News on American Heart Association

Heart-shock device may disrupt quiet hospice death

2010-03-15T13:15:33Z

<div id="subtitle">HEALTHBEAT: Hospices slow to help patients decide when to switch off heart-shocking implants</div><div><p>If you have a heart-zapping defibrillator implanted in your chest but now are dying of something else, when do you have it turned off?</p><p>Carol Filak had heard about painful, repeated shocks that people sometimes experience from those implants in their final days. So when her father, US soft drinks industry, accused by health authorities of promoting obesity, said Monday it had dramatically reduced the amount of high-calorie sodas sold in schools.</p><p>Leading companies, including Coca-cola and PepsiCo, joined former president Bill Clinton in announcing the results of an ...

School drink deal cuts sugar

2010-03-08T14:45:20Z

<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters) - A deal to sell healthier drinks in U.S. schools has slashed the amount of fattening beverages offered to students, former President Bill Clinton said on Monday as New York leaders pushed for a soda tax to tackle obesity and budget ...

Schools Soft Drinks

2010-03-08T13:06:28Z

Former President Bill Clinton, right, is joined by Dr. Clyde Yancy, president of the American Heart Association, as he holds up a hand held device used by soft drink delivery drivers programmed to only allow orders of products permitted to be sold in schools during a news conference, Monday, March 8, 201...

Heart patients worry about health costs

2010-02-22T10:04:28Z

<div><p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The monthly mortgage payment is the heaviest expense facing the average U.S. family but for heart patient Frank Amend, an engineer from North Carolina, the biggest cost is healthcare.</p><p>That's why Amend and tens of thousands of patients with similar conditions find themselves at the...

CAPITAL CULTURE: First lady tackling child obesity

2010-02-22T10:52:14Z

<div><p>EDITOR'S NOTE: An occasional look at the Obama effect in the capital and beyond.</p><p>By NANCY BENAC</p><p>Associated Press Writer</p><p>WASHINGTON (AP) — By now, it is abundantly clear that Michelle Obama loves french fries.</p>&...

Study fails to link saturated fat, heart disease

2010-02-22T11:53:59Z

<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The saturated fat found mainly in meat and dairy products has a bad reputation, but a new analysis of published studies finds no clear link between people's intake of saturated fat and their risk of developing heart disease.</p><p>Research has shown that saturated fat can raise blood levels of "bad" LDL cholesterol, and elevated LDL is a ri...

Hormone drugs for prostate cancer may hurt heart

2010-02-22T12:54:59Z

<div><p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Prostate cancer treatments that cut off the supply of male hormone raise cholesterol, worsen blood sugar and make men fatter and thus likely raise the risk of heart attack, too, doctors said on Monday.</p><p>An advisory published in the American Heart Association...

Why Helping Employees Keep New Year?s Resolutions is Good For Business

2010-02-22T17:20:03Z

Do you care about your employees? fitness regimen? What they eat? How much they weigh, or how they spend their free time? Why should you? With the high cost of healthcare these days, smart business owners have a genuine interest in the well being of their workers.<br><br>The American Heart Association recently completed a study on workplace wellness that found employers spend almost...

Heart group lists 7 essentials for heart health

2010-02-22T17:48:54Z

<div id="subtitle">How healthy is your ticker? Heart group outlines 7 essentials for long, healthy life</div><div><p>Here are the seven secrets to a long life: Stay away from cigarettes. Keep a slender physique. Get some exercise. Eat a healthy diet and keep your cholesterol, blood pressure and blood sugar in check.</p><p>Research shows that most 50-year-olds who do that can live another 40 years free of stroke a...

American Heart Disease Prevention: Foundations That Can Help

2010-02-23T13:21:40Z

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide, and an estimated one in three Americans suffers from some form of the disease. Luckily, when it comes to American heart disease prevention, foundations can help with providing education, community services, and expert advice on the warning signs of cardiovascular disease and ways to healthy living.<br><br>American Heart Ass...

Heart disease to cost U.S $503 billion in 2010: group

2010-02-23T14:33:53Z

<div><p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Cardiovascular disease and stroke will cost the United States an estimated $503.2 billion in 2010, an increase of nearly 6 percent, and many cases could have been prevented, the American Heart Association said on Thursday.</p&...

Senator seeks sources of health groups' funds

2010-02-23T19:00:19Z

<div><p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The senior Republican on the Senate Finance Committee has asked the American Medical Association and 32 other medical groups to disclose the financial backing they receive from drug and medic...

10 Most Hated Foods

2010-02-24T00:07:32Z

<div><p>Children are expected to say things like, "I don't eat eggs, ever." Or, "Liver? Gross!" However, when adults do it they better have a severe allergy or a convincing health, political, or environmental argument to back it up. Not liking a food, no matter how it's prepared, makes you seem like an unworldly country bumpkin. On a first date, it tells your companion that you're unadventurous and unhealthy because your diet rarely strays far from the beaten path.&am...

Can Active Video Games Help Prevent Obesity?

2010-02-24T04:29:12Z

<div id="subtitle">Study claims results equivalent to moderate exercise</div><div><p>Certain types of video games may increase adults' energy expenditure as much as moderately intense exercise, according to research presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2009.</p><p>The study, funded by Florida (Reuters) - The battery of tests given to a patient having a heart attack in a U.S. hospital adds up to a dose of radiation equivalent to 725 chest X-rays, researchers reported on Monday.</p><p>One problem is that each procedure is viewed separately...

Moderate drinking may not preserve thinking skills

2010-02-24T04:38:09Z

<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Think that a drink or two a day help keep your mind sharp into older age? Researchers from the United Kingdom may have poked a hole into that idea.</p><p>Dr. Claudia Cooper, at Florida (Reuters) - The new active Wii video games from Nintendo Co Ltd may be creating a healthier generation of couch potato, according to a new study presented on Monday.</p><p>Some of the N...

American charities may not have a happy holiday

2010-02-24T05:11:43Z

<div id="subtitle">American charities saw giving drop this year; holiday season is not expected to be much better</div><div><p>American charities have weathered a significant drop in giving this year, and while they're hoping for a holiday miracle, a recent survey shows they will probably see a decrease in year-end generosity.</p><p>In light of the economic downturn, only 38 percent of Americans say they are more...

Health officials to seek smoking ban in Oklahoma

2010-02-24T12:36:25Z

<div id="subtitle">Health officials, advocates to seek smoking ban in bars and restaurants in Oklahoma</div><div><p>Anti-smoking advocates called on lawmakers Thursday to make bars and restaurants in Oklahoma smoke-free by closing loopholes in the state law restricting smoking in public places.</p><p>Officials from the