Mar
01
2008

High Death Rate In India Due To Smoking

By | Cancer, Heart Disease, Infectious Disease, Lung Disease

Dr. Prabhat Jha of the Centre for Global Health Research, Toronto has published research regarding the risk of mortality associated withs smoking in India, involving data from 1.1 million Indian homes. Data of deceased individuals, all of them in the age group between 30 and 69 years of age, showed that 37% of the men and 5% of the women had been smokers, and smoking doubled the risk for both sexes due to medical causes. Smoking did not only rate as a risk for lung and respiratory cancers but also for tuberculosis, vascular and respiratory disease. Smoking as a causal relationship was estimated to be responsible for 1 in 5 deaths in men and 1 in 20 deaths in women. With the population growth in India the number of death in the age group of 30 to 69 related to smoking is estimated to increase by 3% per year. Currently available data suggests that the rate of smoking is high especially among men in India. Data from other nations show, that smoking bans in public places are effective in turning these statistics around. Italy used to be one of the European nations, where smoking in public was common and as a result the exposure to second hand cigarette smoke was not only an inconvenience but a serious health risk. Cardiovascular events like heart attacks showed a decrease among men and women in Italy after the smoking ban in public places was put into effect in 2005. The findings were related to the improved indoor air quality.

High Death Rate In India Due To Smoking

High Death Rate In India Due To Smoking

There was an increase of sales in stop smoking aids like nicotine replacement products. Sales of cigarettes showed a decrease. Giulia Cesaroni from a local health unit in Rome remarked that even a small reduction in the incidence of cardiovascular disease can have enormous public health implications, as coronary artery disease is the leading cause of deaths in Italy. Compared to before the ban heart attack rates of middle aged (35- to 64-years) Italians dropped by 11%, 65- to 74-year-olds had a reduction of 8%, but those in the 75-84 year age group showed no benefit (as coronary artery disease in them likely was irreversible).

More information about:

1. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: http://nethealthbook.com/lung-disease/chronic-obstructive-pulmonary-disease-copd/

2. Causes of lung cancer: http://nethealthbook.com/cancer-overview/lung-cancer/causes-lung-cancer/

3. Heart attacks: http://nethealthbook.com/cardiovascular-disease/heart-disease/heart-attack-myocardial-infarction-or-mi/

References: The Indian data based on www.nejm.org (February 13, 2008); the Italian study was published in Circulation 2008 (Feb. 11)

Last edited November 3, 2014

Sep
01
2007

Weight Loss Surgery Reduces Mortality

By | Diabetes, Heart Disease, Nutrition, Obesity

Excessive bodyweight contributes to a host of illnesses. Diets and lifestyle changes, physical activity and exercise programs can contribute to successful weight loss, but for a group of patients morbid obesity remains a significant problem. Weight loss surgery, also known as bariatric surgery has been on the increase.

Opinions about the usefulness of bariatric surgery have been divided. Often it was seen as a heroic effort with lots of risks and questionable benefits. In some procedures patients did not show significant weight loss, and there were some doubts whether the risk of surgery was worth taking.

Dr. Lars Sjoestroem of Gothenburg University has a detailed study on 4,047 Swedish patients with obesity, of which 2,010 underwent bariatric surgery, while 2,037 received non-surgical treatment. The two groups were compared for overall mortality after 11 years. The non-surgical control group lost little or no weight. The bariatric surgery patients did better. The most successful group was the one which received gastric bypass surgery with a weight loss of 25%. Vertical-based gastroplasty patients lost 16% of their weight, and those who underwent gastric banding lost 14% of their weight over 10 years.

Weight Loss Surgery Reduces Mortality

Gastric bypass surgery

At follow up the overall mortality was significantly decreased in the group that underwent surgery. Death risk from disease which is associated with obesity, such as coronary artery disease was significantly decreased by 56%. The risk of death from diabetes was decreased by 92% and the risk of death from cancer also showed a reduction of 60%.

US data show similar results of a decrease in long-term mortality in obese patients who underwent bariatric surgery and lost weight.

More information on weight loss: http://nethealthbook.com/womens-health-gynecology-and-obstetrics/weight-loss/

Reference: August 23, 2007 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.

Last edited November 3, 2014

Jul
01
2007

Waist line reduction scores in health prevention

By | Health, Hormones, Men's Health, Nutrition, Obesity, Prevention

To women waist measurement has always been of importance. Increased waist measurement and weight gain go hand in hand, and a poor fitting garment in the waist usually signals to cut out the junk food. In the past century extremely tiny waists became an unhealthy obsession, till common sense got the upper hand.

In the past males seemed to be unperturbed by a large girth and often ridiculed the opposite sex about their preoccupation with their waist lines. With more knowledge about the intricate play of metabolism increased waist circumference is a signal to health problems. It may be that a simple measuring tape can be one of the most helpful tools to predict a group of health problems in males. While type 2 diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol and triglycerides are the problems that would first come to mind, there are more, namely coronary artery disease, prostate enlargement, a high prostate-specific antigen level, erectile dysfunction and ejaculatory dysfunction. Dr. Steven Kaplan, professor of urology at Cornell University, New York presented a study at the American Urological Association. Men with moderate to severe urinary tract symptoms were divided into groups based on their waist sizes, 30 to 36 inches, 36 to 40 inches and greater than 40 inches.

Waist line reduction scores in health prevention

Waist line reduction scores in health prevention

Results surprised even the researchers. Metabolic disorders like diabetes showed an incidence of 11.25% in the first group, 22.3 % in the next higher group and 37.8% in the group with waistlines over 40 inches. Erectile dysfunction was seen in 34.6%, 49.5% and 78.6 % respectively. The percentiles for hypertension showed 12.6% in the first group, versus 24.7% and 37.8 %. The researchers stressed that male pelvic dysfunction and the derailment of metabolic function, also known as the “metabolic syndrome” are closely linked.

More information about metabolic syndrome: http://nethealthbook.com/hormones/metabolic-syndrome/

Last edited November 2, 2014