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Berwick Area Heart Support Group Next meeting Wednesday December 5th at the day Hospital, Berwick Infirmary from 7.00pm – 9.00pm
Guest speaker: Philip Lindsay, Practitioner Specialist, Northumberland Care Trust. Phil will give a talk and advice on sleep management
As usual there will be no meeting in January 2008
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Our speaker for the November meeting was Jo Curtis, Disability Sports Development Officer for Berwick Borough Council. Her main areas of responsibility are all to do with long term health, involving participation in healthy exercise, and sporting activities.
I always seam to have an excuse lately for not making many notes, which then makes writing about it that much harder. Usually its because the speaker has a very involved power point (slide) display, which helps them get their subject across easier. But not so this time, honestly you cannot take many notes when you are doing the Can-Can, waving cheerleader pom - poms in the air. Talking of the Can-Can there were more than a few creaks and groans when doing the high kicks, by high I mean anything over 6 inches.
But I get ahead of myself; we didn’t just rush straight into the Can-Can, we did have a short warm-up session before we started, that alone told me personally, how not fit I was getting, and
I know a few others also felt the same way, they were making the same noises as me.
Then we had a short period of amusing exercise, the Can-Can being part of that. We then had a cooling down session; unfortunately this was shorter than it should have been. It was based on Chi-gang, (I hope that’s spelt right) which is the relaxing part of Tai-Chi. (Again I hope that’s right).
Jo then introduced us to an indoor version of curling. Just like the ice version, but these ‘stones’ run on recessed castors, and depending of the type of floor surface, I would imagine they could travel quite fast. They can be propelled in the traditional way, or if you have difficulty in bending, or maybe in a wheel chair, the can be pushed off with sticks, or for the very handicapped, they can be set off down a ramp.
Scoring is on a numbered target sheet at the other end of the floor.
Jo uses it a lot in some of the residential homes she visits and the residents get quite competitive amongst themselves, irrespective of what infirmities they may have.
Some people continued to play this game as the tea was being made and served, which brought the evening to a pleasant close. Thank you! Jo for your time, and my first attempt at the Can-Can, especially with pom-poms.
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The next bit comes with a bit of a ‘health warning’. Please read it all, not just the beginning.
Well, I have to admit that I have hoped for a long time, that if I waited long enough, someone, somewhere would say that my all time favourite snack food, an excess of which probably got me into trouble in the first place, is infact good for you. What is this dreaded food I hear you ask. Is it chocolate? No! Anyway a little of that is good for you. Is it alcohol? No, again a little of that is also good for you. Is it thick jammie pieces, with raspberry jam on warm crusty bread? No again, that’s just my second favourite anyway. This time I’m talking about the dreaded, eat at your peril, bacon sandwich.
According to today’s paper (Sun 15.11.07) a full English breakfast, has been called a heart attack on a plate, but now boffins believe it could infact boost your chances of surviving a cardiac arrest. Just last week we had all the warnings that bacon, sausages and all processed foods were the scourge of the earth, as they caused bowel cancer and we ate them at our peril, but Scientists at the University of Texas Health Science Centre have found that nitrates in cured meat ** may help you survive a heart attack and speed recovery.
** Have you ever asked yourself, when the meat is referred to as cured meat, what was it cured of? (Just Wally being silly)
Back to the article,
Professor Nathan Bryan comments, “This is a significant finding given the fact simple components of our diet – nitrites and nitrates – that we have been taught to fear and restrict in our diet can now protect the heart from injury. During a heart attack nitrite forms a gas which reopens closed or clogged arteries. This reduces long-term damage to heart muscle”.
Of course when you read a headline like that you hope for miracles, but as you get to the end of the article so the words of wisdom and reality appear. The Suns resident Doctor adds “Pundits come out with these claims based on very narrow areas of research, but most GPs. would say that the message has always been the same – have a little of everything. Its all about balance, eat a variety of foods, particularly foods of different colours.
Now that last sentence opens up a total new subject, eating foods of different colours. I have read something about it and can remember some of them, I will have to try and find that article. Maybe if we can find someone who knows about it, it could be an evening’s talk sometime.
What I was going to say before I got sidetracked by the last paragraph is. I am not trying to undo everyone’s good work in trying to keep to a healthy diet which suits them, and as all the normal, sensible advice is guidance towards preventing heart attacks it makes sense to keep up your good work, why risk having one just to find out if a bacon roll is going to save you.
Wally
DISCLAIMER. Joking apart. Bacon sarnies are probably best taken on a very occasional basis! Just enjoy the wonderful smell! The nitrate that could relax your arteries is especially formulated in our 'Puffers'. If you think you need it, its quicker to take a safe PUFF
Phil
I’d be happy if someone could just capture the smell of them it would smell better than some of the air fresheners
Terry
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Some of you may have watched the programme about statins on ITV Thursday 22nd November “Heart of the Matter”, there was reference made to the “Portfolio Diet”. We have looked up the diet on the internet (see below) all of it confirms what previous speakers have advised us to eat
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“Portfolio Diet”.
In addition to reductions in saturated fat and avoiding excess dietary cholesterol, the recommendations now include the inclusion of 2g per day of plant sterols/stanols and soluble fibres (10 to 25g per day) as additional dietary options to help maximise the effectiveness of diet. However, it was not known until 2002 whether a combination of these dietary factors would result in a boosting/enhancement of their individual cholesterol-lowering effects.
To address this, Dr David Jenkins and his team of researchers at the University of Toronto undertook to assess the combined effect of eating four different types of healthy plant-based foods on blood lipids in hyperlipidaemic subjects who were already consuming a low-saturated fat, low cholesterol diet before starting the study. The conclusion of their study was that a “portfolio” approach had the following effects after one month:
• The diet lowered serum cholesterol levels as effectively as a low dose statin
• Blood sugars were regulated because of the high fibre content of the foods
• The level of C-reactive protein, which is linked to the inflammation of arteries, was reduced.
Consequently these intriguing results gave birth to the “Portfolio Diet”.
Following the Portfolio Eating Plan
What to eat as part of a 2000 kcal diet:
ALMONDS: 30 g (about 23 almonds) daily. They are a good source of vegetable protein, fibre, heart-healthy monounsaturated fats and vitamin E. Almonds may have a positive effect on cholesterol levels, according to clinical trials.
These could be eaten as snacks between meals, sprinkled on cereal, yoghurt or salad.
SOYA PROTEIN: 50g a day seemed to be effective in reducing cholesterol levels in clinical studies. Soya is a good source of vegetable protein, low in saturated fat and high in fibre. Soya protein may help prevent heart disease. It may also decrease cholesterol production in the liver and increase the rate at which the liver removes LDL-cholesterol from the blood.
Soya products include soya milk, soya mince, soyabeans, soya yoghurt, soya burgers, tofu and tempeh.
Soya milk can be substituted wherever you use milk, replace some of your meat dishes with soya beans/mince/burger/tofu etc.
SOLUBLE FIBRE: 20g daily. Even eating less than one ounce of soluble fibre per day seemed to have a positive effect on cholesterol levels. It works to reduce total blood cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol (‘bad’ cholesterol) by binding with some of the fat in the diet.
It is found in natural foods such as oats/oatmeal/oat bran, barley, psyllium, beans, pulses and fruits.
Aim to eat two good portions daily such as porridge oats for breakfast and beans in your salads/casseroles/soups etc.
PLANT STEROLS: 2g daily. They are naturally found in plant foods such as soyabean, corn, squash, vegetable oils and grains. They are also added to spreads, juices, yoghurts and milk. For maximum effect, functional foods containing plant stanols and sterols should be eaten with other foods.
They work by blocking cholesterol absorption in the gut.
The Portfolio Eating Plan adheres to the American Heart Association recommendations for less than 7% of calories coming from saturated fat and less than 200mg cholesterol.
A dietary approach should not be substituted for but should be taken as an adjunct to doctor-prescribed statins. Statins have been proven to reduce the risk of heart attacks and deaths, whereas the Portfolio approach, while proven to lower LDL-cholesterol, has not been put to that test as yet.
Baldeesh Rai, Dietitian, H·E∙A∙R∙T UK
© Copyright H·E·A·R·T UK Ltd
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Wally’s Yar
 An Irish Ghost Story
This story happened a while ago in Dublin , and even though it sounds like an Alfred Hitchcock tale, it's true.
John Bradford, a Dublin University student, was on the side of the road hitchhiking on a very dark night and in the midst of a storm.
The night was rolling on and no car went by. The storm was so strong he could hardly see a few feet ahead of him. Suddenly, he saw a car slowly coming towards him and stopped. John, desperate for shelter and without thinking about it, got into the car and closed the door; only to realize there was nobody behind the wheel and the engine wasn't on!!
The car started moving slowly. John looked at the road ahead and saw a curve approaching. Scared, he started to pray, begging for his life. Then, just before the car hit the curve, a hand appeared through the window and turned the wheel. John, paralyzed with terror, watched as the hand repeatedly came through the window, but never touched or harmed him. Shortly thereafter John saw the lights of a pub appear down the road, so, gathering strength, he jumped out of the car and ran to it. Wet and out of breath, he rushed inside and started telling everybody about the horrible experience he had just had.
A silence enveloped the pub when everybody realized he was crying And....wasn't drunk.
Suddenly, the door opened, and two other people walked in from the stormy night. They, like John, were also soaked and out of breathe.
Looking around, and seeing John Bradford sobbing at the bar, one said to the other... 'Look Paddy...there's that idiot that got in the car while we were pushing it!!!!'
Recipe of the Month
War Time Pie
Method:
Cook everything together with just enough water to cover, stirring often to prevent it sticking to the pan. Let the mixture cool.
Spoon into a pie dish, sprinkle with chopped parsley.
Cover with a crust of potatoes or wholemeal pastry.
Bake in a moderate oven until golden brown.
Serve hot with gravy
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