www.twinpossible.com Here I discuss Gestational Diabetes, the fears, the facts, and how to deal with controling your blood sugars, and having a safe, happy, and healthy pregnancy, even when batteling, that pesky GD!

3Four50 News from www.3four50.com The ‘Great American Smokeout’ and news of Lidl withdrawing cigarettes from it’s Scottish shops are two of the stories this week, followed by news of World Diabetes Day being celebrated as a United Nations international observance day for the first time.

3Four50 News from www.3four50.com Two new initiatives which aim to tackle childhood obesity through changes in schools are looked at this week; compulsory cooking lessons in the UK and a ban on soft drinks in the South Korean capital, Seoul.

OK, so you have high blood pressure (HBP) or hypertension (HPT). What\’s the big deal? Well, both HBP and HPT basically cause damage to your blood to your blood vessels. This in time can lead to an increased risk for stroke, kidney failure, heart attacks and heart disease. These can all lead to death, that\’s the big deal. If you want to be around to raise your family and even spoil your grandkids, then you have to do something to get your HBP under control. But what can you do about it? There are basically two avenues available to treat HBP; medication and lifestyle changes.

A lot of people choose the medication approach which, at first, may seem to be the easier route. The problem is, as is the case with most medications there are some serious side effects that need to be considered. There are a good number of different medicines for the treatment of HBP so the side effects may vary. Some of the most common side effects include nausea, dizziness, headaches, extreme tiredness and chest pain. This is only a partial list, but there is one more common, fairly serious problem that you (especially men) should be aware of, Impotence. A lot of men consider this to be so important that they to go off their HBP medicine and often end up in the hospital or worse. Further, due to prior heart and other health conditions, a lot of men are just not candidates for drugs like Viagra.

So, if all these side effects don\’t really interest you, then you may want to look more closely at lifestyle alterations. There are several factors that you will need to explore in regards to your present lifestyle: (All may not apply to everyone)

Stop using tobacco

Limit sodium, alcohol and caffeine

Utilize relaxation techniques

Lose weight with a healthy diet

Exercise regularly

These should be pretty much common sense and fairly self explanatory, but working out and diet probably need to be discussed a bit further. Rule number one, as always, talk with your physician before beginning any new weight loss or workout program. In addition, it should be noted that sedentary lifestyles and unhealthy diets are two of the main reasons people have HBP. These two pints are probably the most critical to get under control.

The diet part is actually pretty simple, and is exactly what we all have been told before. But I will point it out one more time. Like was said out above, reduce sodium, caffeine and alcohol intake. Further than that, you need a nutrition plan high in fruits, vegetables and nuts. For all those southerners out there (me included), frying vegetables such as okra and pickles is not healthy. Choose whole grain breads and pastas instead of the overly processed white breads. You should get your protein from lean meats, chicken, turkey and fish. You just need to limit the fat in your meat but you can still eat like you are human. It may cost a bit more but ground sirloin or 93% lean ground beef makes wonderful hamburgers. Basically you want food that is high in potassium, magnesium and fiber, and low fat.

Now, let\’s talk exercise. The single most important thing is to get up and get active. You don\’t need to go out day one and try to run a marathon or lift the world. Just start out at your own pace, get used to being active and then build your fitness level to where you want it to be. You main focus should be on aerobic and cardiovascular activities. These include vigorous walking, jogging, swimming, hiking or yard work. You can do pretty much any activity that makes you to breathe hard and sweat. Just push to your personally limit, and then try to go a little harder every day. You need to try to get to where you can go hard for about half an hour a day, 3 to 4 days a week. Stretching before and after is critical to avoid muscle injury and soreness. Rest days are also important to allow muscles to grow and heal. Don\’t forget, your heart is a muscle too.

You can control and reduce your high blood pressure naturally with out adding all sorts of chemicals to your body. It takes a little effort, but is well worth it. You can achieve a healthier, more productive, much more rewarding life with minimal work.

Looking to find the best deal on Turbo Fire, then visit www.4realfitnessonline.com to find the best advice on at home workouts for you.

Dr. Steven Knope, author of the new book Concierge Medicine, discusses Type 2 Diabete and how it can be cured through exercise and nutrition.

3Four50 News from www.3four50.com An initiative in Australia to screen workers for preventable diseases is amongst the stories this week, as well as the effects of tobacco control policies in Thailand and a global competition aiming to get kids moving in the USA.

Life expectancy is rising in much of the world. But doctors are seeing another trend that is disturbing. Some people are choosing lifestyles that contribute to early death. A new US study looks at four lifestyle choices that prevent people from staying healthy and living longer. VOA’s Carol Pearson has more.

A lifestyle approach to preventing type 2 diabetes and managing complications in all types of diabetes, using Mind-Body-Spirit

Visit www.dinaknight.com or http or www.greenivore.com Join in an upcoming class taught by Gourmet Raw Vegan Chef Dina Knight either in person or online. This video was made to tell a little bit about how Chef Dina Knight got started on a path to health and wellness, what her initial inspirati…

The 3Four50 News this week takes a look at a San Francisco office tower designed with healthy living in mind, a recent survey which takes a look at smoking advice given by physicians, and a potential diabetes crisis looming in Kenya due to an increasingly affluent middle-class population.