Kate Middleton to trademark her name

The Duchess of Cambridge will soon be following in the footsteps of model of the moment Cara Delevingne.

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Your Stroke Risk Can Shrink With 7 Lifestyle Changes

Controlling blood pressure is most important, large U.S. study found

By Robert Preidt

HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, June 6 (HealthDay News) -- Certain lifestyle changes could greatly reduce your stroke risk, according to a new study.

Researchers calculated stroke risk among nearly 23,000 black and white Americans aged 45 and older. Their risk was assessed using the American Heart Association's Life's Simple 7 health factors: be active, control cholesterol, eat a healthy diet, manage blood pressure, maintain a healthy weight, control blood sugar and don't smoke.

During five years of follow-up, 432 strokes occurred among the participants. All seven factors played an important role in predicting stroke risk, but blood pressure was the most important, according to the study, which was published June 6 in the journal Stroke.

"Compared to those with poor blood pressure status, those who were ideal had a 60 percent lower risk of future stroke," study senior author Dr. Mary Cushman, a professor of medicine at the University of Vermont in Burlington, said in a journal news release.

Cushman and her colleagues also found that people who didn't smoke or quit smoking more than a year before the start of the study had a 40 percent lower stroke risk.

For the study, the researchers categorized the participants' Life's Simple 7 scores as inadequate (zero to four points), average (five to nine points) or optimum (10 to 14 points). Every one-point increase was associated with an 8 percent lower stroke risk. People with optimum scores had a 48 percent lower risk than those with inadequate scores, and those with average scores had a 27 percent lower risk.

Overall, blacks had lower scores than whites, but the association between scores and stroke risk was similar for blacks and whites.

"This highlights the critical importance of improving these health factors since blacks have nearly twice the stroke mortality rates as whites," Cushman said.

Each year, about 795,000 people in the United States have a stroke, which is the No. 4 killer and a leading cause of long-term disability in the country, according to the American Heart Association.

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David Beckham opens up about family life

David Beckham has opened up about his family life, insisting that he and wife Victoria are constantly striving to give their children as normal an upbringing as possible.

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Lose weight

Hello everyone !

I'm 18 years old, I'm 5'4 and I weigh around 67 kilos, which is around 150 pounds. I'm depressed because I feel extremely fat since my fat only seems to go in the wrong places like my arms which I can't hide. I need to lose 30 pounds. Would anyone help me ? Does anyone understand my stupid yet important problem ? ( important => for me ). For once in my life, I would like to not be ashamed of my body. Thanks !

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Health Tip: Tackling Family Dinners

Title: Health Tip: Tackling Family Dinners
Category: Health News
Created: 4/1/2013 8:35:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 4/1/2013 12:00:00 AM

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The Morning Scoop: Running Endurance Tips, Worst Cities for Spring Allergy Sufferers and More!

Are you a spring allergy sufferer? Find out how your hometown stacks up against other U.S. cities based on factors like pollen levels and the number of board-certified allergists in the area. [CNN]

Are organic foods always better? A new study suggests the "organic" label can bias consumers for what's been dubbed the 'Health Halo Effect.' [Science Daily]

Three months after the Newtown shooting, the state of Connecticut is poised to pass what could be the nation's strictest gun control package. [The Daily Beast]

You may be about to learn a lot more about your noggin: Today, President Obama is expect to unveil an initiative to map the human brain in 2014. [NYTimes]

Image Credit: Riccardo Tinelli

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farmers walks

Since I live in a rural area, a carry things more than an average person, I guess. Mostly a lot of water jugs. Recently, I just tried out some official "farmer's walks" with dumbbells. Various weights. Various distances. I'm  very curious what other people think of this exercise, if they do it, what weight they hold, and how far they walk, etc.

My grip is good, so mostly what gets tired on me seemed to be my upper traps. Everything had to stay pretty tight while I was walking though. What is this exercise supposed to improve? Has anyone attributed this exercise to some beneficial result, after doing it regularly?

OGR

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