Saturday 16 June 2012

what Are The Causes Of High Cholesterol?

High cholesterol diets are not the only causes of elevated cholesterol levels. There are many other factors that affect your cholesterol levels. These include controllable and uncontrollable factors.

The uncontrollable factors have to do with things you have no power to change. They include but not restricted to the following.

Your Family History

Your risk of several health conditions and diseases are determined by your family history. This is one of the reasons doctors are interested in the family history of their patients. Some people have a predisposition to high cholesterol.

Your Gender

Researches have shown that men are more prone to high cholesterol than women. It is also a proven fact that women naturally start experiencing increased cholesterol levels around the ages of 50 – 55 years while that of men is 45 years and above.

Your Age

The more you grow old the more your risk of developing high cholesterol level. You definitely have no control over this.

The controllable high cholesterol risk factors have to do with your life style. They include but not limited to.

Your Activity Level

People who are not active stand a more increased risk for high cholesterol levels. Exercise decreases LDL cholesterol (bad) levels in your blood and increases your HDL cholesterol (good) levels. The good news is that you don’t have to engage in a strenuous exercise to get these benefits.

Your Diet

Your diet is contributing to your high cholesterol levels if they are mostly made up of cholesterol promoting foods. These are mostly foods with saturated fat.

Your Weight

Obesity or being overweight increases your blood cholesterol levels. This is due to the fact that your body stores the extra calories you eat as triglycerides. The HDL cholesterol levels tend to be low if the triglyceride levels are high. To improve your cholesterol levels, you have to engage in a weight loss plan.

High cholesterol levels combined with other health conditions put you on a high risk of complications and diseases.
To improve your health and reduce your risk of heart attack, stroke and other health issues you have to lower your cholesterol levels.
You are advised to consult your doctor to help you develop a cholesterol-lowering plan that is safe and effective for you.   
  

Friday 8 June 2012

How Working Overtime Can make You Add Weight



Most people today have a schedule that requires them to work for long hours more than the normal work hours per day or week, leaving them exhausted at the end of every day. If you fall within this category of people, try to weigh yourself to find out if you are gaining weight or not. If you weigh more than you expect it is obvious that your busy schedule is contributing to your excess weight.
According to a research conducted by Finnish researchers at The University of Helsinik, people who must find a way to balance job demands with the hectic family requirements are likely to gain weight.

The study identified consistently working beyond the standard working hours per week and consistently experiencing feelings of work fatigue as the two basic risk factors that lead to weight gain. This burnout feeling leads to skipping exercise due to lack of time and energy. It also leads to eating more of fast food because of lack of time to prepare good meals at home.

Whenever you find yourself gaining weight as a result of too much work, follow the tips below to get rid of the excess weight.

Go To Bed Early.
Avoid sitting for long hours in front of your TV set whenever you get home from work for a period of one week or more. You can even completely avoid watching TV during this period. Instead you can read a book when you get home and tired as this will help you relax and go to bed early.

Time Management
Planning ahead can help you reduce work load both in the work place and at home. Schedule your tasks in the order of preference as this will help you save time and energy.

Eat Healthy
You have to adjust your meal routine to fit into your schedule if you want to maintain a nourishing diet. Avoid skipping meals and eating late. Foods are not easily digested when eaten near bed time. This can easily turn to fat. Drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration.

Critically Examine Your Job
Considering the economic situation of the country now, it will be a disaster for one to live without a job or a consistent source of income. However it is of no real benefit if you work hard to earn a living only to be spending a better part of your hard earned income taking care of health conditions. Consider getting another job if you continually get exhausted at the end of every day due to too much work because it is not normal to feel that way every day.