More thoughts on Blood Pressure

Hello, everyone! We're looking forward to another delicious edition of Pathfinder Produce this Thursday, February 1, at the Village Commons.  Come on down between 1 and 5 p.m. and check out all the great deals and wonderfully fresh fruits and veggies!

February is American Heart Month.  I would like to give a BIGGG shout out to the Otsego Academy students – Dr. John, Peter and Laura – who will be taking part in the second annual Indoor Heart Walk on Saturday, February 10, at the FoxCare Center in Oneonta, in partnership with Bassett Healthcare Network and the Greater Utica American Heart Association.  This is a great opportunity to help support the activities of the AHA, which has provided grants in support our Hoop House growing programs.  If you'd like to sponsor the team, please go to their team page at this link.

The February 10 FoxCare walk features a three mile walk, plus ZUMBA and yoga classes, exotic animals from the Utica Zoo, hands-only CPR training, free healthy heart checks, and lots more.  To sign up to attend, visit https://www.bassett.org/ heartwalk.  Children 16 and under are free, and onsite registration starts at 9 a.m.

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Recently, a family member had to have a not-too-serious health procedure. He’s not one to go to the doctor often, but he became concerned when his blood pressure would go up as he went to his appointments.  I don't think this is uncommon, but it is important for people to track their numbers (see my past blog post on blood pressure).

As a result, our family has been doing some research on how to manage our blood pressures better: We bought an inexpensive BP cuff so we can see what our readings are. I've found that if I spend some time getting a neck massage with the Shiatsu gizmo I got for Christmas, I can lower my readings. (Ocean visualization and foot massages are other lowering techniques!)

So, just what are blood pressure readings telling us? According to Wikipedia, blood pressure “is the pressure of circulating blood on the walls of large arteries….”  It is expressed in terms of the systolic pressure, the maximum pressure during one heartbeat, over diastolic pressure, the minimum pressure between two heartbeats.  Healthy BP measurements range between 90-119 systolic over 60-79 diastolic, based on the recently updated chart from AHA.

If your BP is typically elevated, medical professionals will prescribe pharmaceuticals to help. But there are steps we can all take to keep our numbers lower. First, cut back on your stress!  Don’t watch the news or take part in activities that make you feel anxious.  Try to work off stress by going out for a walk, bike ride or other sustained exercise.  Also, focus on eating a diet that emphasizes lots of healthy fruits and veggies.

Next, lots of salt and sodium is a big no-no!  When there’s extra sodium in your bloodstream, it pulls water into your blood vessels, increasing the total volume of blood inside your arteries and veins. With more blood flowing, your blood pressure increases.  Eventually, high blood pressure can stretch out or weaken blood vessel walls and can contribute to harmful plaque accumulations. The added pressure also makes hearts work harder to pump blood through the body.  However, with that said, it's important to stay fully hydrated: Water helps your blood remain at the proper viscosity and prevents your heart from pumping harder than it should. 

In our research, we also found some alternative practices that may help. Before starting any of these, you should talk to your doctor to determine if these are sound ideas given your overall health and current prescriptions:

·       Ginger Root, Tumeric and Black Pepper Tea: A good friend of ours suggested this – he drinks a strong tea made with fresh gratings of ginger and tumeric roots each day. Ginger is an anti-inflammatory and natural blood thinner; tumeric is another anti-inflammatory that offers anti-clotting properties. The black pepper helps with absorption of the tumeric. Apparently, these ingredients help by dilating blood vessels, making blood flow easier, and fighting bad cholesterol.

·       Magnesium supplements: If you are magnesium deficient, your BP can be elevated, and you may display other symptoms: difficulty sleeping, muscle cramps, anxiety issues, headaches, etc.  According to an article on the Naturalife website, if you tend to crave chocolate (go with the dark if you must succumb), that can be a sign of a magnesium deficiency.  You can get more magnesium either through a multivitamin, or by eating spinach, Swiss chard or other fresh foods.

According to a 2003 Journal of Nutrition study, magnesium is an essential element that is crucial to hundreds of physiologic processes; about half of adults are deficient (National Center for Biotechnology Information, US Government, 2012). Deficiencies may be linked to cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes, and headaches.

So, as we enter February, American Heart Month, think about things you can do to improve your own health, and think about ways you can make others aware of how important healthy hearts are! 

Until next time, eat and be well!

Lori

Those Pesky New Year’s Resolutions!

Well, here we are … January is certainly flying by way too fast.  School and work schedules are very busy, even during the winter months, and sometimes it’s tough to stock up on fresh fruits and veggies.  Isn’t it good to know that Pathfinder Produce is here to help you serve up tasty, healthy foods to your loved ones?

Come visit us this Thursday, January 25 at the Pathfinder Village Commons, from
1 to 5 p.m. for the freshest tastes and friendliest staff around!

Below, my colleague Sally Trosset shares some encouraging words to all of us who may be feeling a little overwhelmed by our New Year’s resolutions.

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It’s January 23^rd -- do you know where your New Year’s resolutions are? 

We always start the New Year with good intentions, but it is easy to quickly fall off the wagon.  Life gets in the way or we lose that early rush of motivation, and slowly but surely we land back at square one.  According to one 2012 article from Forbes.com, 1 in 3 people abandon their resolutions by the end of January.  Whether you are resolving to get more done each day, exercise regularly, or shed a few pounds there is still time to get back on track.  (There’s less than one week to prove Forbes wrong!)

Another more recent Forbes article points out that it’s not necessarily about the goal; it’s about the approach and your plan to accomplish it.  I found these tips from author Frances Bridges to be helpful, easy to follow, and it’s only five steps! 

If you are serious about sticking to your resolutions, these are some solid methods that may increase your chances for success.  One webpage from SparkPeople has an entire rewards chart and offers 50 non-food rewards for hitting your goals.  Change is never easy -- it requires soul-searching and resolve -- but the results of working toward positive transformation can offer you renewed confidence and a more purposeful outlook for the future.

And finally, as the Bridges’ article states, celebrate your success!  You passed on the burger and ordered a salad.  You didn’t buy the coat because you realized you didn’t need it.  Those are achievements and you should be proud of yourself! 

Until next time, eat well and be well!

Sally (and Lori)

Go for Garlic!

Hello everyone!  We hope you’ll join us at another yummy Pathfinder Produce fresh fruits and veggie market at the Village Commons this Thursday, from 1 to 5 p.m.  We have a great selection of fresh and bulk items to share with you and your family.  Fresh never tasted soooo good!

One item of interest, our Otsego Academy students and staff will be taking part in a local American Heart Association walk in Oneonta on Saturday, Feb. 10.  Coordinated by the Greater Utica Area Chapter of AHA, this indoor walk will be held at the FoxCare Center, and should be a great deal of heart healthy fun.  If you would like to sponsor our OA-PV participants, go to the AHA link here (this event is considered to be part of the Greater Utica event, which is set for March 3!). 

Below, our Senior Director of Education Maura Iorio offers some thoughts on that powerful little bulb, garlic! 

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At Pathfinder School, we walk by the Pathfinder Hoop Houses each day, which are now closed for the winter.  They certainly were bustling places over the summer months … members of our Adult Day Services program were busy planting and tending an impressive array of fruits and veggies.  These were then featured at our weekly market.

While most of our PV-grown produce is now a pleasant memory, one crop – garlic, continues to be featured at the market.  Garlic is a favorite flavoring for many; although this flavor-packed vegetable sometimes has a bad reputation for leaving behind bad breath, its health benefits more than make up for it.

Garlic has been found to boost your immune system, reduce your blood pressure, lower cholesterol, strengthen bones, and even enhance your athletic performance. It’s easy to incorporate garlic into your diet, as it is hardly ever eaten alone but rather mixed into recipes for flavor.

Want to get a jump start on adding more garlic? Try this roasted garlic recipe—who knew that when prepared properly garlic can actually be used as a spreadable condiment? Swap out butter in favor of roasted garlic for even more heart healthy benefits!

Until next time, eat and be well!

Maura (and Lori)

Home Remedies

Hello everyone!  We invite everyone to come to our next delicious Pathfinder Produce market, which is open at the Village Commons this Thursday, January 11, from 1 to 5 p.m.  We’ve got a great selection of fresh fruits and vegetables, all at a very competitive price, all to help you eat well and stay healthy.  Check it out!

In this week’s blog, my colleague Martha Spiegel considers home remedies, now that the cold and flu season is with us.

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Home remedies

I have had an annoying cough for a few days, and have gotten some advice from friends and family about some home remedies that might help. That got me thinking about home remedies in general, and how many are factual and how many have more of a  placebo effect.    So I conducted a very informal survey and then did some research. Here are some of the suggestions, and what I found out.

Vicks® VapoRub™ on the forehead for headaches, or on the feet for a cough: I have heard many, many uses for Vicks, and confirming or debunking all of them would be quite a project. Vicks is advertised as a cough suppressant and an analgesic for muscle aches. The vapors from the camphor, menthol and eucalyptus oil will clear a stuffy nose very quickly, thus relieving headaches resulting from congestion. The company advises rubbing it on the chest and throat for a cough so that the vapors can be inhaled; I suspect rubbing in on your forehead would have the same effect, although it can cause your eyes to burn. Rubbing it on your feet, then would be counterintuitive (unless perhaps with small children who’s feet aren’t that far from their noses!). 

Warm milk for insomnia: This falls under the “maybe” category. It has never been scientifically proven or disproven. Some sleep experts were interviewed and the consensus was that it works for some people, perhaps for various reasons—comfort in the warm milk, being part of a bedtime ritual, etc.

Plain white rice for diarrhea: This is medically proven, and part of what is known as the BRAT diet—Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast. They are all bland, low in fiber, and easily tolerated by most people; thus this remedy is commonly recommended by doctors. I also found that cooked white rice is also effective for the same condition in dogs.

Honey and lemon for cough, sore throat:   According to mayoclinic.org, honey appears to be as effective as cough medicine on children over age 2. It is also soothing to the throat. Adding lemon can help cut the mucus. If the honey and lemon are added to hot tea, there is also steam for the sinuses.

Neti pot to clear sinuses: My sister swears by her neti pot. I’m pretty sure if I used one I’d pour it down my shirt instead, so I have not tried it. Used properly, however, it can be very effective in clearing the sinuses using only a saline solution.

Chicken soup for a cold: One of my favorite things to eat when I have a cold is matzoh ball soup, which has a chicken base. Being unable to find it in any diner nearby, my husband learned to make it (for which I am very grateful!). Chicken soup is warm, so it’s comforting. The steam from a hot bowl of soup is good for the sinuses. The salt is soothing to the throat, and tastes much better than a salt water gargle. There are also healthy nutrients, which vary with the ingredients used.   This article does a nice job of summing up why, even though the soup is not curative, it does make someone feel better. And like my parents say, “It couldn’t hurt!”

In the end, I found that many home remedies can be effective, and many just have comforting effects which can also be helpful. It is advisable to do your own research before trying any home remedy to make sure it won’t cause harm, and always call your medical provider if you have any doubts or if your symptoms persist or worsen.

Until next time, take care and be well!

Martha (and Lori)

STAY WARM!

Good morning!  We invite everyone to come to our produce market tomorrow, here at the Village Commons, for the very freshest tastes around!  Pathfinder Produce offers some great deals, a great variety of fruits and veggies, and we’re convenient … we’re open from 1 to 5 p.m. each Thursday. 

In 2018, I want to adopt a “gratitude attitude” and thank those who make our community a better place to live and work.  A hearty round of thanks goes out to all our loyal patrons who stop by the market each week.  We are so grateful for those who support our “little market that could.” 

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Last night as I was perusing online, I learned that this week the East Coast will be hit with a nor’easter … there may even be snow in northern Florida!  Maine is to get about a foot of snow, experience strong winds, and the temperature is supposed to plummet.  Locally, we’ll have some gusts and maybe a few inches of snow, but it shouldn’t be all that challenging here – thank goodness!

Of course, many of us don’t like the current cold snap we’re having: I tend to hang out near our faithful woodstove at home, and our aging dog, Della, is not eager to go outside too often (she’s content, snoring by the stove).  Our pond, which is very muddy and silting in, is frozen solid … something that doesn’t occur unless it is very cold for an extended period. 

So, during cold weather, it is very important to plan for the frigid temperatures (and possible power outages), dress appropriately, and know how to deal with medical emergencies that can happen with the cold.  It doesn’t take long for either frostbite or hypothermia to set in.  Dress warmly and in layers, and if you have health issues, don’t push yourself shoveling out.  PAY ATTENTION if you start feeling numb or tingly in your fingers, face, or toes if you’ve been out a while.

Even though it’s great to have kids play outside, make sure you monitor the wind chill, and track how long they’ve been playing.  This article indicates that for wind chills above 32-F, it’s safe for playing for extended periods; between 13- and 31-F you should limit time outdoors to no more than 20 minutes (have them come in for a warm-up break).  Below 13-F, keep the kids indoors.  Also, make sure the little ones don’t lose their mittens and hats, and check their cheeks and ear lobes  –  any skin that is really red or whitish in color, or hard or waxy-looking, means frostbite maybe setting in.

I found this CNN article recently, which includes lots of cold weather health maintenance advice.  It talks about why we are at risk for hazards during cold weather, and focuses on lung and heart issues, circulation, and other factors.  If you care for older people, children, teens (“I don’t need a hat, Mom”), or people who live with disabilities, make sure they are aware of the dangers of the cold, and help them stay healthy.

Until next time, stay warm!

Lori