Fitness And Health

Your heart is an amazing organ! The human heart is totally unique from all of the body`s other organs because it is dependent upon itself for its blood flow. Every second of every day, it pumps blood containing oxygen and other vital nutrients to the rest of the organs throughout the body. This process also [...]

Most people are aware that there is a connection between stress and heart disease. “Stress” refers to excessive pressures or demands that are placed upon us or that we place upon ourselves. In our fast paced, technology-driven, do-things-to-the-extreme culture, persistently increasing pressures and demands are part of everyday life. Unfortunately, our heart health has taken [...]

Treatment of High Blood Pressure in Children Generally, American children shows increase in both weight and blood pressure levels. Currently, an estimated 10 to 15 percent of school-age children have high blood pressure. The condition tends to result from a high salt intake and/or obesity (more than 20 percent over one’s ideal weight). It may [...]

How the Heart Works Effective cardiac function is a combination of electrical and mechanical events. The heart needs an electrical stimulus to initiate the mechanical events required to complete a cardiac cycle. The cardiac cycle is the movement of blood through the four chambers of the heart, the right atrium and right ventricle, and the [...]

Coronary Arteries The heart has its own circulatory needs that are met by the coronary arteries that lie on the surface of the heart. It is in these arteries that “heart attacks” happen. Coronary blood flow begins at the coronary ostia, openings in the aorta, near the aortic valve. During diastole, when the left ventricle [...]

The heart is responsible for pumping blood to all the organs of the body. Blood loaded with oxygen comes from the lungs and enters the heart. The heart needs a continuous supply of oxygen and nutrients to be able to function. Oxygen-rich blood is delivered to the heart through the coronary arteries. Inside your chest, [...]

In the United States, approximately 500,000 persons suffer a new or recurrent stroke annually. The most common cause of stroke is arteriosclerotic disease of the carotid arteries, which are the large arteries on either side of the neck. They carry the major supply of blood to the brain. Arteriosclerosis affects the carotid arteries in dangerous [...]