Month: February 2007

[amazon_link asins=’088975196X,B00MU08VBI,B01L2TVTKC,B008I6FF3A,B003XVYZ2M,B01NAL96W8,B00BPXLB86,B01K86PZSC,B01N1YKQSE’ template=’ProductCarousel’ store=’finmeacur-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’b0f62185-6139-11e7-a61f-05ed9737cc52′]

Warning signs for cardiovascular disease are higher in people exposed to secondhand tobacco smoke, adding to the link between “passive smoke” and heart disease, according to a study released Monday.

“Our study provides further evidence to suggest low-level exposure to secondhand smoke has a clinically important effect on susceptibility to cardiovascular disease,” said Andrea Venn of University of Nottingham in England, lead author of the study.

“This is the first … study to relate the levels of these markers to an objective measure of secondhand smoke exposure, rather than self-reported exposure,” said Venn, an associate professor of epidemiology and public health.

The study, published this week in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, measured the level of cotinine in the blood of participants.

Cotinine is a major indicator of nicotine intake and hence exposure to tobacco smoke. The researchers also checked whether people exposed to secondhand smoke at home, work or other places had higher levels of fibrinogen, homocysteine and C-reactive protein all markers or indicators of cardiovascular disease.

It examined records from America’s third National Health And Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III, 1988-94), which included 7,599 adults who had never smoked.

Eighteen per cent of those surveyed from this group had no detectable levels of cotinine while the remainder had high or low levels. Eighteen per cent of those with low levels and 56% with high levels said they had lived with a smoker at home or had been exposed to secondhand smoke at work.

“Researchers found the low- and high-cotinine groups had significantly higher levels of fibrinogen and homocysteine than the ‘no detectable’ group,” the it said.

The raised levels of fibrinogen and homocysteine translate into a 5% increased disease risk though studies elsewhere have suggested that other factors can raise the disease risk from secondhand smoke by up to 30%.

Source:The Times Of India

[amazon_link asins=’B0057IC83C,B073PYBQM2,B01JED7W8G,B00IUGT7V4,B012DGEC9I,B0150GK62A,B01N7K3FBK,B073PZDZB1,B01MY4L8BV’ template=’ProductCarousel’ store=’finmeacur-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’a148d5fb-6137-11e7-899b-8dd5d86aa5dd’][amazon_link asins=’B01A9E61SQ,B01K7Y1R5A,B071XPC7SH,B06ZZRYG73,B07223HTH4,B071Y7YM5S,B071Y7W7Z9,B071Y7JZFK,B071Y7DKNL’ template=’ProductCarousel’ store=’finmeacur-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’6b9c4b69-6137-11e7-8506-1f394f28a463′]

Sleeping a little over half-an-hour in the middle of the day may reduce the risk of death from heart disease, particularly in healthy young men, say researchers.

Naps – known as siesta – are often taken early afternoon after a mid-day meal. Such a period of sleep is a common tradition in hot countries.

Dimitrios Trichopoulos from the Harvard School of Public Health and other researchers looked at 23,681 men and women aged between 20 and 86 who did not have a history of heart disease or any other severe condition, reported the online edition of BBC News .

The six-year Greek study took into account ill health, age, and whether people were physically active. Participants were also asked if they took mid-day naps and how often, and were asked about dietary habits and physical activity.

The researchers found those who took naps of any frequency and duration had a 34 per cent lower risk of dying from heart disease than those who did not take mid-day naps.

Those who took naps of more than 30 minutes three or more times a week, had a 37 per cent lower risk. Among working men who took mid-day naps, there was a 64 per cent reduced risk of death compared with a 36 per cent reduced risk among non-working men.

Experts said napping during afternoon might help people to relax, reducing their stress levels. The researchers added that if backed by other trials, taking a siesta would be an interesting way of reducing heart disease as it had no side effects.

The only important factor was that people should not reduce the amount of physical activity they did in the rest of the day.

Source:The Times Of India