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Monthly Archives: September 2025

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Author st martin Categories Cardiac, Medical 0 comment

You’ve Only Got One Heart. How to Keep It Healthy

The human body is an amazing creation! Many of our body parts come in twos: two legs, ears, eyes, hands, kidneys, lungs, etc. Although we want to keep them all, it is possible to live with only one. Not so with the heart. You’ve only got one heart! It can’t be cut in half and remain useful.

Unfortunately, we are not doing enough to take care of our hearts. The number one killer in the United States is heart disease and that is true for much of the Western world. Each year, over 600,000 people in the U.S. die of heart disease. Today, we will be talking about what we can do to protect our hearts. But first, lets review some facts about the heart to become more familiar with this precious component of our bodies. It is an absolutely unique and astonishing organ!

  • The heart has four chambers
  • The heart is approximately the size of a fist
  • The heart is actually a muscle
  • The heart pumps blood through two separate circulatory systems: The pulmonary circulation system (the right side of the heart which pumps blood to the lungs) and the systemic circulation system (the left side of the heart which pumps blood through the rest of the body)

The system that is associated with the heart and lungs is the cardiorespiratory system. This system is responsible for transporting oxygen, nutrients, and other key substances to the organs and tissues in the body. Furthermore, it picks up and expels waste products.

In order to keep the cardiorespiratory system and its components healthy, it is essential to incorporate cardiorespiratory fitness into our daily lives.

Cardiorespiratory endurance fitness refers to the ability of the body to perform prolonged, large-muscle, dynamic exercises at moderate to high levels of intensity. This component is one of the five key health-related fitness components. The following list include examples of benefits of cardiorespiratory endurance exercise:

  • Improved cardiorespiratory functioning
  • Improved cellular metabolism
  • Reduced risk of cardiovascular disease
  • Reduced risk of cancer
  • Reduced risk of type 2 diabetes
  • Better control of body fat
  • Improved immune function
  • Improved psychological and emotional well-being
  • Better rest/sleep
  • Better self-perception
  • (and many more…)

Unfortunately, the reality is, that most US adults do not meet the minimum requirement for cardiorespiratory fitness, which is 150 minutes of moderate to high intensity physical activity, which translates into about 30 minutes, five days per week. The key question that must be asked is: do YOU engage in 30 minutes of moderate to high intensity cardiovascular exercise five days per week?

If the answer to this question was “yes”, then that is fantastic! Keep it up! If, however, your answer was “no”, then it is time to face the facts of the matter.  Don’t get hung up on what you did not do yesterday, rather, make a decision right now to incorporate cardiorespiratory exercise into your daily routine. If you haven’t been doing any of this type of exercise at all, then consider starting slowly at a lower intensity and build up your endurance. The F.I.T.T. formula is an easy-to-use formula to create a basic fitness plan for cardiorespiratory fitness. Here is a sample of this formula that you can easily adapt to fit your life:

Frequency:  3 – 5 days per week

Intensity:  You can still talk while exercising, but not sing (you are breathing harder)

Time:  20 – 60 minutes each time depending on your current level of fitness

Type:  Biking, fast walking, swimming, dancing, aerobics, sports, roller-blading, etc. (NOTE: pick a variety of activities that you personally enjoy and alternate them regularly)

If you are just not sure how to get started or wonder if it is safe for you, seek out a degreed and nationally certified personal trainer through a local fitness center. A professional personal trainer will be able to help you get started with an appropriate fitness program and conduct a variety of baseline fitness assessments to ensure safety for your participation in cardiorespiratory exercise.

The benefits of cardiorespiratory fitness are plentiful and you can’t afford not to take advantage of this completely free way of preventing chronic heart disease. It is never too late to start. Just doing something more than you are doing now will get you started on the right foot and in the right direction. Remember, you’ve only got one heart, so do the right thing and take care of it! Start by incorporating cardiorespiratory exercise into your daily life today.

Author st martin Categories Health care, Medical 0 comment

Mentorship Program

Mentorship Program

In a fast-changing world, mentoring bridges gaps in skills , experience and opportunity. whether in careers , academics, or personal growth , it remains one of the most effective ways to accelerate success.

With the endorsement of the hospital management, Dr. Clementine Odei,  Head of Unit University of Ghana Medical School Clinic,  has established an institutionalized mentoring system to support staff and facility development. This initiative commenced with phase I of the mentorship program , which has brought together selected mentors and mentees for an introductory workshop .

Phase II followed as co-creation workshop that built upon previous discussions , with focused deliberations on: Mentee responsibilities , Mentoring needs assessment, Mentorship guidelines (dos and don’ts ), System institutionalization, and Research methodologies

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Author st martin Categories Cardiac, Medical 0 comment

Mental illness

Mental illness, also called mental health disorders, refers to a wide range of mental health conditions — disorders that affect your mood, thinking and behavior. Examples of mental illness include depression, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, eating disorders and addictive behaviors.

Many people have mental health concerns from time to time. But a mental health concern becomes a mental illness when ongoing signs and symptoms cause frequent stress and affect your ability to function.

A mental illness can make you miserable and can cause problems in your daily life, such as at school or work or in relationships. In most cases, symptoms can be managed with a combination of medications and talk therapy (psychotherapy).

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Discover The Breakthrough Formula For Reversing Type 2 Diabetes

Did you know that the leading cause of blindness in America is from type 2 diabetes? So are amputations. Every 6 minutes, someone in America gets an amputation because of diabetes. As well, diabetes type 2 is the leading cause of kidney disease and dialysis treatment. And at least 68% of diabetic people 65 years or older in America will die from heart disease and 16% of them will die from stroke. This makes heart disease and stroke the leading causes of death among diabetics. Bottom line: if you have diabetes type 2, you can expect to live a whole decade (on average) less, and suffer considerably more, than someone who doesn’t have diabetes.

Gene’s Story

This sobering reality hit home for Gene when his older brother, who had diabetes type 2, died of a heart attack in his sixties. Gene, who also had diabetes type 2, realized he was headed down the same path. Diabetes wasn’t just an inconvenient disease where he had to monitor his blood sugar and take meds anymore. It was literally killing him! Obese and on blood pressure meds (in addition to his diabetic meds), and unable to muster the energy to walk around the block, Gene knew he had to do something.

He heard about a diabetes group class starting at his church and decided he would give it a try. The program was called Diabetes Undone and it literally changed his life. He said he had tried other programs like a keto diet and counting carbs, but this time, it was different. After 8 weeks, he had dropped his A1C from 7.1 to 6.1 and his fasting blood sugar was under 130. Within 11 months, he dropped 50 pounds and his A1C and blood sugar were so low that he got off his diabetic and blood pressure meds completely. All while eating carbs and without expensive supplements or carb counting. Not only has he fully reversed his diabetes, he says he feels 20 years younger. He can’t stop talking about Diabetes Undone!

What is Diabetes Undone?

It’s an online course developed by Life and Health Network together with diabetic expert Dr. Wes Youngberg that takes you through a structured program designed to help you understand the root causes of diabetes and how to use simple changes to your diet, lifestyle and exercise to beat diabetes for good.

Two Major Myths Of Diabetes Type 2

Diabetes Undone works because it destroys the two biggest myths about diabetes type 2:

  1. That diabetes type 2 is a chronic and progressive disease; and
  2. That the treatment of blood sugar should be the primary therapy of diabetes type 2.

Dr. Wes Youngberg DrPh, MPH, CNS, believed those two myths when he started working on the island of Guam in the 1990’s with diabetic patients. But what he learned there changed his life and the lives of his patients forever.

First, as he worked with diabetics and studied a growing movement that said that diabetes type 2 was NOT a progressive disease, he learned that he had been duped. In fact, diabetes type 2 in most cases is completely reversible.

Second, he learned that the practice of taking insulin and medication like Metformin to keep blood sugar levels down only worsen your condition. This practice creates insulin resistance—a condition that means you keep taking more and more meds, until your pancreas eventually stops working.  In fact, it’s this very practice of taking insulin and meds that lead to most of the complications from diabetes like blindness and amputation.

Dr. Youngberg spent 14 years in Guam, researching the diabetes epidemic in the Micronesian islands and providing screenings, public health education, and training for diabetes prevention and care. During this time, he developed the Diabetes Undone protocol for reversing diabetes and it’s so easy that anyone can do it once you have the knowledge and the desire to change.

In 2007, he was awarded the Ancient Order of the Chamorri—the highest honor given by the governor of Guam for extraordinary contributions to the island community.

With over 25 years of reversing diabetes in literally thousands of patients through his clinic, lectures, videos and books, Dr. Youngberg heads the Youngberg Lifestyle and Nutritional Medicine clinic in Temecula, California. He has been featured in all sorts of media publications and speaks all around the world. You can pay thousands of dollars to get treated by him at his clinic (if you can wait for his 3-month waiting list) and you will see results. But you don’t have to. Here’s why.

Introducing Diabetes Undone

Life and Health Network, a 501c3 non-profit organization partnered with Dr. Youngberg to turn his program into an online course that can be run as a group program or taken alone at home. Also included in the program is Brenda Davis, RD, a registered dietitian and a best-selling author and diabetes reversal expert. It’s an online course (DVD version available) that you can watch on your phone, tablet or computer at your own pace and the course will never expire.

Diabetes Undone is used for diabetic education at hospitals like Florida Hospital in Orlando, Tillamook Regional Medical Center in Oregon and at many other clinics. Hundreds of people across America and Canada have taken the group course in hospitals, clinics and churches and many have reversed their diabetes by making simple changes that anyone can do. Luisa Olivia-Cordero, RDN, LND, the main diabetic instructor at Florida Hospital calls Diabetes Undone “the best diabetes education program I have ever seen in my 30+ years of teaching diabetes education.”

Limited Time Offer

For a limited time, we are making the 6.5-hour online course available with all the course materials for an unbelievably low price of $147. That’s more than 25% off the full price and considerably less than even just a one-hour consultation session with Dr. Youngberg ($300). And with a 60-day money back guarantee, you really have nothing to lose. For the price of a dinner for two, you can learn Dr. Youngberg’s protocol for reversing diabetes!

Your destiny doesn’t have to be the same as most type 2 diabetics who are faced with kidney failure, blindness, amputations, heart attacks, stroke and early death. Take advantage of this great deal, take control of your disease and rewrite your health story today!

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Author st martin Categories Ayurveda, Health care 0 comment

Exercise Basics

The decision to start exercising—or get more serious about it—is an important one. It can have many positive effects on your life; helping you to feel healthier, look better, and feel better. It is a great way to burn off energy or frustration after a long day of work. Even if you have a busy schedule, exercise is time well spent.

Before we go any farther, lets review the health benefits of exercise. Remembering these facts can keep you going when you are sweating away in the gym.

Some of the benefits of exercise include: [1],[2]

  • Weight loss as well as maintaining a healthy weight.
  • Lowering blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar levels.
  • Increasing your energy.
  • Reducing stress and improving your mood.
  • Maintaining bone mass.
  • Improving the quality of your sleep.
  • Giving you a better quality of life through improved strength, endurance, and flexibility.
  • Promoting healthy aging.

As you probably know, there are many different types of exercise. Here is some information to help you get started on the right foot.

Aerobic Exercise

Cardio, (also called aerobic exercise), is designed to get your blood pumping, build endurance, and help you loose weight/maintain a healthy weight. Types of cardio include, walking, running, cycling, and swimming. Cardio is generally performed continuously for a set amount of time; studies have shown the most effective amount of time is around 30 minutes. It strengthens the heart and lungs and burns calories.

Each week, healthy adults should try to include 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity, or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity, in their exercise regimens.[3] Exercising several days a week will maximize the benefit of the time you spend. Even if you have to break your exercise into short sessions, continue exercising. Even ten-minute sessions have been demonstrated to improve health.[4]

Interval training is a type of aerobic exercise that has been generating a lot of interest lately. The benefits include burning more calories in less time, while increasing your aerobic capacity.[5] Essentially, you alternate between segments of vigorous exercise and segments at a slower, more relaxed pace. Depending on your fitness needs, interval training may be a good option to consider alongside traditional methods of cardio.

To get started, hop on a bike or put on your running shoes. Remember to warm up for a few minutes before you start. Begin with a pace that challenges you but one you can maintain. Do the best you can. Don’t be discouraged if you can only walk, even walking is considered a great aerobic exercise. Set easy goals for yourself so you can see the progress you are making and do not get overwhelmed. When you look back over time, you will be very pleased with the results.

Strength Training

Another common type of exercise is strength training. Besides developing stronger muscles, strength training increases your metabolism, helps you lose weight, and maintains strong bones. Strength training doesn’t need to take too much time either. Although some people spend hours in the gym every day, 2 to 3, hour-long sessions a week is enough for most people.

Although many people associate strength training with the gym, there are many exercises you can do at home. You can buy many types of equipment, such as free weights, small machines, exercise bands, or kettle bells. There are even some exercises that require little to no equipment, like Pilates or bodyweight exercises. While many gyms offer classes for these types of exercises, you can easily purchases videos and follow along at home. The internet is a great resource as well.

If you are using weights, do several different exercises focusing on a major muscle group. Try to do 3 sets of 8-12 repetitions for each exercise, with short rests between sets. Don’t hurt yourself, but make sure you feel the ‘burn’ in your muscles. This will show you that you are giving your muscles a good workout.[6] After lifting weights, you should skip a day to let your muscles recover. If you want to train again the next day, be sure to target a different muscle group.

To get started, get to know the equipment you will be using. Read the equipment’s instructions, ask a gym employee, or follow along with a video. Remember, you can learn a lot from the people around you and most will be more than happy to share their knowledge.

Flexibility

Stretching is an important component to exercise that tends to be overlooked by many people. However, it is important for many reasons. Stretching improves and maintains your range of motion; this is important because strength and aerobic training cause your muscles to tighten up. While it is no longer recommended to stretch before a workout, stretching after a workout will help maintain flexibility.[7] Stretching will keep you flexible and agile as you age. As a bonus, it also boosts circulation and can promote better posture and relieve stress.[8]

When stretching, do not bounce or extend a stretch so far that it hurts. Stay still and keep breathing freely as you hold the stretch. It is recommended to stretch 3 times a week, but more frequently is even better. You can learn more about how to stretch from websites or fitness books. Most gyms also have posters demonstrating different types of stretches. Or better yet, you could ask someone who knows.

The best way to get started stretching is simple: remember to do it after your workout. The extra time you take to stretch after exercising will be a great benefit to you. It will give your body a chance to cool down and will help you relax. Remembering to do it will pay off, as you will maintain better flexibility, movement, and balance.

Nutrition and Rest

With all this being said, one thing is important for us to remember. We need to take a holistic approach to our health. There is no cure-all in living a healthy life, but there are several healthy practices that are connected and affect each other. Beginning an exercise regimen is a big step, but there are other pieces to the puzzle.

Diet is very important. Besides being a major part of weight loss process, the nutrition you receive from a balanced diet will give you the energy and strength you need for a successful workout. A proper diet will also help you feel and perform your best, every day.

Rest is another issue that is often overlooked. It sounds simple, but some of us get so focused on exercising that we forget to let our bodies recover. We need to remember to schedule a day or two for rest in our exercise schedules. It gives your body a chance to repair itself and build muscle.

The Bottom Line

Find something you can do and do it. Over time, try to add different exercises to your regimen. Work all parts of your body through a combination of different exercises. If you can get a good mix of aerobic exercise, strength training, and stretching you will be well on your way to improving your health and feeling better about yourself.

Think about this: it’s been shown that for every minute you exercise, you gain two minutes of longevity. So get started today, you don’t have to dive off the deep end, but start at a level you can handle. That way, you’ll avoid burning out after a few weeks. It’s also good to remember that household chores, yard work, home repairs, cleaning, or playing with children count as exercise too. Remember, starting anything new is difficult at first, but it will get easier, and your improvements will continue to motivate you.

Author st martin Categories Uncategorized 0 comment

Can Your Diet And Lifestyle Affect Your Vision?

When it comes to nutrition, we rarely talk about eyes. We uphold our hearts, our hands, and even our feet as some of our most daily used body parts, but how often do we consider our eyes? Our eyes are used in every second that we’re awake, so it is important to ensure we know the basics surrounding eye health.

Our eyes are organs that have the unique ability to collect light to carry information to our brains, which then shows us our position relative to our surroundings, as well as all the details of color, texture, and distance of everyday objects. It’s a beautiful process that allows us to experience color, perceive emotion in people’s faces, and so much more.

How exactly does the eye capture and send the information that we see to the brain?

A layer of neurons known as the retina lines the back of our eye and collects the light that is reflected off the objects we see. Two types of cells make up the retina: rods and cones. Both rods and cones have unique abilities because of their different shapes. Rods are mixed with cones in the retina because they provide peripheral vision and can detect the smallest amounts of light. Night vision is the responsibility of the rod cells and allows us to see in low light. All the wavelengths of visible light can be detected by our cone cells and give us the ability to see color. There are also specific cells within the eyes that detect light intensity throughout the day to help modulate the circadian rhythm or sleep cycle.

Every type of signal originating from the eyes is transported by a pair of optic nerves that follow a pathway to the extreme rear of the brain called the occipital lobe. In the occipital lobe, all the visual information is processed to help us distinguish what we see and store necessary visual material for later use.

Did you know that our eyes begin developing during the third week of embryonic growth? The young brain has a part of the brain called the diencephalon, which is where our eyes emerge. The diencephalon has two buds that grow into the eyes and optic nerves. Technically, the retina of the eye is brain tissue, so when you see the eye you can see a part of the brain!

Eyes are very important because they are nerve tissue that can be damaged by strain. It’s important to remember that eyes are to be maintained, and damage is rarely or never reversed. The eye is an organ that can be damaged by district physical contact, or by eyestrain. Eyestrain can be a result of long reading or any other activities where we need to focus for long periods of time. Unsurprisingly, using monitors or small phone displays has now become the leading cause of eyestrain.

Screen time is a major causative agent of eyestrain.

On average, the average screen time for a typical American is estimated at about ten hours per day. Constant phone use, along with computer-reliant jobs has made electronic screen time a problem. A noteworthy fact is that screen time is also an issue for today’s children, with TV, tablets, phones, and laptops being their main source of entertainment, whether it’s for educational or non-educational use. Three major issues arise from exurbanite screen time:

  • Increased risk of obesity, or diabetes, from lack of physical activity.
  • Sleep loss from sleep cycle disruption
  • Eye strain from media use fatigue

Overuse of the eye from constantly looking at a screen can stress the nerves and muscles of the eye. If you feel pain or soreness around the eye, or notice yourself squinting more often than normal, or experience blurred vision, you may be suffering from eye strain. Headaches can also be a symptom of eye strain so if you feel an unexpiated headache, be sure to think about eye strain as a possible cause.

What are some ways to limit eyestrain?

In a busy, media-driven workplace, it can be a challenge to find relief from the proverbial “screen of death.” Schools and workplaces can have our eyes jumping from reading the small print on paper documents to reading graphs and reports on our computer screens, not to mention the intermittent “breaks” we take to scroll through social media on our phones. Taking breaks from our screens or textbooks can help a great deal. Try taking a break every 45 minutes to rest your eyes by closing them and, even better, standing up at the same time for up to three minutes.

Apple implemented a new app to remind us to limit our media use. The app will show us how much time we spend on our phones, as well as how much of that time is used for social media. The idea of seeing how much time we waste can be quite the reality check and particularly worrisome when we realize how much we tax our eyes. Without something like this app, how aware would you be of your electronic use and the real damage you’re having on your eyes?

Diabetes’ impact on eyes

There are diseases that can also cause permanent damage to eye tissue. Diabetes is a disease that increases the risk of eye issues. Prevalence of eye problems such as blurred vision and vision loss is extremely high in diabetics. Prolonged high blood sugar from diabetes can damage the delicate blood vessels that supply the retina with oxygen and nutrients. Fluid can escape from these damaged vessels and add pressure within the retina.

Elevated pressure within the eye and eye vessels is the biggest eye problem. Damage to the retina caused by diabetes is called diabetic retinopathy. Diabetic retinopathy can be treated by laser surgery to fix damaged blood vessels, but it’s always better to catch the disease in its early stages.

Eye screening

Screening for diabetic retinopathy is essential to maintaining eye health in diabetic patients, so be sure to receive screening for eye issues before you see any symptoms. The screening test for diabetic retinopathy is a simple dilated eye exam where the pupil of the eye is dilated, and the eye is examined for signs of multiple diseases.

The National Eye Institute recommends a yearly screening for diabetics to make sure eyes stay healthy. As mentioned, eye injury is rarely reversed so when you notice blurred vision or loss, it is usually already at an advanced stage. Be sure to screen your eyes early and keep diabetes under control.

Smoking

The habit of smoking has many associated health hazards, with eye injury being one of those hazards. Smoke-related retinopathy, cataracts, and macular degeneration are a few of the health problems caused by smoking. There are many reasons to stop smoking and eye health is a major one. Taking steps like speaking with your doctor and asking for support from family, friends, and other healthcare workers can move you forward in the steps to stop the smoking addiction and on to healthier eyes.

Macular degeneration

Another major disease that causes vision loss is macular degeneration. The middle of the retina is responsible for sharp vision because it has special concentrations of pigments to pick up the light we need to focus on a single object. This specialized middle area of the retina is called the macula, or more technically, the macula lutea; which means “spot” and “yellow” in Latin. Yellow pigment in the macula comes from the two pigments, lutein, and zeaxanthin.

Macular degeneration, or age-related macular degeneration (AMD), can cause vision loss or blurriness in the areas where we focus. Loss of visual focus can hinder reading, recognition of faces, and the ability to see well when we drive. Lifestyle diseases are strongly linked to AMD and studies have expressed that prevention and good nutrition are ways to avoid AMD.

Nutrition, as it relates to the eyes, might seem like a new topic to some but there are a few nutritional facts that can benefit us as we take better care of our eyes. A balanced intake of vitamin C and E, omega-3 fatty acids, with carotenoids including lutein and zeaxanthin in a healthy diet are recommended for maintaining healthy eyes. High-fat diets, with consumption of trans-fatty acids, can lead to unhealthy eyes. If you are at risk of diabetes or have diabetes it is also helpful to eat foods with a low glycemic index, or foods that don’t cause rapid spikes in blood sugar.

Our eyes have been the way we are able to see memories since before we can remember, so meticulous care can go a long way for the later years. Daily care through healthy lifestyle and diet now will give us the continued privilege of clear vision in the future.

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