| The Therapeutic Value Of Meditation Unproven, Study Found
"There is an enormous amount of interest in using meditation as a form of therapy to cope with a variety of modern-day health problems, especially hypertension, stress and chronic pain, but the majority of evidence that seems to support this notion is anecdotal, or it comes from poor quality studies," say Maria Ospina and Kenneth Bond, researchers at the University of Alberta/Capital Health Evidence-based Practice Center in Edmonton, Canada.
In compiling their report, Ospina, Bond and their fellow researchers analyzed a mountain of medical and psychological literature - 813 studies in all - looking at the impact of meditation on conditions such as hypertension, cardiovascular diseases and substance abuse.
They found some evidence that certain types of meditation reduce blood pressure and stress in clinical populations.
Effect of aging on baroreflex function in humans
Arterial blood pressure (BP) is regulated via the interaction of various local, humoral, and neural factors. In humans, the major neural pathway for acute BP regulation involves the baroreflexes. In response to baroreceptor activation/deactivation, as occurs during transient changes in BP, key determinants of BP, such as cardiac period/heart rate (via the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system) and vascular resistance (via the sympathetic nervous system), are modified to maintain BP homeostasis. In this review, the effects of aging on both the parasympathetic and sympathetic arms of the baroreflex are discussed. Aging is associated with decreased cardiovagal baroreflex sensitivity (i.e., blunted reflex changes in R-R interval in response to a change in BP). Mechanisms underlying this decrease may involve factors such as increased levels of oxidative stress, vascular stiffening, and decreased cardiac cholinergic responsiveness with age.
Evil iron tablets do in pregnant women
The general practice by doctors is to prescribe multivitamins, including iron tablets, to pregnant women to ensure an optimal health. In this report by Sade Oguntola, including iron tablets in the case of some women may predispose them to having raised blood pressure. Many woman take multivitamins and iron supplements during pregnancy. Doctors usually say this is to ensure their baby develops well and that it guarantees that their blood level remains at a level that even during and after delivery they would not experience shortage of blood. Anaemia is a common condition in pregnant women, which, if left unchecked, can contribute to premature births and low birth weight babies. It is caused by insufficiency of red blood cells, and taking iron on prescription helps the body produce more.
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