THE STAR NEWSPAPER - Monday October 26, 2009
HIGHLIGHTS:
Malaysians are suffering from heart attacks about 10 years earlier than their counterparts in developed countries, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai.
He said this meant that for a population of 27 million, the ministry expected about 38,000 new cases every year. “It is a heavy burden on our healthcare delivery system,” he said
Heart diseases and diseases of the pulmonary circulation were the top killers in government hospitals last year and accounted for up to 16.54% of the 45,936 deaths.
In a bid to improve treatment for heart diseases, Liow said the ministry would extend cardiac healthcare services to Kuantan and Kota Kinabalu under the 10th Malaysia Plan if the financial situation permitted.
FULL REPORT: [click here]
ATTENTION POINTERS:
Based on the report, we are told that heart attack is a time bomb waiting to EXPLODE in many productive people’s lives, which may exert devastating effects on their lives, as well as on their loved ones’ should a heart attack take place.
Heart attacks will be amongst the top killers in the years to come. And we have to be subjected to this condition.
The government will try to provide cardiac healthcare services only IF financial situation permitted. (what if there’s not enough money to go round?)
MY QUESTION IS : DO YOU HAVE TO BOW AND SUBMIT TO ALL THIS SELF FULFILLING PROPHECY BY THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH?
IS THERE ANOTHER WAY OR, A BETTER WAY TO HANDLE THIS SITUATION?
THE ANSWER IS A RESOUNDING YES, YES, YES.
“THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX”
In business and marketing, we are thought to think outside the box. But regretfully, in the premise of health and wellness, we are conditioned (and willingly so) taught to think inside the box. Isn’t that strange?? Very strange indeed. Perhaps a conspiracy is going on?
First of all, understand that conventional medicine is propagating a DISEASE MANAGEMENT Model, as opposed to a HEALTH MANAGEMENT Model.
The difference is, the former will tell you that you will get sick and impaired and they will get you repaired. Hence, a heart attack “repair” cost may cost you RM50k to perhaps over RM100k, initially.
By contrast, The HEALTH MANAGEMENT model will teach you how not to get sick and impaired in the first place, because the price to pay when you fall sick may go beyond financial costs. It may cost you great emotional traumas and your life ! Think of your loved ones, too.
By the way, the US spent about USD2.2 trillion on healthcare costs in the year 2004, which amounted to more that 20 percent of their GDP. Do you think that they can sustain that in the long run? How then can a “poor” country like Malaysia follow suit by adopting a similar health care system, or rather a DISEASE MANAGEMENT system?
It’s high time to THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX. And I know, we Malaysians, BOLEH !
UNDERSTAND THE UNDERLYING CAUSES OF HEART DISEASE
Chronic inflammation always precedes heart disease. It results in free radical or "oxidative" stress in the body. Free radicals damage blood vessels, joints, cell membranes, nerves and just about any other part of the body. Nonetheless, normal inflammation is good to enable the body to fend off foreign invaders and to repair itself.
Bio-markers for checking chronic inflammation which causes diseases, include C-reactive protein and homocysteine.
Here are the main causes of Heart Disease and Stroke:
#1 STRESS – long hours of work with little or insufficient rest (and recreation), will land the body in a state of toxic chemical saturation and accumulation. These bio-chemicals include cortisol, adrenalin, insulin and other stress hormones which are very necessary to keep you alive in a “fight or flee” situation. However, a prolonged and sustained production of these “survival” chemicals can depress the immune system, impair cognitive performances, decrease bone density and cause muscle wasting. Hence, chronic inflammation begins.
#2 EMO-STRESS – being continually stressed up with people, change of circumstances, and personal expectations, is equally toxic and dangerous. Negative emotions include anger, rage, unforgiveness, must-win-always attitude, resentment, suspicion, unable to let go, being hyper-competitive, and so on. Your body reacts in quite the same way as aforementioned in item #1. “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”
#3 FOOD CHOICES – wrong choices of food offers you a concoction of chemicals, sugar, dangerous fats (such as trans fats and hydrogenated fats), fiberless carbo, excess calories, that will throw your body out of balance and result in chronic inflammation, setting the stage for diseases and infection to set in. The end result is obesity, moodiness, fatigue, diabetes, lipid disorder, blood pressure, arthritis, gastritis, just to name a few. Emphasize veggies, local fruits, whole grains, seeds, nuts, fermented foods, and purified water, for your daily meals.
#4 EXPOSURE TO TOXIC ELEMENTS – they include aluminum, plasticizers, mercury, lead, arsenic and even calcium that clogs up your artery. Get yourself tested for all of these which you might have acquired via inhalation, ingestion or contact, or even due to occupational hazards. Perhaps the biggest source of mercury poisoning is from your dental fillings. Heavy metals can wreck your brain and nervous system, while toxic chemicals can result in tremendous oxidative stress and hormonal system disruption.
#5 SEDENTARY LIFESTYLE – Exercise and play your favorite game on a regular basis without overdoing it. Manage your waistline: men at 88cm and women at 80cm or below. Manage your weight: for men, first 5 feet = 105 lbs; and for every additional inch, add 5 lbs. For example 5’ 2” = 115 lbs. As for women, first 5 feet = 100 lbs; for every additional inch, add 5 lbs. Remember, waistline obesity (abdominal pear shape) increases heart risks tremendously, not to mention a predisposition to diabetes, lipid disorder and high blood pressure. Regular exercising ensures proper oxygenation, circulation, muscle firming and bone strengthening, detox via sweating, and production of “good feeling” hormones such as endorphin, brain alertness, and the benefit list goes on.
“KEEP YOUR HEART WITH ALL DILIGENCE”
Finally, turn to your creator God and be grateful to Him, who has given you a heart of flesh that beats about 70 times per minute, 365 days a year, delivering nutrients to your organs and glands via 100,000 km of blood vessels. And yet maintaining 98.4 degree F. An engineering marvel, isn’t it?
Your heart will never complain amidst the abuse you might be hurling at it. Your heart is very longsuffering. Blood vessels that wrap round your heart can get clogged up to more than 50 percent without you feeling anything at all.
Then suddenly that tragic moment strikes! The heart is exhausted and jammed. You have a cardio-vascular incident – a heart attack or a stroke. Your hard earned freedom, productivity and happiness may be severely compromised just overnight. Your medical card, life insurance, and EPF can’t get you back to your original self. Don’t let this happen to you.
“.THE HEALTHY HAS MANY WISHES, BUT THE SICK HAS ONLY ONE WISH.”