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| Updated: 8/30/2012 7:59 pm |
Published: 8/30/2012 3:55 pm |
The Arkansas Department of Health announces plans to improve cardiovascular health. The new plan incorporates ABCS recommendations from the "Million Hearts Campaign."
ABCS is an acronym for aspirin therapy, blood pressure control, cholesterol control, and smoking cessation.
Health officials say one in two Arkansas adults have hypertension and among those only 40 percent have the condition under control.
Brain changes start more than 20 years before Alzheimer's diagnosis
Alzheimer's disease may begin as early as twenty years before the onset of dementia is diagnosed.
Washington University researchers found concentrations of a protein in the cerebrospinal fluid declined 25 years before symptoms of dementia appeared. This means -- for people who inherit Alzheimer’s-- brain changes start more than 20 years prior to the person being diagnosed.
However, these findings may not apply to sporadic Alzheimer’s disease -- the most commonly diagnosed form of the disease.
Men, chocolate and stroke risk
Men who eat a moderate amount of chocolate each week may be lowering their stroke risk.
Swedish researchers studied the relationship between chocolate consumption and stroke risk on more than 37,000 men. They found after ten years of follow-up, men who ate the most chocolate lowered their stroke risk 17 percent.
Researchers say about a third of a cup of chocolate chips each week is all you need to reap the benefits.
Julia Zampano, R.D. with the Cleveland Clinic says, "In general, chocolate is a very good source of flavonoids which are antioxidants that help protect the arteries, keep the lining of the arteries more smooth, less likely to build plaque."
Doctors say dark chocolate with a high cocoa content is typically best.
