St. Vincent Heartbeat: Study Shows Vegetarians Live Longer
By: Jancey Sheats, KARK 4 News
Updated: February 13, 2013
A new study from the University of Oxford finds vegetarians live longer than people who eat meat or fish.
Researchers followed 45,000 adults for nearly 20 years, and found that vegetarians had a 30 percent lower risk for heart disease.
They say vegetarians had lower blood pressure and cholesterol than those who ate meat, which could be contributing to their reduced risk for heart problems.
Doctors say cutting the amount of salt in the American diet could save hundreds of millions of lives.
Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco project that gradually reducing sodium intake by 40 percent, could save up to a half million lives over a 10-year period.
That would be 2,200 milligrams a day.
Even after the 40 percent reduction, that's still more salt than the daily limit suggested by the American Heart Association, which is 1,500 milligrams.
The majority of dietary sodium comes from restaurants and processed food, but some major food manufacturers have started the process of cutting salt in conjunction with a national sodium reduction effort, headed by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
"Kraft reduced the amount of sodium in American Singles by 18 percent, Subway reduced sodium in two of its most popular sandwiches: the Subway Club and the Italian BMT."
And yoga is not only good for the mind, but may also be great for the heart.
A small study finds yoga could benefit patients with atrial fibrillation (AF).
Researchers evaluated over 50 patients with AF, a common disorder that causes an irregular, fast heart rhythm.
After three months of recording their AF episodes, they underwent three months of yoga training.
At the end of the yoga period, there was a significant reduction in AF episodes, and patients reported having better overall physical and mental health.
Researchers followed 45,000 adults for nearly 20 years, and found that vegetarians had a 30 percent lower risk for heart disease.
They say vegetarians had lower blood pressure and cholesterol than those who ate meat, which could be contributing to their reduced risk for heart problems.
Doctors say cutting the amount of salt in the American diet could save hundreds of millions of lives.
Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco project that gradually reducing sodium intake by 40 percent, could save up to a half million lives over a 10-year period.
That would be 2,200 milligrams a day.
Even after the 40 percent reduction, that's still more salt than the daily limit suggested by the American Heart Association, which is 1,500 milligrams.
The majority of dietary sodium comes from restaurants and processed food, but some major food manufacturers have started the process of cutting salt in conjunction with a national sodium reduction effort, headed by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
"Kraft reduced the amount of sodium in American Singles by 18 percent, Subway reduced sodium in two of its most popular sandwiches: the Subway Club and the Italian BMT."
And yoga is not only good for the mind, but may also be great for the heart.
A small study finds yoga could benefit patients with atrial fibrillation (AF).
Researchers evaluated over 50 patients with AF, a common disorder that causes an irregular, fast heart rhythm.
After three months of recording their AF episodes, they underwent three months of yoga training.
At the end of the yoga period, there was a significant reduction in AF episodes, and patients reported having better overall physical and mental health.
