Healthy Eating tip

Ok...so you're trying to eat healthier and eat foods with less fat and sodium. when in the grocery store, one easier way to do "healthier" grocery shopping is to spend more time in the outer aisles of the store where fresh foods are kept. Spend less time in the middle aisles where packaged foods, snacks, and soft drinks are stocked. when you read your labels, look at the portion size in the container. If you eat double the serving size listed, you need to double the calories, fat, sodium and nutrients. Be aware that most canned foods have more than 1 serving per can, for example......canned soup. Most people eat the entire can and 1 serving can put you over your daily sodium need. Your better off making your own soup! Watch for both natural and added sodium in foods. Ordinary table salt is sodium chloride....40 percent sodium by weight. Healthy adults should take in less than 2,300 mg of sodium per day. That's equal to about 1 tsp of salt. Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, peas and beans are good sources of dietary fiber and can help reduce the risk of heart disease. For your total carbohydrates, emphasize fruits, vegetables, whole-grain breads and cereals. Remember where there's animal protein, there's also fat and cholesterol.....Eat small portions! Keep track of your calories consumed in a day, you'd be surprised how much you are actually consuming! Watch your total fat intake. Most people need to cut back on calories and fat! Too much fat may contribute to heart disease and cancer. Watch your labels....the label gives you the number of fat grams per serving and the number of calories from fat. If you are overweight or trying to lose weight, your goal is an overall intake of no more than 25 to 35 percent of your total calories from fat, with less than 7 percent as saturated fat and less than 1 percent of trans fat. You should keep track of the amount of calories you consume and the amount of calories you burn. Watch the cholesterol. Too much in your diet may lead to too much of it in your blood. Too much cholesterol in your blood can lead to heart disease and stroke. It's best to eat less than 300 mg each day. People with heart disease should eat less than 200 mg per day. I go for much, much less that the recommended amount! Eat healthy and exercise.......choose to live!

Control your risk factors

Did you know that YOU have control over 80% of the risk factors for heart disease? Most people never even think about their heart and what they are doing to it however. You can't control your family history but you can control other things that increase your risk of developing heart disease. One of the ways is by making a healthy lifestyle YOUR lifestyle. By eating right, exercising and controlling your weight you can do a lot to reduce your risk factors and stay healthy. The best way to lose weight, however, is thru lifestlye changes not thru the use of diet supplements which are generally pretty unhealthy for your heart. Most of them contain hidden sources of high amounts of caffeine which are potentially dangerous for your heart. I'm a big advocate of staying away from that stuff because I know what it can do to your heart and it's not worth losing a few pounds if you lose your life due to a dangerous heart rhythm all because you popped a pill instead of trying to be healthy! Here's an article on the subject from the Go Red for women website.

05/01/09 — Weight-loss Supplements May Cause Life-Threatening Cardiac Complications or Death



Weight-loss Supplements May Cause Life-Threatening Cardiac Complications or Death
Study published in the HeartRhythm Journal reveals hidden heart health risks associated with ingredients found in diet pills


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Ann-Marie White
Heart Rhythm Society
(202) 464-3476
awhite@hrsonline.org


WASHINGTON, DC — A study published in the May edition of the HeartRhythm Journal, the official journal of the Heart Rhythm Society, found that many non-prescription weight-loss supplements that are accessible online may have hidden heart health risks. Eight out of 12 weight-loss supplements analyzed contained one or more ingredients associated with life-threatening cardiac complications such as ventricular arrhythmias, cardiac arrest or sudden cardiac death. Read full text of study »

Conducted by a team of researchers from the Center for Cardiac Arrhythmias and Electrophysiology Research at the Texas Heart Institute, the study reviewed the ingredients of 12 different weight-loss supplements available on the Internet. The researchers identified the sample supplements by entering the common search terms “diet pills” and “weight-loss supplements” into the Internet search engines Google, MSN and Yahoo, and selecting the top four hits returned from each search. Of the 12 weight-loss supplements purchased for evaluation, a list of ingredients was included on the label of each, but none of the supplements included warning labels on the bottles or shipping packages regarding the potential life-threatening cardiac side effects known to be associated with the ingredients.

“The growing rate of obesity in America has led to more frequent and widespread use of weight-loss supplements that are easily available without prescription,” said Alireza Nazeri, MD, lead author of the study. “We applaud the FDA for becoming more involved in identifying the risks associated with weight-loss supplements, but there is still a lot of work to be done to ensure that dangerous ingredients are regulated.”

From the ingredients listed on each label, researchers identified 11 ingredients (representing 8 substances, because more than one name was used for some ingredients) with at least two reports of life-threatening cardiac complications or death: bitter orange (also listed as Citrus aurantium and synephrine HCl); green tea (also listed as Camellia sinensis); buckwheat; guarana; Korean ginseng; licorice root; Ma Huang root; caffeine anhydrous.

“The use of multiple names for the same substance can cause a great deal of confusion, even for physicians,” said Mehdi Razavi, MD, senior author of the study. “While it is critical to improve public knowledge of weight-loss supplements and the risks associated with them by issuing complete warning label information, it is highly recommended that individuals seek a doctor’s advice before purchasing any weight-loss supplement.”

“We hope that this study will expand health care providers’ knowledge about the potentially life-threatening adverse effects of some non-prescription weight-loss supplements,” says Ali Massumi, MD, FACC, Director of the Center for Cardiac Arrhythmias and Electrophysiology at the Texas Heart Institute. “We also hope that health care institutions will become more involved in educating patients and the general population on this subject.”

For more information about this study, please visit www.heartrhythmjournal.com.

About HeartRhythm Journal
HeartRhythm, the official journal of the Heart Rhythm Society, provides rapid publication of the most important science developments in the field of arrhythmias and cardiovascular electrophysiology (EP). As the official journal of the Heart Rhythm Society, HeartRhythm publishes both basic and clinical subject matter of scientific excellence devoted to the EP of the heart and blood vessels, as well as therapy. The journal is the only EP publication serving the entire electrophysiology community from basic to clinical academic researchers, private practitioners, technicians, industry and trainees. HeartRhythm has a new impact factor of 4.203 for 2007 and ranks 10th out of 72 cardiovascular medicine journals by the Institute for Scientific Information. Additionally, the journal ranks seventh in the Immediacy Index among cardiology publications. It is also the official publication of the Cardiac Electrophysiology Society.




© Heart Rhythm Society | 1400 K St. NW, Suite 500 | Washington DC 20005 | (202) 464-3400 | Fax: (202) 4

Risk Factors for Heart Disease

You may think if you don't have high cholesterol that you are not at risk for heart disease.......that couldn't be further from the truth. In fact, just being overweight increases your risk for heart disease or heart attack even if you have no other risk factors for heart disease. Especially if you carry your weight in the belly. Being overweight also increases your risks for heart failure. I posted an article at the end of the study done for this. Higher waist sizes was associated with heart failure in women at all levels of BMI. Both waist size and BMI were heart failure predictors among men. I'm living proof you don't have to have clogged arteries to have heart disease. My arteries were the cleanest my doctor had ever seen when he did a cardiac catherization on me. Although I was not overweight and was physically active when I was diagnosed, I still had risk factors. Being physically inactive also increases your risks. So, beware......don't just think because you have no blockages, you're not at risk. We can't control family history but there are risk factors we can control and need to take them more seriously. I wanted to post them again as a reminder. Take care of your heart!






Risk Factors and Coronary Heart Disease

AHA Scientific Position
Extensive clinical and statistical studies have identified several factors that increase the risk of coronary heart disease and heart attack. Major risk factors are those that research has shown significantly increase the risk of heart and blood vessel (cardiovascular) disease. Other factors are associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease, but their significance and prevalence haven't yet been precisely determined. They're called contributing risk factors.

The American Heart Association has identified several risk factors. Some of them can be modified, treated or controlled, and some can't. The more risk factors you have, the greater your chance of developing coronary heart disease. Also, the greater the level of each risk factor, the greater the risk. For example, a person with a total cholesterol of 300 mg/dL has a greater risk than someone with a total cholesterol of 245 mg/dL, even though everyone with a total cholesterol greater than 240 is considered high-risk.

What are the major risk factors that can't be changed?

Increasing age — Over 83 percent of people who die of coronary heart disease are 65 or older. At older ages, women who have heart attacks are more likely than men are to die from them within a few weeks.




Heredity (including Race) — Children of parents with heart disease are more likely to develop it themselves. African Americans have more severe high blood pressure than Caucasians and a higher risk of heart disease. Heart disease risk is also higher among Mexican Americans, American Indians, native Hawaiians and some Asian Americans. This is partly due to higher rates of obesity and diabetes. Most people with a strong family history of heart disease have one or more other risk factors. Just as you can't control your age, sex and race, you can't control your family history. Therefore, it's even more important to treat and control any other risk factors you have.
What are the major risk factors you can modify, treat or control by changing your lifestyle or taking medicine?

Tobacco smoke — Smokers' risk of developing coronary heart disease is 2–4 times that of nonsmokers. Cigarette smoking is a powerful independent risk factor for sudden cardiac death in patients with coronary heart disease; smokers have about twice the risk of nonsmokers. Cigarette smoking also acts with other risk factors to greatly increase the risk for coronary heart disease. People who smoke cigars or pipes seem to have a higher risk of death from coronary heart disease (and possibly stroke) but their risk isn't as great as cigarette smokers'. Exposure to other people's smoke increases the risk of heart disease even for nonsmokers.


High blood cholesterol — As blood cholesterol rises, so does risk of coronary heart disease. When other risk factors (such as high blood pressure and tobacco smoke) are present, this risk increases even more. A person's cholesterol level is also affected by age, sex, heredity and diet.


High blood pressure — High blood pressure increases the heart's workload, causing the heart to thicken and become stiffer. It also increases your risk of stroke, heart attack, kidney failure and congestive heart failure. When high blood pressure exists with obesity, smoking, high blood cholesterol levels or diabetes, the risk of heart attack or stroke increases several times.


Physical inactivity — An inactive lifestyle is a risk factor for coronary heart disease. Regular, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity helps prevent heart and blood vessel disease. The more vigorous the activity, the greater your benefits. However, even moderate-intensity activities help if done regularly and long term. Physical activity can help control blood cholesterol, diabetes and obesity, as well as help lower blood pressure in some people.


Obesity and overweight — People who have excess body fat — especially if a lot of it is at the waist — are more likely to develop heart disease and stroke even if they have no other risk factors. Excess weight increases the heart's work. It also raises blood pressure and blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and lowers HDL ("good") cholesterol levels. It can also make diabetes more likely to develop. Many obese and overweight people may have difficulty losing weight. But by losing even as few as 10 pounds, you can lower your heart disease risk.


Diabetes mellitus — Diabetes seriously increases your risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Even when glucose (blood sugar) levels are under control, diabetes increases the risk of heart disease and stroke, but the risks are even greater if blood sugar is not well controlled. About three-quarters of people with diabetes die of some form of heart or blood vessel disease. If you have diabetes, it's extremely important to work with your healthcare provider to manage it and control any other risk factors you can.
What other factors contribute to heart disease risk?
Individual response to stress may be a contributing factor. Some scientists have noted a relationship between coronary heart disease risk and stress in a person's life, their health behaviors and socioeconomic status. These factors may affect established risk factors. For example, people under stress may overeat, start smoking or smoke more than they otherwise would.
Drinking too much alcohol can raise blood pressure, cause heart failure and lead to stroke. It can contribute to high triglycerides, cancer and other diseases, and produce irregular heartbeats. It contributes to obesity, alcoholism, suicide and accidents.

The risk of heart disease in people who drink moderate amounts of alcohol (an average of one drink for women or two drinks for men per day) is lower than in nondrinkers. One drink is defined as 1-1/2 fluid ounces (fl oz) of 80-proof spirits (such as bourbon, Scotch, vodka, gin, etc.), 1 fl oz of 100-proof spirits, 4 fl oz of wine or 12 fl oz of beer. It's not recommended that nondrinkers start using alcohol or that drinkers increase the amount they drink.



Information on the risks of heart failure: The study was done on Swedish men and women but holds true for all nationalities!

Abdominal obesity associated with heart failure in Swedish middle-age; older adults
Study highlights:
• Higher waist size was associated with heart failure in women at all levels of BMI.
• Both waist size and BMI were heart failure predictors among men.

DALLAS, April 7, 2009 — A higher waist size was associated with heart failure in women at all levels of body mass index (BMI), and both waist size and BMI were predictors of heart failure among men, researchers report in Circulation: Heart Failure.

Participants from two population-based studies, the Swedish Mammography Cohort and the Cohort of Swedish Men, were followed from January 1, 1998 to December 31, 2004. The 36,873 women (aged 48-83) and 43,487 men (aged 45-79) self-reported height, weight and waist circumference. During the study there were 382 first heart failure events among women (357 hospital admissions and 25 deaths) and 718 first heart failure events among men (679 hospital admissions and 39 deaths).

Researchers found:

34 percent of the women were overweight and 11 percent were obese.
46 percent of the men were overweight and 10 percent were obese.
A 10 centimeter higher waist circumference was associated with a 15 percent higher heart failure rate in women with a BMI of 25 and an 18 percent higher heart failure rate in women with a BMI of 30.
A 10 centimeter higher waist circumference was associated with a 16 percent higher heart failure rate in men with a BMI of 25 and an 18 percent higher heart failure rate in men with a BMI of 30.
In men, a 1 unit higher BMI was associated with a 4 percent higher heart failure rate at all waist sizes; BMI was only associated with heart failure rate in women with the biggest waists.
Strength of the association between BMI and heart failure events declined with age.
“In women, higher waist circumference was associated with heart failure at all levels of BMI, but BMI appeared to predict heart failure only among those with high waist circumference,” said Emily B. Levitan, Sc.D., lead author of the study and Research Fellow at the Cardiovascular Epidemiology Research Unit, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Mass. “Both BMI and waist circumference were predictors in men.”

The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Swedish Research Council/Committee for Infrastructure.

Another breakfast recipe!

Aww....pancakes. Who doesn't love them? Well, if you are on a sodium restricted diet you are painfully aware that commercial pancake mixes are very high in sodium. There is one mix out there that you might be able to find in the diabetic section of your grocery but the taste is not the same because there is no added sugar. So, here's a recipe that you will love and you will never miss the sodium. These are delicious. I mixed up some of these for myself when I attended a pancake breakfast at church because I knew I could not eat the "Bob Evans" brand pancakes due to the sodium in the mix. Thanks to Tami Lilly for making them for me! This mix made about 4 large pancakes. Enjoy!

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons sodium-free baking powder
1 egg
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

In a mixing bowl, stir together the dry ingredients. Combine the egg, milk, and oil. Add all at once to the flour mixture. Stir until blended but still slightly lumpy. Pour about 1/4 cup batter onto hot greased griddle for each pancake. Cook until browned on bottom (when bubbles form and then break). Turn and cook on other side until done.

Tip: The griddle is hot enough when a drop of water dropped onto it sizzles and breaks up immediately.

so, have these if you are on a sodium restricted diet or if you just want to eat healthier!

p.s. They've been kid tested! Max had one of mine at the pancake breakfast and he said they were yummy! Couldn't tell they were minus the sodium!

flu update

Just an update on the flu. I hope people are still taking precautions and are taking this seriously. Even though they are saying this flu is mild, it has proven deadly for people with underlying health conditions such as heart problems, copd, diabetes, etc. Please, if you are ill........STAY HOME. You never know who you are coming into contact with when you have a mild case of this. I've heard people say, well, the case is mild so they think it's ok to go out into the public, school or to work. Please, think about the people you come into contact on a daily basis. Anyone of those people could have chronic health conditions or any one of those people may have someone at home with chronic health problems. This is why it puzzles me when they say they are not telling schools in the U.S. to close when they have a case. I've come to learn that most people DON'T use common sense and go everywhere while they are sick never thinking of whom they might cause to get sick. If you have a chronic health condition, limit your large crowd exposure and carry hand sanitizer with you where ever you go and use it frequently. Do what you can to protect yourselves. We have 2254 cases now with 3 deaths. New cases are NOT on the decline like has been reported. All the deaths have been very young people with chronic health conditions that cause major complications when they got this flu. So, even though most cases have been mild, they are still deadly when you pass it on to someone with other health problems. USE COMMON SENSE!

Low sodium Buttermilk/Restaurant-style Biscuits

One thing I never thought I'd have again once I had to go on a sodium restricted diet was biscuits. Most biscuits have at least 500mg of sodium in one biscuit. With this recipe, you can have more than one! Ok...as promised, here is the recipe for low sodium buttermilk biscuits. This will yeild 6 servings at 17 mg sodium per biscuit! Much healthier for anyone! Even if your're healthy, why make your heart work harder?

First you make the buttermilk baking mix. For this you will need:

10 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sodium free baking powder (if you can't find in your grocer, www.saltwatcher.com and www.healthyheartmarket.com carry it)
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup buttermilk powder
1 1/2 teaspoons sodium free baking soda (same as above if you can't find at your grocer!)
2 cups shortening

In a large bowl, mix all ingedients with an electric mixer until particles are small and uniform in size. Store in a tightly covered container. yields 26 servings.

ok now onto the recipe for the biscuits. You will need:

2 cups of the buttermilk baking mix
2 ounces sour cream (look at the labels and get the lowest in sodium)
1/2 cup club soda, room temperature
4 tablespoons unsalted butter

Mix baking mix, sour cream and club soda. Turn out onto lightly floured surface and knead lightly. Roll or pat to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut into 6 biscuits with biscuit cutter or sharp knife. Place biscuits in a 8 x 8 baking dish sprayed with nonstick vegetable oil spray. Melt butter and pour over top. Bake at 375 until golden brown, 20 to 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

Recipe taken from the cookbook "500 Low Sodium Recipes, lose the salt not the flavor in meals the whole family will love" by Dick Logue. I highly recommend this cookbook......AWESOME YUMMY HEALTHY RECIPES!

Sausage recipe!

For those of us living with heart failure and keeping to our sodium restricted diet, I'm sure you never thought you could have sausage again. That's one thing I missed until I came across this recipe. Give it a try, I think you'll like it and it's much healthier than processed sausage you buy in your grocery store. Much better for healthy people to eat too!

1 pound pork, ground
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
3/4 teaspoon dried sage
1/4 teaspoon mace
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

Combine all ingredients, mixing well. Fry, grill, or cook on a greased baking sheet in a 325 degree oven until done. makes 8 servings with about 24 mg of sodium per sodium! Lot's lower than the processed stuff you see in the grocery!

On thing I have missed is sausage gravy and biscuits. Sausage and biscuits are loaded in sodium and having both would more than likely put you over your daily allowance of sodium in one shot! Not anymore! You can make your own and they are much lower and much healthier for you.

Sausage Gravy

follow recipe for sausage above
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 cup skim milk
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Remove sausage with slotted spoon after cooking, set aside. Remove all but 2 tablespoons of grease from the skillet. Over medium heat, stir 3 tablespoons of flour into the grease. Stir constantly until browned, about 5 minutes. Stirring constantly, pour in milk. Season with pepper. Continue cooking until the gravy is thick. Add sausage back into the gravy. Serve over split biscuits, grits, or mashed potatoes. yields 4 servings with 77 mg sodium per serving.


Ok, now for the biscuit recipe.

2 cups all purpose flour
4 teaspoons sodium-free baking powder (if you can't find in your grocer, go to www.saltwatcher.com or www.healthyheartmarket.com, they both carry)
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2/3 cup skim milk

Stir together first 4 ingredients. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add milk. Stir until just mixed. Knead gently on floured surface a few times. Press to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut out with 2 1/2 inch biscuit cutter. Transfer to ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 450 or 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. 10 servings at 13 mg sodium each! A lot different than the 500-750 mg we see in biscuits!

Tomorrow, I'll post a recipe for buttermilk biscuits

Yummy Lemon chicken recipe

Ok..here's the recipe. I loved it but it is NOT low carb! Low sodium but if you're watching your sugar and carbs you might just want to eat a half piece like I did!

4 boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 cup flour
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
6-ounce can frozen lemonade, thawed and undiluted
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/4 cup hunt's no salt added tomato sauce

I actually doubled the sauce but I don't think I needed to.

Remove all the skin and fat from the chicken. coat the chicken with flour and brown on all sides in the olive oil. Remove the chicken from the pan and stir in the lemonade concentrate, brown sugar, vinegar and tomato sauce and mix well. Transfer the chicken back into saute pan or you could also do this in crock pot. (I did stove top in a saute pan). For stovetop preparation, cook over low heat for 1 hour. If using a crock pot, cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or on low for 6 to 8 hours. I'd use a crock pot liner if you do in the crock pot because the sauce does get sticky. That way your clean up is easier. I hope you enjoy. I loved it!

Recipe from the No-Salt, Lowest Sodium Cookbook by Donald Gazzaniga.

The Flu

Since we are hearing so much about the flu right now, I thought it would be nice to post some facts about how the flu can affect anyone with a chronic medical condition, the elderly and the very young. I do NOT believe people take the flu seriously enough. It's not just any old virus......it's not just the common cold. It has proven itself to be deadly and we need to take it serious. If you have it.....STAY HOME. You never know who you are infecting when you go out in public. If you can get the vaccine, get it. Here are some important facts for those with chronic health problems and for those that are healthy so they realize how important it is not to go out and infect others! The flu is very serious for anyone with a chronic health problem and there are millions of us out there folks!

If you have a chronic medical condition such as heart disease, asthma, or diabetes, it's important to call your doctor when the first flu symptoms occur.

Each year in the United States, about 36,000 people die from influenza (flu) and over 200,000 are hospitalized due to complications from flu. These complications can include bacterial pneumonia, dehydration, and worsening of chronic medical conditions such as congestive heart failure, asthma, or diabetes. When kids with asthma or allergies get flu, they often get complications such as sinus problems and ear infections.

Who's at risk for problems associated with flu?
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), individuals who are at high risk for problems associated with flu include:

adults over age 50
people who live in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities that house people with long-term illnesses
adults and children 6 months and older with chronic heart or lung conditions, including asthma
adults and children 6 months and older who needed regular medical care or were in a hospital during the prior year because of a metabolic disease (such as diabetes), have chronic kidney disease, or have a weakened immune system -- including immune system problems caused by medicines or by infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV/AIDS)
children 6 months to 18 years old who are on long-term aspirin therapy (Children given aspirin while they have influenza are at risk of Reye's syndrome.)
women who will be pregnant during the influenza season
all children 6 months to 59 months of age
What chronic medical conditions might increase problems associated with flu?
Some common medical conditions that may increase the risk of problems with the flu include:

asthma
diabetes
emphysema
heart disease
HIV/AIDS

Why is flu more serious to those with asthma?
Asthma is a chronic lung disease. It affects more than 22 million Americans. Flu can make asthma symptoms much worse.

According to the American Lung Association, only 40% of adults with asthma and 10% of children with asthma actually get the flu shot, despite longstanding recommendations that they do so. A study by the American Lung Association estimates that if every child with asthma got the flu shot, it would prevent approximately 100,000 hospitalizations each year.

For in-depth information, see WebMD's Asthma and Flu.

What about diabetes and flu?
While getting the flu is dangerous for anyone, it's extra risky for those with diabetes. People with diabetes are three times more likely to die with flu and/or pneumonia. Still, more than 50 percent of those with diabetes do not get an annual flu shot, according to the CDC.

For in-depth information, see WebMD's Diabetes and Flu.

How is COPD -- emphysema and chronic bronchitis -- worsened by flu?
Emphysema and chronic bronchitis, known together as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), affect 10.7 million adults. Both conditions are marked by obstruction to airflow that interferes with breathing. Like asthma or any lung disease, COPD is worsened by the flu. if you have COPD, it's important to learn what you can do to avoid respiratory problems.

For in-depth information, see WebMD's Emphysema and Chronic Bronchitis (COPD) and Flu.

Why is flu a danger to those with heart disease?
Flu and lung infections pose greater dangers for people with heart disease. Lung infections prevent people from taking in oxygen as efficiently as they should. This makes the heart work harder to pump oxygen-rich blood through the body. This extra work can be dangerous for people with heart disease.

For in-depth information, see WebMD's Heart Disease and Flu.

What about HIV/AIDS and flu?
The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) kills or damages cells in the body's immune system. It gradually destroys the body's ability to fight infections like the flu and the common cold. About 850,000 to 950,000 people are infected with HIV in the U.S., according to the CDC. People with HIV are more likely to get complications from the flu, such as pneumonia. They are also at higher risk of dying from the flu.

For in-depth information, see WebMD's HIV/AIDS and Flu.

Are elderly adults at higher risk for flu complications?
More than 90% of flu-related deaths occur among the elderly (adults more than 60 years of age) In addition, many older adults suffer with illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease, and COPD, which also increase the chances of flu complications.

For in-depth information, see WebMD's Flu in Older Adults.

What about pregnant women and flu complications?
Pregnancy can increase the risk of flu complications. That's why it's important to understand flu symptoms and contact your physician immediately to avoid potentially serious flu complications. In addition, women who intend on becoming pregnant during flu season are urged to get a flu shot.

For in-depth information, see WebMD's Pregnancy and Flu.

How can you prevent the flu when you have a chronic medical condition?
Getting a flu shot is the best way to prevent the flu. The flu vaccine is highly recommended for healthy individuals who want to avoid flu and for those people who are in high risk groups. Only infants younger than 6 months should not get a flu shot.

For in-depth information, see WebMD's Flu Shot: Influenza Vaccine and Side Effects.

If you have a chronic medical condition, how do you treat the flu?
Antiviral drugs are available by prescription to treat the flu. In some cases, antiviral drugs can be used to prevent infection with flu. These drugs work by blocking the replication of the flu virus, preventing its spread. Recommended antiviral drugs include:

Relenza (zanamivir)
Tamiflu (oseltamivir)
People who are at high risk of serious complications from the flu may benefit most from antiviral medications. This includes people with chronic medical conditions. Check with your doctor before taking an antiviral drug because some people may experience side effects.

You may also take some over-the-counter cold and flu medicines, but always check with your doctor or pharmacist first. You should make sure the medicine won't interfere with other medications prescribed for your condition. For example, if you have heart disease, you need to avoid decongestants. If you have COPD, you should avoid aspirin, antihistamines, and decongestants.

When do I call the doctor for flu with a chronic medical condition?
Some doctors recommend that people with chronic disease always go to the doctor when they get the flu or a cold. Others think you can safely wait out these viruses with bed rest and fluids. But if you experience any of the following symptoms, you need to call your doctor:

You have trouble breathing.
Your symptoms don't improve or they get worse after three to four days.
After feeling a little better, you develop signs of a more serious problem. Some of these signs are a sick-to-your-stomach feeling, vomiting, high fever, shaking chills, chest pain, or coughing with thick, yellow-green mucus.
For in-depth information, see WebMD's When to Call the Doctor About Flu.

When does flu season begin?
Flu season can begin as early as October and last as late as May.

October or November is the best time to get the flu vaccine, but you can still get vaccinated in January or later.

The flu shot becomes effective about two weeks after your vaccination.

Where can I get a flu shot?
The American Lung Association offers an online flu vaccine clinic locator. Visit www.flucliniclocator.org, enter a zip code and a date (or dates), and receive information about clinics scheduled in your area.

A nasal flu vaccine also exists. It is called FluMist and contains weakened live viruses. People with HIV/AIDS and other chronic medical conditions should not receive FluMist. It is approved for use only among healthy persons between the ages of 5 and 49 years.