Heart Disease and Medication Safety
There is a series of articles currently at WebMD that highlight various issues of medication safety with heart disease. There is a piece on pharmacy safety and filling prescriptions and some great information about blood pressure lowering medications and their side effects. There's also a great overview of heart medications and their purpose in your heart disease managment.
The article that interested me most however was one called Better Drugs: Boost Your Medication's Effectiveness. Here's the description of the article: "Want better-working heart disease drugs? You can have them. The key: lifestyle changes such as diet, exercise, and salt reduction. Each can give your heart a healthy boost, with one great side effect: helping your medication work better. These tips get you started." I was looking forward to reading it when I clicked on the link, only to find that it took me to the article on pharmacy safety. Oops, a little broken link there, WebMD :>) So I thought, well I can help them put by writing my own version of this article, and you, the reader should contribute your suggestions about how to use lifestyle changes to make your medications more effective.
Diet: Dietary intake of saturated fats and overeating can contribute to increased cholesterol levels and can also result in weight gain or maintenance of being overweight.
Summer is a great time to trim your eating habits - who wants to cook or eat heavily when it's hot anyway? There are great fresh fruits and vegetables available and if you are lucky enough to be able to purchase them at the farmer's market you'll save money, support local businesses, and improve your health. A big salad with some grilled chicken and Chinese rice vinegar is refreshing, doesn't heat up your kitchen and is low in fat. Keep that piece of chicken the size of a deck of cards however, and if you're tempted to go back for seconds - go for a walk instead. Make the kids go with you-they'll give you flak, but once you're out there you'll be surprised how much talking you'll get out of them!
Exercise: When the weather's warmer it's easier to exercise than when it's cold. Whether in the early morning to have some peace and quite to yourself or after work in the cool of the evening to spend time with your family, going for a walk, a bike ride, or a swim are all fun summer workouts. Sure, it's going to take some effort to change your habits, but once you do you'll enjoy yourself so much and feel so good that you'll want to keep it up. Find something you enjoy and get out there and do it!
Salt reduction: Sodium in foods can cause narrowing (constriction of the blood vessels) and retention of water. Either of these can raise blood pressure. Some people are more salt sensitive than others, but we can all benefit from cutting back. Salt "craving" may actually be a sign that you are getting dehydrated, so drink more water. Which brings me to my own contribution to this discussion...
Water, water: No need for a "sports drink," which are expensive and full of calories from sugar. Our bodies need plain water, which makes up a large percentage of our body fluid. Water helps our kidneys function well, and this in turn helps our bodies to process some medications better. Water hydrates all our cells, making them more efficient at their work of repairing themselves and building new tissues. Being adequately hydrated makes your skin look and feel better. Drinking an 8 ounce glass of water about 20 minutes before eating will make you feel full and help prevent you from overeating. Do you need more reasons to drink more water?
If you don't like the taste of plain water try a trick I learned on my cruise last winter: throw in some fruit or vegetables! That's right-vegetables! The best water I have ever tasted had fresh slices of cucumber (peel and all) floating in it. Other favorites at my house are pineapple or orange water. When I cut away all the peel from a pineapple it feels pretty wasteful! Instead I now put the peels and the bottom of the fruit into my water pitcher and cover with tap water. Then into the fridge it goes. When you're thirsty you have a nice citrus-flavored cold drink waiting for you. If you're outside working out or doing yard work, remember that you should drink 8 ounces of water for every 30 minutes of activity; even more if you're really sweaty.
There you have it! Laurie's article on things you can do to enhance the effectiveness of your medications. Please share your thoughts on things you've learned over the years about taking medications and medication safety, and let me know, what's in your water?
Happy summer, Laurie
Related Topics:
Technorati Tags: heart disease, medication, exercise, fitness, hydration
The article that interested me most however was one called Better Drugs: Boost Your Medication's Effectiveness. Here's the description of the article: "Want better-working heart disease drugs? You can have them. The key: lifestyle changes such as diet, exercise, and salt reduction. Each can give your heart a healthy boost, with one great side effect: helping your medication work better. These tips get you started." I was looking forward to reading it when I clicked on the link, only to find that it took me to the article on pharmacy safety. Oops, a little broken link there, WebMD :>) So I thought, well I can help them put by writing my own version of this article, and you, the reader should contribute your suggestions about how to use lifestyle changes to make your medications more effective.
Diet: Dietary intake of saturated fats and overeating can contribute to increased cholesterol levels and can also result in weight gain or maintenance of being overweight.
Summer is a great time to trim your eating habits - who wants to cook or eat heavily when it's hot anyway? There are great fresh fruits and vegetables available and if you are lucky enough to be able to purchase them at the farmer's market you'll save money, support local businesses, and improve your health. A big salad with some grilled chicken and Chinese rice vinegar is refreshing, doesn't heat up your kitchen and is low in fat. Keep that piece of chicken the size of a deck of cards however, and if you're tempted to go back for seconds - go for a walk instead. Make the kids go with you-they'll give you flak, but once you're out there you'll be surprised how much talking you'll get out of them! Exercise: When the weather's warmer it's easier to exercise than when it's cold. Whether in the early morning to have some peace and quite to yourself or after work in the cool of the evening to spend time with your family, going for a walk, a bike ride, or a swim are all fun summer workouts. Sure, it's going to take some effort to change your habits, but once you do you'll enjoy yourself so much and feel so good that you'll want to keep it up. Find something you enjoy and get out there and do it!
Salt reduction: Sodium in foods can cause narrowing (constriction of the blood vessels) and retention of water. Either of these can raise blood pressure. Some people are more salt sensitive than others, but we can all benefit from cutting back. Salt "craving" may actually be a sign that you are getting dehydrated, so drink more water. Which brings me to my own contribution to this discussion...
Water, water: No need for a "sports drink," which are expensive and full of calories from sugar. Our bodies need plain water, which makes up a large percentage of our body fluid. Water helps our kidneys function well, and this in turn helps our bodies to process some medications better. Water hydrates all our cells, making them more efficient at their work of repairing themselves and building new tissues. Being adequately hydrated makes your skin look and feel better. Drinking an 8 ounce glass of water about 20 minutes before eating will make you feel full and help prevent you from overeating. Do you need more reasons to drink more water?
If you don't like the taste of plain water try a trick I learned on my cruise last winter: throw in some fruit or vegetables! That's right-vegetables! The best water I have ever tasted had fresh slices of cucumber (peel and all) floating in it. Other favorites at my house are pineapple or orange water. When I cut away all the peel from a pineapple it feels pretty wasteful! Instead I now put the peels and the bottom of the fruit into my water pitcher and cover with tap water. Then into the fridge it goes. When you're thirsty you have a nice citrus-flavored cold drink waiting for you. If you're outside working out or doing yard work, remember that you should drink 8 ounces of water for every 30 minutes of activity; even more if you're really sweaty.There you have it! Laurie's article on things you can do to enhance the effectiveness of your medications. Please share your thoughts on things you've learned over the years about taking medications and medication safety, and let me know, what's in your water?
Happy summer, Laurie
Related Topics:
Technorati Tags: heart disease, medication, exercise, fitness, hydration
1 Comments:
I would highly recommend books by either Dr. Dean Ornish,M.D or Dr. John McDougall, M.D. I have personally been on the McDougall program for 20 years. I have referred patients to the McDougall program and I have witnessed amazing results with Heart Disease and other chronic illnesses.
Post a Comment