I was channel surfing the other evening on TV and a reality show caught my attention as the “intervening expert” was chiding someone about her diet and how unhealthy she was.

The lesson that evening was apparently that the woman who was the focus of the show was in denial about how terrible her food choices were. The gimmick for convincing her? Her solid waste output.

Gross! But effective. I admit… I had to watch to see what was going to happen. The expert carefully explained that if this woman’s toilet was falling victim to her horribly unhealthy food choices, what must her arteries look like? This bears investigation, even though it’s generally considered a taboo topic…toilet habits, that is. The investigation doesn’t need to be the actual output; but rather, how is the plumbing getting along inside and out?

The seasonal aisles have been stuffed to the brim since New Year’s Day with the trappings of sugar-shock wrapped in pink, red, and white ribbons. The candy overload since Halloween takes no breaks, it seems.

But what can you do for your Valentine that says not only “I really care about you,” but also “I get it.” By that I mean, “I get that your diet is challenging and that is important to me.”

There is something inherently nice about receiving a gift on a special occasion, but what gets lost sometimes is the passion and emotion that comes from something made by hand with love.

A reader asked me recently about some unsettling assertions about milk that had been getting attention in the news.

Her question was in regard to whether or not milk is bad for you. As with a lot of these questions, the answer is frequently yes and no.

The benefits of including milk in your diet include:

This time of year always brings with it some very harsh reminders that winter time requires a little more effort to stay healthy and well. In many areas, winter means drier, colder, harsher air and this can cause a variety of skin issues.

What a lot of people don’t notice, though, is that digestive trouble and skin irritation often appear at the same time.

Diseases, such as Fifth disease and medications, such as antibiotics, can wreak havoc on your tummy and skin at the same time. Those are pretty easy-to-spot symptoms of the same problem, though.

Diabetes and high cholesterol separately are dangerous enough. Their mix could be absolutely fatal. High cholesterol contributes to diabetes and vice-versa.

There are two types of diabetes:

• Diabetes Type 1 – In this type of diabetes, our pancreas stop producing insulin. Diabetes 1 is less common as Diabetes Type 2.
• Diabetes Type 2 – In this condition, typically pancreas do produce sufficient amount of insulin, but our body cells fail to use insulin in proper manner. Most of the diabetic patients worldwide suffer from Diabetes Types 2. Figures show that nearly 90% of diabetics have Diabetes Type 2.

As of now, there is no cure for Diabetes Type 1. However, by taking certain precautionary measures, patients that have been diagnosed with this type of diabetes can prevent heart failure.

• Adhere to a diabetic diet
• Exercise regularly
• Check your blood sugar levels at regular intervals
• Follow the instructions if taking insulin injections
• Visit your doctor regularly

Rosuvastatin, a statin drug that lowers the blood cholesterol levels by inhibiting HMG-CoA reductase was approved by the FDA for treatment of the following:

• high triglycerides levels
• high cholesterol levels
• high LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein) levels

Rosuvastatin is used in over 150 countries and is sold under different brand names. New researches show that this drug could also be useful in treatment of cardiovascular diseases.

New Indication for Rosuvastatin are approved

Increase in heart diseases in recent years and ever-growing inclination toward an inactive lifestyle has given cholesterol a bad name.

But is this imposition correct? Well… the answer is both Yes and No. Our body requires certain amount of cholesterol to function normally. However, presence of more than required cholesterol in the body spells Trouble, with capital T. Common factors that lead to high cholesterol levels include:

• Consumption of red meat, fatty foods, and eggs in huge quantity
• Obesity
• Lack of physical activity

Excess of cholesterol is bad; more so for heart. High blood cholesterol levels increases the risk of heart-related diseases. This happens because bad cholesterol, known as Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) congests our arteries, hindering the smooth flow of blood within the body. Exercise is a natural way through which we can prevent such a situation from developing.

Regular exercise reduces the risk of developing heart-related diseases by:

Did you know that cholesterol is found in each and every body cell?

Yes that is right. Our body requires cholesterol to perform essential functions, including:

• Maintain cell membranes
• Produce Vitamin D
• Perform hormone synthesis normally

The human body has the ability to produce the required amount of cholesterol to perform these functions. Additional cholesterol that comes into our body due to consumption of food can cause the cholesterol levels to rise alarmingly, especially when the diet is improper.

Cholesterol is of two types: good cholesterol (HDL) and bad cholesterol (LDL). High levels of LDL, causes fat to deposit on the arteries, preventing them from transferring blood properly. Congestion of arteries restricts the delivery of oxygen to various body parts, making the affected person more susceptible to heart attack, coronary heart diseases, and arteriosclerosis.

Did you know that out of every five teenagers in the United States, one teenager has at minimum one risk factor associated with the development of heart disease?

The data collected by the Centre of Prevention of Diseases confirm the above statistics. Not only this, studies conducted by the Centre of Prevention of Diseases also confirm that nearly one-fifth of the teenagers in the United States have one of the three problems listed below:

• Low good cholesterol (High Density Lipoprotein)
• High bad cholesterol (Low Density Lipoprotein)
• High triglycerides

All these three conditions can lead to heart-related problems in future.

Today, the term ‘Cholesterol’ figures repeatedly in health discussions, health articles, and health forums. The reason for this is this is not hard to comprehend. Cholesterol is a major cause of myriad of health problems, such as obesity, heart-related diseases, and high blood pressure. But is all cholesterol in the body bad? Not really.

Cholesterol is of two types: good cholesterol (HDL) and bad cholesterol (LDL). Cholesterol is an essential component required by human body to function normally. While certain amount of cholesterol in our body is essential, it is the presence of excessive amount of bad cholesterol, or LDL in the body that is undesirable and cause of various health problems.

How excessive LDL affects blood flow

Cholesterol is a lipid substance. When the levels of LDL are more than normal, LDL builds up in the arterial walls. As a result of which our arteries become clogged and are not able to transfer blood smoothly.