Hospital mattresses are soft and pliable. Great for the patient who wants to be comfortable. But not so great for medical staff if they have to perform CPR.
Performing compressions on someone lying in a soft and pliable mattress will only result in the force going into the mattress and not the body. The standard answer is to get the patient on a crash board first but that requires extra time to roll the patient and position the board. Extra time that is often critical.
But a group of innovative students at Michigan Tech may just have the answer. They have been …read more

There is something very therapeutic about music. It brings out emotions, makes us want to dance and sing, and soothes and relaxes when you’re weary.
Now a new Italian study highlights the fact that  “music induces a continuous, dynamic—and to some extent predictable—change in the cardiovascular system.”
This new study is a follow on from previous studies done by Luciano Bernardi and his team which had found that changes in the respiratory and cardiovascular systems mirrored musical tempos.
To find out more about how the body responds to changing rhythms, they hooked up 24 volunteers – half experienced singers, half with no musical …read more

It looks like a real heart. It acts like a real heart. But in reality, it’s only a  super-realistic computer model.
Created by a team of doctors from the Heart Hospital in London, this virtual heart is perfect for medical students to get indepth knowledge of the heart’s anatomy.
It sure beats staring at a dull anatomy textbook or static model.
It can be viewed from both inside and out, rotated around any axis with a simple flick or click of the computer mouse or keyboard.  It can even be made to simulate irregular heart beats and mirror the effects of various conditions …read more

You simply have to applaud this kid’s audacity and entrepreneurial spirit.
Just 9 years old, Alex Greven doesn’t have a girlfriend and has never dated, and yet he’s already written a guide to dating that’s shot to the top of the New York Times bestseller list. Entitled How to Talk to Girls, it’s based on his week long observations of his classmates in the playground.
It took a week to write. He showed it to his teacher, who showed it to the school’s principle, and the rest, as they say, was a total chain reaction. An appearance on the Ellen DeGeneres show lead …read more

 
Okay, I’ll be honest. I don’t usually spend much time checking my heart rate when exercising. I’m usually too busy simply trying to keep breathing and not collapsing.
But I’ve just discovered a gadget that would probably let me do both. It’s the  Timex Ironman Race Trainer, a heart rate monitor system that allows the user (exerciser) to wirelessly download their workout data. Once downloaded, you can then analyze the information to find out how to improve and enhance your workouts, track your progress and attain any fitness goals you have.
Here’s what you get with the Timex Ironman Race Trainer …read more

At first, when I read in Shape magazine that 69 percent of all people don’t know all five of the classic heart attack symptoms, I was shocked! Amazed! Appalled!
That is, until I realized I didn’t know all five of them either. Doh!
But with heart disease affecting more younger people and women all the time – not to mention those you’d “expect” to be stricken – I made it my business to learn real quick what these telltale signs are. Do you know them?
1. Pain or pressure in the chest
2. Shortness of breath
3. Pulsating pain in the jaw, neck or back
4. …read more

Image details: Healthy beets served by picapp.com

Easy Health Tip of the Day:
Give your massive handbag the ‘ol heave-ho to lower blood pressure.
Why?
Because wearing a heavy bag compresses the veins in your shoulders and increases your BP in as little as 10 minutes! So imagine the kind of damage you could be doing during an all-day shopping marathon. Aye Chihuahua!
The fix? A lighter bag (duh) or one with a strap over two inches wide to help distribute the bag’s weight more evenly. A clutch or backpack would work, too.
Image: eluxury.com

The gorgeous and talented Toni Braxton – A Heart Disease Survivor (and Activist!)
Image details: "Go Red For Women" Movement Celebration served by picapp.com
Continuing with Celebrity Health Week here at the b5media Health & Wellness channel, we were shocked to read that R & B songstress, Toni Braxton, was (gasp!) a heart disease sufferer. How can that be? She’s young (late 30’s at the time of her diagnosis), slender, and well, a star. Not to mention the fact that she’s a woman!
Well, guess what, all? Heart disease is not picky. Not one bit.
Braxton, officially diagnosed with pericarditis (an inflammation of the …read more

What does love do for you, other than make you googly-eyed and smiley? Plenty.
Image details: Love spelt in silver letters served by picapp.com
As I prepare to celebrate my 10th wedding anniversary tomorrow, I was thrilled to come across a small article listing 4 fabulous “side-effects” to being in a loving relationship.
1) Lower stress hormones
2) More physical activity (of all kinds, ahem)
3) Less likely to smoke
4) Decrease in blood pressure
Wow! Seems not only does love affect your emotional heart, it’s great for your physical ticker as well.
Sounds like I have lots to celebrate! Grab your honey and celebrate being in …read more