Debby Schrecengast knows she should have seen the warning signs. When she looks back at 2014, the year she suffered a stroke, Schrecengast, 57, sees a “stubborn old donkey” in denial about her health. “I had let my blood pressure go uncontrolled, and I remained overweight for so long,” she says.
Schrecengast, who lives in LaFargeville, New York, joined a programme that eased her into an exercise routine. She took nutrition classes, dropped 13 kilos, and no longer needs blood pressure medication.
It’s easy to measure how much weight you’ve lost or how much faster you can jog. It’s harder to calculate whether your heart is getting healthier. But if you keep an eye on these numbers with your doctor, you can tell whether your ticker is getting stronger or weaker as time goes by.
Cholesterol
The body produces two main types of cholesterol: LDL, the ‘bad’ cholesterol, and HDL, the ‘good’ type. Measured together, along with 20 per cent of your triglyceride score, they add up to your total cholesterol level. An ideal score is 200 or less; between 200 and 239 is borderline high. Go over 240 and you have high cholesterol.
In most cases your physician will be focused on tamping down your LDL, which can clog up arteries—including those that feed your heart and brain. The good cholesterol can help eliminate the bad, but only to a degree.
Denne historien er fra September 2020-utgaven av Reader's Digest India.
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Denne historien er fra September 2020-utgaven av Reader's Digest India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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From the King's Table to Street Food: A Food History of Delhi
Pushpesh Pant, one of India’s pre-eminent food writers, is back with a comprehensive food history of the capital.
Who Wants Coffee?
It’s bitter—but beloved around the world
Prevent The Pain Of Shingles
You don't have to suffer, as long as you take two important steps
The Best And Worst Diets For Your Heart
Dozens of diets are touted as ‘best’, but it’s easy to lose track of the fact that healthy eating needs to be about overall wellness, not just weight loss.
ME & MY SHELF
Journalist Sopan Joshi has worked in a science and environment framework for nearly three decades. His book Mangifera indica: A Biography of the Mango (Aleph Book Company) synthesizes the sensory appeal of India's favourite fruit with its elaborate cultural roots and natural history. He writes in English and Hindi.
SWITCHED
In 1962, nurses at a small Canadian hospital sent home two women with the wrong babies. Then, 50 years later, their children discovered the shocking mistake.
ECHOES OF THE PAST
A VISIT TO THE ANCIENT BARABAR CAVES IN BIHAR REVEALS A SURPRISING CONNECTION TO A LITERARY CLASSIC
Fathers of the Bride
A young woman finds a unique way to honour the many men who helped her survive her childhood
Fiction's Foresight
British-Bangladeshi author Manzu Islam's works reveal startling parallels to recent political upheavals in Bangladesh, begging the question: Besides helping us make sense of our world, can stories also offer a glimpse into the future?
It Happens ONLY IN INDIA
The Divine Defence Picture this: A tractor in Rajasthan‘s Banswara district,a group of loan agents closing in to seize it and the defaulting farmer and his family standing by.
