Author: noorali

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Regular Physical Activity Can Reduce Your Blood Pressure and Prevent Stroke

When was the last time you had your blood pressure checked?

There are many things you can do to prevent stroke. One of the most important things you can do is to keep your blood pressure under control. It is also important to learn to recognize early signs of stroke because if you receive clot busting medications within three to 4.5 hours then your chance of survival and living without disability is considerably improved.

Stress and anxiety can raise your blood pressure. We know that anxiety does not cause permanent high blood pressure but it can cause dramatic temporary spikes of high blood pressure which can cause damage to our blood vessels and vital organs like heart and kidneys. It can damage the brain and retina. Persistent or recurrent anxiety can make us prone to picking up bad habits like smoking, drinking or eating too much unhealthy food. Combination of these factors can increase our risk of high blood pressure.

Nearly two-thirds of all cases of stroke and one-half of all cases of coronary heart disease are directly related to hypertension. What is scarier is that most cases of hypertension either go undiagnosed or untreated. That is why it is called a silent killer. You may have high blood pressure but may not have any symptoms.

World Health Organization says that hypertension causes seven million premature deaths worldwide each year. Hypertension affects 22 percent of Canadians. It is estimated that 25 percent of the 42 million people with high blood pressure in the United States are unaware that they have hypertension. It is a ticking but silent time bomb ready to explode any time.

The incidence of hypertension increases with age. Most elderly Canadians have high blood pressure – probably due to thickening of blood vessels. No cause is identified in 80 to 95 percent of people with hypertension. This is known as idiopathic or essential hypertension. Others have hypertension due to primary disease of kidneys or due to certain hormonal disorders.

We eat too much and we do not exercise enough. Our blood vessels become harder and less compliant with age. When the blood is pumped out of the heart into less compliant blood vessels, the blood pressure goes up. So the heart has to work harder – and eventually it becomes tired, weak and fails. It silently causes damage to our vital organs and eventually results in heart attack, congestive heart failure, stroke, kidney failure and blindness.

Normally, systolic blood pressure should be less than 140 mm Hg (mercury) and diastolic pressure of less than 90 mm Hg. Blood pressure is lowest in the early morning, rises as the day progresses, and then dips down during the night and earliest hours of the morning.

Hypertension can be prevented and treated with lifestyle changes – with or without medication. Eat a healthy diet, lose weight if you are overweight, do not smoke, limit alcohol intake, eat a low salt diet, minimize sugar intake, do regular exercise, relax and learn to manage stress with laughter and meditation.

If your doctor wants you take pills to control your blood pressure then make sure you take it regularly. Research has shown that 50 per cent of the patients with high blood pressure discontinue their antihypertensive medications by the first year. This is no good.

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What’s the role of exercise in preventing cancer?

Heavy weight and large size have been associated with increased risk of breast cancer. There is evidence to suggest that regular exercise is associated with a reduced incidence of breast cancer.

The relationship between physical activity and breast cancer incidence has been extensively studied, with over 60 studies published in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Most studies indicate that physically active women have a lower risk of developing breast cancer than inactive women.

In the Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study published in 2001, it was reported that current exercise and exercise after menopause are both associated with a decreased risk of breast cancer. Even a small amount of exercise (1.25 to 2.5 hours per week of brisk walking) is beneficial. Women who had engaged in regular strenuous exercise at age 35 had a 14 per cent decreased risk of breast cancer compared with less active women (CMAJ 2004).

Evidence from population based studies suggests that occupational, leisure, and household activities are associated with about 30 per cent reduction in breast cancer rates – more you exercise, better the results (BMJ editorial 2000).

There is evidence to support potentially important protective effect of physical activity against colon cancer but not against rectal cancer. And there is no evidence that exercise increases the risk of any cancer. Colorectal cancer has been one of the most extensively studied cancers in relation to physical activity, with more than 50 studies examining this association (www.cancer.gov).

Many studies in the United States and around the world have consistently found that adults who increase their physical activity, either in intensity, duration, or frequency, can reduce their risk of developing colon cancer by 30 to 40 per cent relative to those who are sedentary regardless of body mass index (BMI), with the greatest risk reduction seen among those who are most active.

The risk of colorectal cancer begins to increase after age 40 and continues to increase as you get older. Obesity is linked to an increased risk of colorectal cancer. A lifestyle that does not include regular exercise may also be linked to an increased risk of colorectal cancer.

Research findings are less consistent about the effect of physical activity on prostate cancer, with at least 36 studies in North America, Europe, and Asia. Overall, the epidemiologic research does not indicate that there is an inverse relationship between physical activity and prostate cancer.

About 20 studies have examined the role of physical activity on endometrial cancer risk. These studies suggest that women who are physically active have a 20 per cent to 40 per cent reduced risk of endometrial cancer, with the greatest reduction in risk among those with the highest levels of physical activity. Risk does not appear to vary by age.

At least 21 studies have examined the impact of physical activity on the risk of lung cancer. Overall, these studies suggest that the most physically active individuals experience about a 20 per cent reduction in risk.

In conclusion, there is convincing evidence that physical activity is associated with a reduced risk of cancers of the colon and breast. Several studies also have reported links between physical activity and a reduced risk of cancers of the prostate, lung, and lining of the uterus (endometrial cancer).

Despite these health benefits, recent studies have shown that more than 50 per cent of the population do not engage in enough regular physical activity.

National Cancer Institute (NCI) funded studies are exploring the ways in which physical activity may improve the prognosis and quality of life of cancer patients and survivors. For more information about current research in this area, please visit NCI’s Cancer Survivorship Research Web site at http://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/ocs on the Internet.

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Physically Active Children Have Higher Scholastic Achievements

In the last column, we discussed how regular exercise benefits adult brain. Today, we will focus on the importance of exercise for school children to boost their brain power.

These days, it is sad to note, when the education system is hit with cutbacks, one of the first programs to suffer is the physical education program. In Canada, we are also at the mercy of the unpredictable weather which hinders children’s outdoor activities.

We can always talk about the good old days. I was brought up in a country where our outdoor activities were not hampered by the vagaries of the weather nor country’s economic situation. Tanzania (then Tanganyika) was under the British rule and life those days was comfortably slow.

We would start the day at school with one hour of physical activity outdoors. After school we would have another hour or two of sporting activities involving different teams. Now the reality is, we can pine for those days but they isn’t coming back. We now live in a different kind of world where economic realities trump all other considerations.

We, as teachers and parents, owe it to our children to provide them with time, facilities and financial support for an hour or two of physical activity on a daily basis. This will not only boost their brain power, it will also act as an antidote for obesity and poor health. Developmental psychologists have suggested that in young children there is a link between physical and mental growth.

An article in the Scientific American Mind (September/October 2010) by Steve Ayan, a psychologist, makes three important points about the academic athletes:

-Students who are fit – based on their high aerobic capacity and low body fat – also tend to perform well in school and on standardized tests.
-In addition to regular exercise, brief periods of movement such as jumping or stretching can help improve children’s concentration.
-Exercise may turbocharge the brain by raising levels of neuronal growth factors, which foster the formation of new connections between brain cells.

Ayan’s conclusions are based on several studies quoted in his article. A review of about dozen articles done by psychologist Charles H. Hillman in 2008 revealed that children and teenagers with higher level of aerobic fitness – but not muscle strength or flexibility – were associated with better performance in school and on standardized tests.

That means, if the young person is more physically fit then more likely he or she will attain higher grades. This connection holds well from elementary school to college. Being fit at age 18 was correlated with a higher level of scholarly achievement in later life, says Ayan.

In a review of 17 studies from 2008, scientists from Universities of Quebec and Toronto concluded that reserving up to an hour a day for physical activity in school curriculums does not detract from academic achievement. “To the contrary, they noted that more exercise often improved school performance, despite the time it took away from reading, writing and arithmetic,” says Ayan.

Teachers and parents should recognize that physical education is about building the brain as well as body. Ayan concludes by saying, “If teachers want their students to pay attention, they should consider letting them jump, stomp and bend their bodies regularly during the school day. Most children have a natural inclination to move, so all the adults have to do is get out of their way.”

A very sensible advice.

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Does exercise make you smart and smarter?

The summer holidays are over. Children are back to school. Parents are back to work and I am back to writing.

Today, we will explore studies which show that people who do regular physical exercise improve their brain power and can improve their chances of avoiding dementia and cognitive impairment. Whatever the age of the person, physical exercise is critical to vigorous mental health.

How do we define cognitive function?

From birth to old age we have a capacity for cognitive function. That means each person is capable of learning or remembering a certain amount of information. During early childhood, most people are best able to absorb and use new information, with most children learning new words, concepts and ways to express themselves. This capacity to learn slows down gradually as we get older.

Cognitive function involves mental process of perception, thinking, reasoning and remembering. Studies done on individuals over the age of 65 have shown that individuals who undergo cognitive training show substantial benefits and these benefits last for many years.

In a study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (2010), author Dr. Laura E. Middleton suggests that early life physical activity is important to late-life health and in particular in preventing late-life cognitive impairment. The sooner you start being physically active, the better it is.

The study suggest that those who took up regular exercise as young adults were 30 per cent less likely to suffer late-life cognitive impairment compared with women who remained sedentary. This study looked at the physical activity levels of 9,000 women at various ages, from adolescence to senior years.

Physical activity can help the brain build new connections and repair itself, can increase overall brain volume and build enough mental reserves to compensate for the loss of brain power as we age.

An article in the Scientific American Mind (July/August 2009), titled Fit Body, Fit Mind? says your workout makes you smarter and you stay sharp into old age.

“We are used to thinking of intelligence as largely a matter of genetic inheritance, but that is not the whole picture. What you do affects your mental well-being: staying physically and mentally active helps us stay sharp as we age,” says the article.

Although the idea of exercising cognitive machinery by performing mentally demanding activities – popularly termed the “use it or lose it” hypothesis – is better known, a review of dozens of studies shows that maintaining a mental edge requires more than that. Other things you do – including participating in activities that make you think, getting regular exercise, staying socially engaged and even having a positive attitude – have a meaningful influence on how effective your cognitive functioning will be in old age, says the Scientific American Mind article.

As we age, we have an increased desire to be independent in everything we do. If we are able to maintain our cognitive function then we can enhance our quality of life for many years without having to rely on others. For this we have to prepare from a very early age. At an age when we think nothing can ever go wrong in our minds or bodies.

Studies have shown that most active women had a 30 per cent lower risk of cognitive decline. Walking distance was related to cognition but walking speed was not. Even moderate levels of physical activity can serve to limit declines in cognition in older adults. Some studies show aerobic exercise may be the real key to brain fitness and also helps with circulatory system.

The message is clear: if you want to be smart and stay smart into old age then start exercising early in life and make it a lifelong habit.

Start reading the preview of my book A Doctor's Journey for free on Amazon. Available on Kindle for $2.99!