Wellness Information

Blood pressure is the force of blood pushing against the walls of your arteries, which carry blood from your heart to other parts of your body. Blood pressure normally rises and falls throughout the day. But if it stays high for a long time, it can damage your heart and lead to health problems. High blood pressure raises your risk for heart disease and stroke, which are leading causes of death in the United States.

High blood pressure has no warning signs or symptoms, and many people do not know they have it. The only way to know if you have it is to measure your blood pressure. Then you can take steps to control it if it is too high

Asthma is a disease that affects your lungs. It causes repeated episodes of wheezing, breathlessness, chest tightness, and nighttime or early morning coughing. Asthma can be controlled by taking medicine and avoiding the triggers that can cause an attack. You must also remove the triggers in your environment that can make your asthma worse.

CDC’s National Asthma Control Program works to help Americans with asthma achieve better health and improved quality of life. The program funds states, school programs, and non-government organizations to help them improve surveillance of asthma, train health professionals, educate individuals with asthma and their families, and explain asthma to the public

Diabetes Mellitus (DM or, simply, diabetes) refers to a group of diseases that affect how your body uses sugar (glucose). Glucose comes from the foods you eat. Glucose is essential to health because it is an important source of energy for the cells that make up your muscles and tissues and it is the brain's main source of fuel. If you have diabetes, no matter what type, it means you have too much glucose in your blood. Too much glucose can lead to serious health problems, including damage to your eyes, kidneys, and nerves, heart disease, and stroke. 

Type 1 Diabetes In type 1 diabetes, the body does not produce insulin, which leads to high blood sugar levels. Only 5% of people with diabetes have this type of the disease. Insulin is the only treatment option.  

Type 2 Diabetes Diabetes is a group of diseases in which your blood has too much glucose (sugar) in it. Type 2 diabetes can be managed with a healthy lifestyle and diabetes medicines.

 According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), tobacco use can lead to tobacco/nicotine dependence and serious health problems. Quitting smoking greatly reduces the risk of developing smoking-related diseases. Tobacco/nicotine dependence is a condition that often requires repeated treatments, but there are helpful treatments and resources for quitting. Smokers can and do quit smoking. In fact, today there are more former smokers than current smokers

So, what is cholesterol? What does it do?

Cholesterol is a waxy substance. It’s not inherently “bad.” In fact, your body needs it to build cells. But too much cholesterol can pose a problem.

Cholesterol comes from two sources. Your liver makes all the cholesterol you need. The remainder of the cholesterol in your body comes from foods derived from animals. For example, meat, poultry and full-fat dairy products all contain cholesterol, called dietary cholesterol

Those same foods are high in saturated and trans fats. Those fats cause your liver to make more cholesterol than it otherwise would. For some people, this added production means they go from a normal cholesterol level to one that’s unhealthy.

Some tropical oils – such as palm oil, palm kernel oil and coconut oil – can also trigger your liver to make more cholesterol. These oils are often found in baked goods

Why Lose Weight?

When it comes to weight loss, there’s no lack of fad diets promising fast results. But such diets limit your nutritional intake, can be unhealthy, and tend to fail in the long run

The key to achieving and maintaining a healthy weight isn’t about short-term dietary changes. It’s about a lifestyle that includes healthy eating, regular physical activity, and balancing the number of calories you consume with the number of calories your body uses. Staying in control of your weight contributes to good health now and as you age