalent 600 chest X-rays. The amount of radiation that that is given to a patient depends on where your health care provider sends you to have the CT scan. Some medical facilities take into consideration the size of the patient, when deciding on the dosage. The smaller the patient, the smaller the dosage. The technician may also pinpoint the radiation to the specific portion of the heart, which shortens... [Read more]

While searching Nova my husband came across a very interesting article, I thought I would share it with you. In the article you will find facts such as, the human heart beats 100,000 times per day. The human body contains 6 quarts of blood, which circulates throughout the human body 3 times per minute. In one day alone the blood in your body travels 4 times the distance across the United States, or a total of 12,000 miles. Your blood starts and stops as it moves throughout the arteries, this movement is known as a pulse. Adults pulse rate on average is 70 beats per minute. Children’s resting pulse rate is in the range 90 to 100 beats per minute. The muscles in the human heart work twice as hard as the muscles in your legs while sprinting. When... [Read more]