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By – The American Heart Association

High blood pressure is a serious condition which can lead to heart disease and a stroke. Did you know there are several ways to improve your blood pressure without medication? We should consider medication a last resort. 

The first option? Rethink your lifestyle. We don’t recommend you attempt to make these changes overnight; that’s not fair to you. Instead, try one at a time. Then add another. And another. That’s the smart path to lowering your blood pressure without medication.

Living a healthy lifestyle is crucial to improving blood pressure. The American Heart Association cares about your health and suggests these lifestyle tips to lower your blood pressure without medication.

Exercise

Any form of aerobic exercise or moderate-intensity activity is proven to reduce blood pressure. As you start to exercise regularly, the pressure in your arteries decreases and your heart doesn’t have to work as hard. According to Dr. Randall Zusman, a cardiologist at Harvard Health, you should get 150-minutes of exercise per week. That means walking 30 minutes a day, five days a week, can reduce your blood pressure. So take the stairs at work. And park in the back of the parking lot. 

Change Your Diet

We all know adding fruits and vegetables to our diet is the healthy thing to do…but why? It reduces inflammation in the cardiovascular system, making blood flow more efficient. Eating processed and refined foods (i.e. junk food) damages the blood vessel walls, leading to high blood pressure and other severe conditions. Here are some tips that are essential in blood pressure health:

• Increase potassium in your diet – Potassium regulates blood pressure in the body. Foods high in potassium include:

Avocado
Banana
Nuts
Spinach

• Decrease sodium (salt) intake – Where salt goes, water always follows. When you consume too much salt, your body retains water that could cause serious cardiovascular issues. A weakened heart causes fluid retention. To avoid this vicious cycle, reduce the amount of salt you consume by choosing low-sodium alternatives and avoiding processed foods.
• Avoid sugar – Sugary foods cause weight gain, forcing your heart to work harder. Over time, this leads to high blood pressure. Ready to do something about it? Start incorporating whole foods in your diet. Also, avoid sodas. Both are great ways to start reducing sugar consumption.
• Eat less dairy – According to Mark Hyman, MD, dairy contains unhealthy saturated fats and may be linked to heart disease – Many healthcare professionals believe dairy products can be harmful to your health and suggest substituting almond or soy milk.

Relieve Stress

Although the effects of chronic stress on blood pressure are still unknown, studies show that reducing stress levels, paired with adequate exercise, can lower blood pressure. When you are stressed, the endocrine system produces an excess amount of hormones that trigger a fight-or-flight mode. The blood vessels constrict and force the heart to work overtime. Here are a few coping mechanisms you can try to reduce your stress levels:

• Rest and relaxation – Take time each day to relax. The intention here is to get out of your head and into the now.
• Meditation – Evidence shows that meditation may activate the parasympathetic nervous system, also known as the “Rest and Digest” system. Meditation relaxes the body by slowing the heart rate and lowering blood pressure.
• Analyze your schedule – Avoid overworking and engaging in activities that cause stress – practice boundaries and learn how to say “No!”
• Get plenty of sleep – Not getting enough sleep can throw your hormones off-balance and cause you to go into frenzy mode quicker than usual. Make sure to get at least seven hours of sleep every night.

Stop Smoking

Smoking hardens the inner lining of the blood vessels and makes it harder for them to relax. In turn, the workload on the heart becomes more demanding, and blood pressure increases. Smoking is bad for your health in general and should be avoided at all costs.

By Heather Gowen Walsh and Rachel Morris – Health & Wellness

These days it seems that every sniffle and sneeze has people Googling their symptoms faster than you can say achoo! So how can you determine whether you’re dealing with a regular old cold or something scarier? First step, don’t panic. Next, use this guide featuring tips from Dr. Neil Schachter, M.D., medical director of the Respiratory Care Department of Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City and author of The Good Doctor’s Guide to Colds & Flu, to zero in on your symptoms and take a stab at what’s going on. (Pro tip: It’s always safer to consult a doctor than attempt a self-diagnosis.)

Feeling under the weather? Use this guide to common symptoms to get the facts and figure out your next steps.

Your symptoms: A runny nose, headache, and sore throat

You may have: A cold 

The symptoms of the common cold are mostly “neck up.” You may also experience sneezing, coughing, post-nasal drip, and watery eyes. Pleasant? Not at all, but the virus is usually short-lived. However, if your cold lasts longer than a week or your symptoms are severe, see your physician. You might have strep throat (which can require antibiotics), or your cold may have turned into a sinus infection. 

How to treat a cold:

A painkiller that contains acetaminophen or ibuprofen can ease your headache, a salt-water gargle can soothe a sore throat, and an OTC decongestant will help clear congestion. Still stuffed up? Try a saline nose spray. 

Med-free remedies can also give your recovery a boost. Getting adequate rest, drinking plenty of fluids, using a humidifier or cool-mist vaporizer, and breathing in steam from a hot shower can all help you feel better while you beat your cold. What you should definitely skip: antibiotics. They’re ineffective against the cold virus.

How to avoid getting a cold:

Wash your hands regularly and thoroughly (for at least 20 seconds – count it out in your head) and avoid touching your face. It’s also smart to avoid close contact with people who are sick.

Your symptoms: Body aches, chills, and a chest cough

You may have: The flu

Unlike a cold, flu symptoms can affect you below the neck, too. “Plus, if you come down with the flu, you may also have a high fever (over 101 degrees Fahrenheit) and feel extremely fatigued,” Dr. Schachter says.

How to treat the flu:

Since the neck-up symptoms for a cold and the flu are identical, the same over-the-counter remedies mentioned above—including bed rest and plenty of fluids—can soothe a headache, congestion, and more. While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that most people won’t need antiviral drugs, if you’re extremely sick or in a high-risk group (such as those with asthma, diabetes, or heart disease), your doctor may prescribe an antiviral medication, like Tamiflu or Relenza. These can shorten the duration of the illness and reduce the risk of complications, but know that they work best if started within a couple days of getting sick.

If you have flu-like symptoms, keep your germs to yourself by staying at home. The CDC recommends that you don’t go out in public until at least 24 hours after your fever has eased up. 

How to avoid getting the flu:

Your first line of defense is the influenza vaccine: The jab can reduce the risk of getting the flu by up to 60%, according to the CDC. You should also take the same precautions associated with avoiding the common cold, such as washing your hands often and keeping your distance from those who are ill. 

Your symptoms: Itching of the nose and eyes, sneezing, and a runny, stuffy nose

You may have: Allergic rhinitis, aka hay fever or seasonal allergies

It’s easy to confuse hay fever for the common cold, but one key difference is how suddenly symptoms hit. Allergies seem to come out of nowhere (hello, pollen!), but a cold builds slowly, taking a day or two to develop. Itchiness is also an indicator that you’re dealing with allergies, not a cold.

How to treat seasonal allergies:

Prescription nasal sprays target in-the-nose inflammation, helping to treat a runny, itchy nose. If that doesn’t do the trick you can add an antihistamine (like Claritin or Allegra), which work best when you start using them before you first come into contact with seasonal allergens, so plan to dose up a few weeks before you typically start sniffling. Once symptoms kick in, you can also use over-the-counter decongestant medications to alleviate discomfort.

Sick and tired of dealing with hay fever every spring? Consider immunotherapy, also known as allergy shots, which gradually expose your immune system to small doses of allergens to build tolerance. Some people can experience complete relief from seasonal allergies after completing a full course of allergy shots, according to the American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology. Not a fan of needles? You’re in luck. Under-the-tongue allergy tablets are now available for certain allergens—just ask your doctor.

How to avoid seasonal allergies:

Unless you’ve completed immunotherapy treatment, you may not be able to dodge hay fever completely, but limiting your exposure to pollen can ease the severity of your symptoms. The pollen count is higher on dry, windy days, so avoid being outdoors as much as possible when the forecast is breezy. 

Additionally, keep windows and doors closed during allergy season, and avoid tracking pollen indoors by changing out of your outdoor clothes and shoes soon after entering the house. It’s also a good idea to take a shower and wash your hair before bed so that you don’t breathe any allergens in throughout the night. 

Your symptoms: Fever, cough, and shortness of breath

You may have: COVID-19

COVID-19, the illness caused by a novel strain of coronavirus first detected in late 2019, has spread worldwide. Anyone infected with the virus can experience mild to severe symptoms, though older adults and people with serious underlying medical conditions such as heart disease, lung disease, and diabetes seem to be at a higher risk for serious complications and death, according to the CDC. It can take two to 14 days after exposure for symptoms of COVID-19 to show up. These may include:

• Fever or chills
• Cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Fatigue
• Muscle or body aches
• Headache
• New loss of taste or smell
• Sore throat
• Congestion or runny nose
• Nausea or vomiting
• Diarrhea

By Maggie Miller – THE HILL – 12/02/20

Older adults have faced a barrage of online scams during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the upcoming holiday season and increased consumer spending likely to intensify the problem. 

Older people have long been viewed as easy targets by malicious actors looking to make money and have increasingly become victims of scams aimed at everything from COVID-19 stimulus checks to other financial information over the course of 2020.  

“Senior citizens have always remained a primary target for cyber criminals and bad actors due to their inexperience with technology,” Kelvin Coleman, the executive director of the National Cyber Security Alliance, told The Hill.  

“The pandemic has exacerbated the target on seniors as so many essential services, such as health care and banking, were forced to become digital.” 

Older adults have also been put at higher risk of online malicious targeting due to the increased need to stay home and socially distant during the pandemic, increasing their time spent online.  

Coleman said that telehealth has become one way to target senior citizens, noting that “criminals can easily target seniors with phishing attacks to obtain private information like their Social Security number, login credentials and access to their financials” through the process of telehealth visits. 

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been among the agencies warning of increased scams against older citizens, including those involving faked messages from grandchildren asking for money due to illness or being stuck overseas and malicious actors posing as individuals asking for money to help during quarantine.  

The AARP has also tracked the increasing scams, with the group reporting that as of Nov. 12, it had logged more than 250,000 complaints related to COVID-19 and stimulus payments, with more than two thirds of the complaints related to fraud or identity theft.  

The company noted that nearly $183 million had been lost by consumers as a result of these scams, with the average victim losing around $320.  

Amy Nofziger, the director of victim support for the AARP’s Fraud Watch Network, told The Hill that cyber criminals also see older adults as attractive targets due to their potential savings. 

“Anyone can be a target of fraud, but we know that older adults have more assets due to their hard work and saving for retirement, so of course scammers will go where the money is,” Nofziger said. 

Nofziger noted that the AARP has seen increasing efforts to target senior citizens through pet adoption and dating-related scams, with both aimed at obtaining money through legitimate wire transfers after tricking the targeted individual.  

“The scammers place fake ads with adorable animals for sale,” Nofziger said. “They request money in either wire transfers or peer to peer apps, like Cash App and Zelle. The unsuspecting victim doesn’t know that these types of payment are virtually untraceable and sends the cash and the pet nor the seller is ever heard of again.” 

Scams targeted at obtaining COVID-19 stimulus payments sent to older U.S. adults have also become an increasing concern. 

The IRS put out an alert earlier this year warning U.S. taxpayers to be on guard against malicious calls, texts, emails and social media posts that requested financial or other personal information. The agency cautioned that these scams could lead to identity theft or tax fraud and were targeting retirees in particular.  

Making matters worse, the holiday season typically intensifies online cyber targeting of all consumers, with older adults more at risk during this time.  

The Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) warned earlier this month that targeting of consumers this year was expected to spike due to increased online shopping during the COVID-19 pandemic.  

“Hackers, scammers and thieves will take advantage of these changes and the generosity of the public during the holidays to target online shoppers and those giving to charities,” CISA acting Director Brandon Wales said in a statement.  

Capitol Hill has not turned a blind eye to the increase in scams targeting older Americans during the pandemic.  

Both the House and Senate unanimously approved legislation earlier this month that would require the FTC to take steps to increase protection for seniors against these attacks.  

The bill is sponsored in the Senate by Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine).

 “New schemes designed to defraud seniors appear almost daily. These aren’t simply a nuisance—these scams can wipe out a person’s entire life savings,” Klobuchar said in a statement at the time of the bill’s passage.

Collins, who is chair of the Senate Aging Committee, said in a separate statement that “raising awareness — particularly among older Americans who are more likely to be targeted — is key to protecting seniors’ hard-earned savings.” 

But as cyber criminals continue to target older adults headed into 2021, there are steps they can take to be more aware of pandemic-related scams and protect themselves.  

Coleman emphasized that basic cyber hygiene was key in thwarting these types of attacks, including through creating unique passwords for different accounts, keeping applications updated and “being wary” of clicking on links or downloading documents in emails from strangers.  

“Although some of these tips may sound basic, they’re paramount in protecting the average citizen from cyberattacks,” Coleman said. “If everyone works together and follows these basic guidelines, we’ll be able to make cyberspace a safer place for all.”

By Brian P. Dunleavy, Oct. 2 (UPI)

Telemedicine is on the rise during the pandemic, but not all medical services can move online, researchers say.

The number of in-office visits to primary care physicians in the United States were 50% lower in the spring compared with the same periods in 2018 and 2019, a study published Friday by JAMA Network Open found.

At the same time, more than 35 million telemedicine consultations — in which patients communicate with their doctors by phone or online — were held in April, May and June, a 30-fold increase over previous years, the data showed.

While some medical services can be performed remotely, rates of important tests such as blood pressure and cholesterol monitoring fell by up to 50% across the country, as the public avoided doctors’ offices and other healthcare settings because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the researchers said.

“These are large, clinically important declines involving two of the most fundamental elements of primary care — the prevention of heart attacks and strokes,” study co-author Dr. G. Caleb Alexander told UPI.

RELATED Kids with special needs are struggling to receive good care during pandemic.

“Telemedicine may be very suitable for some types of primary care, but it is very limited for others,” said Alexander, a practicing internist and professor of epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

As the COVID-19 pandemic spread to the United States in February and March, many medical practices discouraged non-essential health visits or closed offices altogether and moved many services online.

In their analysis, Alexander and his colleagues reviewed primary care consultations in the United States, by quarter, for 2018, 2019 and the first half of 2020.

RELATED Telehealth is skyrocketing among older adults.

In 2018 and 2019, during each quarter, or three-month period, between 120 million and 130 million in-office visits to primary care practices occurred across the country.

However, in the first quarter of 2020 — January, February and March — this figure fell to roughly 118 million, the data showed.

In the second quarter of this year — April, May and June — it dropped again to just over 99 million, the researchers said.

RELATED The Telemedicine boom may outlast COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, telemedicine consultations, which accounted for approximately 1% — or about 1.4 million per quarter — of all primary care appointments in 2018 and 2019, increased four-fold — to just over 4 million visits — in the first quarter of this year and 30-fold — to just over 35 million visits — in the second quarter.

Because certain tests cannot be performed remotely, the number of blood pressure assessments performed across the country fell by 50% in April, May and June, compared with the same period in 2018 and 2019, the researchers said.

Similarly, cholesterol testing dropped by 37% over the same period, they said.

“Our findings suggest that one potential collateral effect of the pandemic — in addition to the direct harms — may be poorer assessment and control of cardiovascular risk factors like blood pressure and cholesterol, and potentially, higher rates of heart disease as a consequence,” Alexander said.

“Telemedicine is here to stay, but I think it is highly unlikely that it will replace face to face care because there is simply too much that is important that can’t be done through a webcam,” he said.

Fine Cooking Magazine

Depending on where you live, what is in season or available at your local farmer’s market might look different week to week, or not. But healthy eating can’t just be limited to the summer and autumn months of plenty and harvest. Below are links to information about cooking with fresh ingredients year round, in any region of the US.

Fresh Spring Produce

Spring is when produce begins to grow, making this the time of year for lettuce, some root vegetables, and fruit like apples and strawberries. Other seasonally ripe ingredients include avocado, asparagus, broccoli, and mushrooms. Peas and asparagus are other ingredients common to spring dishes.

If you’re looking for springtime recipes, salad might come to mind first, but fresh young veggies also taste great cooked. If you live in an area of rainy spring days, seasonal soups can be another great choice. Here are some lists of springtime recipes:

Bon Appetit shares 44 recipes to get you in the spring spirit

BBC Food collected the top 20 spring recipes

Food & Wine Magazine shares 28 seasonal spring recipes

Summer Seasonal Produce

In summer, the fruits of spring continue to be in season as new veggies also ripen. Tomatoes, bell peppers, eggplant, corn, and cucumbers are just some of the produce that hits its peak in summer. Raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, plums, and peaches also inspire some of the sweet summer flavors we know and love.

Summer is a time for grilling and relaxing, meaning cold side dishes like pasta salad or coleslaw might be on the menu of your traditional weekend. There are always exciting summer recipes to try, like the ones on these lists:

Taste of Home lists 101 fresh and easy summer recipes

Cooking Light shares over 45 recipes using seasonal summer ingredients

Delish compiled a list of the best non-alcoholic seasonal summer beverages

Best Fall Produce

Autumn’s freshest produce includes sweet potatoes, beets, pears, apples and squashes like the pumpkins you start to see everywhere for Halloween. Grapes, persimmons, and more hearty greens like kale or chard are also at their full ripeness.

Fall’s lower temperatures make this an exciting time to get back in the kitchen for slow-cooked meals. Many recipes on these fall lists feature yummy sauces or broths:

Saveur created a fall recipe and produce guide

Food Network shares recipes that use just five fall ingredients

Country Living lists over 75 recipes for easy fall meals

Fresh Produce in Winter

In winter, most fresh produce is going to be root vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, yams, turnips, and onions. Some squashes and apples also ripen in winter. But your favorite fresh food from other seasons is still likely to be available as well, whether fresh at the grocery, frozen, or canned.

Winter calls for warming recipes that help us keep well through the stresses of the holidays and the annual flu season. Make the most of your extra time indoors with some of these recipes:

Eating Well figured out their 10 most popular winter recipes

Root & Revel lists 100 recipes using fresh winter ingredients

AllRecipes offers a catalogue of options for winter meals

Eat Balanced Meals for Year-Round Health

While different produce is fresh at different times, many ingredients are available year-round at the local grocery in some form. As you find favorite healthy seasonal recipes from these lists and others, keep making them your own to nourish your body. No matter what the time of year, it’s always a good idea to eat right!

We at Greg Says like to say that health insurance doesn’t actually ensure your health, a healthy lifestyle does that.