chatwithketch

Your shoes fit in the morning.

By evening, your ankles look swollen and the straps are leaving marks.

Standing or sitting for many hours can cause mild swelling in both ankles. It often improves after rest or overnight. But recurring swelling should not automatically be blamed on a long day.

Notice the pattern.

If one leg suddenly becomes swollen, painful, warm or darker than usual, seek urgent medical help. This can happen with a blood clot or infection.

Swelling in both legs accompanied by breathlessness, difficulty lying flat or rapid weight gain may mean that fluid is building up because the heart is not pumping effectively. Kidney or liver disease can also cause swelling.

Call for emergency help if swollen feet occur with chest pain, sudden breathlessness, fainting or coughing up blood.

Record when the swelling appears and whether it affects one leg or both. Elevate your legs while resting and take walking breaks if you sit for long periods.

Do not start taking “water tablets” on your own. Treatment depends on why the fluid is collecting.

Swollen ankles are a symptom, not a diagnosis.

#HeartAndStrokeMonth

#SwollenAnkles

#HealthyLivingWithDrKetch

You feel burning in your chest after dinner and assume it is your usual heartburn.

This time it feels different, but you go to bed anyway.

Heartburn often causes burning behind the breastbone, a sour taste in the mouth and symptoms that worsen after eating or lying down.

The problem is that a heart attack can also feel like burning or indigestion. Even experienced clinicians may need an ECG and other tests to tell the difference.

Call for emergency help if the discomfort is new or unexplained and lasts more than a few minutes. Treat it as urgent if it keeps returning, spreads to your arm, jaw, neck or back, or comes with sweating, breathlessness, nausea or severe dizziness.

Do not drive yourself to the hospital.

Feeling better after an antacid does not safely prove that your heart is fine. Both reflux and heart-related pain can settle temporarily.

If recurring reflux is the problem, eat smaller meals and identify your personal triggers. Avoid lying down for three to four hours after eating. Arrange a medical check if the heartburn occurs most days or you develop difficulty swallowing.

When you are not sure, treat new chest pain as urgent.

#HeartAndStrokeMonth

#Heartburn

#ChestPain

#HealthyLivingWithDrKetch

You can still walk and talk, so you tell yourself the chest pain cannot be serious.

That assumption can waste precious time.

A heart attack does not always cause unbearable pain or immediate collapse. Some people experience mild pressure, tightness, burning or discomfort that feels like indigestion.

Call for emergency help if the pain lasts more than a few minutes, keeps returning or spreads to your arm, jaw, neck, back or upper stomach.

Chest pain accompanied by sweating, nausea, breathlessness, severe dizziness or fainting also needs immediate attention.

Stop what you are doing and sit down. Call your local emergency number. Do not drive yourself to the hospital. Emergency responders may be able to begin treatment on the way.

Chest pain can come from heartburn, strained muscles, anxiety or a lung problem. But new or unexplained pain should not be diagnosed at home.

Do not wait for the pain to become unbearable.

#HeartAndStrokeMonth

#ChestPain

#HealthyLivingWithDrKetch

You are sitting quietly when your heart suddenly takes off.

Before you dismiss it as anxiety, notice what else is happening.

That racing, pounding, fluttering or skipping feeling is called a palpitation. Common triggers include stress, too little sleep, caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, fever and some medicines. Palpitations are often harmless, but they can occasionally come from anaemia, thyroid problems or an abnormal heart rhythm.

While it is happening, sit down and note when it started. Check your pulse or smartwatch if one is available. Record how long the episode lasts and what you were doing beforehand. This information can help your doctor investigate the cause.

Arrange a medical check if the palpitations are new, keep returning, become more frequent or last longer than a few minutes.

If your racing heartbeat comes with chest pain, severe breathlessness, fainting or severe dizziness, seek emergency help immediately.

Do not assume every racing heart is anxiety.

#HeartAndStrokeMonth

#Palpitations

#HealthyLivingWithDrKetch

Some mornings, you are not drinking an energy drink because you want one.

You are drinking it because you do not know how else you will make it through the day.

The can may keep your eyes open, but it cannot give your body the rest it missed. Energy drinks can increase your heart rate and blood pressure. Taking them late may also disturb your sleep, leaving you reaching for another can the next day.

Before you drink one, check the label. Some energy drinks contain more than 300 mg of caffeine in a 16-ounce container. For most healthy adults, 400 mg a day is generally considered the upper limit, not a target. Remember to include caffeine from coffee, tea, cola and pre-workout products in your total.

Never mix an energy drink with alcohol. Caffeine may make you feel more awake, but it does not make you less impaired. The combination may encourage you to drink more and can increase the risk of high blood pressure or an irregular heartbeat.

If you develop chest pain, fainting, severe breathlessness or a heartbeat that remains very fast or irregular, seek urgent medical help.

And if you need energy drinks every day just to function, pause. The exhaustion itself deserves attention.

Energy drinks do not replace the rest your body needs.

#HeartAndStrokeMonth

#EnergyDrinks

#HealthyLivingWithDrKetch

The cigarette may be in someone else’s hand.

But the smoke is entering your body.

Second-hand smoke can damage your heart and blood vessels. There is no safe level of exposure, and even brief exposure can cause harm.

Opening a window does not make indoor smoking safe. Neither does smoking in another room or switching on a fan or air purifier. Ventilation cannot remove all the dangerous particles and gases from tobacco smoke.

Make your home and car completely smoke-free. At work, move away from smoking areas and ask for a smoke-free space.

If setting that boundary feels uncomfortable, try saying:

“I care about you, but our home and car must stay smoke-free.”

Protecting your air is not rude. It protects your heart.

#SecondHandSmoke

#HealthyLivingWithDrKetch

That walk you nearly skipped was doing more than burning calories.

It was helping your heart and your bones.

Walking is weight-bearing exercise. Your bones support your body against gravity, which helps them maintain strength.

But your bones cannot exercise their way out of poor nutrition.

Milk and yoghurt are useful because they provide calcium and protein. One cup of milk contains about 300 mg of calcium.

If you do not take dairy, you still have options. Try calcium-fortified soya milk, sardines eaten with their soft bones or calcium-set tofu. Check the label when buying plant milk because many varieties contain very little calcium unless it has been added.

Vitamin D also matters because it helps your body absorb calcium. Not every milk product contains vitamin D, so check whether it has been fortified.

Walking is still not the whole exercise plan. Add strength exercise two or three days a week. Chair rises, wall push-ups, resistance bands and light weights are practical places to begin.

Balance exercises can reduce falls that may lead to broken bones.

Osteoporosis may weaken bones without obvious symptoms. For some people, a fracture is the first sign.

Get calcium from food where possible. Do not start calcium or vitamin D supplements blindly. Ask a healthcare professional whether you need them.

Keep the walk. Feed your bones well. Add the strength they need.

World Osteoporosis Day

“One glass of red wine every day. It is good for your heart.”

That advice has been passed around like a prescription.

It should not be.

No amount of alcohol has been proven to protect your heart. If you do not drink, please do not start because you believe it will make you healthier.

The World Health Organization states that no amount of alcohol is risk-free for overall health. Alcohol causes cancer, and the risk begins with the first amount consumed. Drinking less reduces the risk.

What about the heart benefits reported in older studies?

Those studies could not prove that alcohol produced the better outcomes. Other differences in people’s lives may have explained the results. The American Heart Association confirms that drinking alcohol has not been proven to cause better heart health. Even moderate drinking may raise blood pressure in some people.

If you already drink, this is not about shame. Cutting down still protects your health.

Remember that “one drink” is a measured quantity. A large wine glass or bottle may contain more than one drink.

The less alcohol you drink, the lower your risk. None is the lowest-risk choice.

The hot flushes get noticed.

The changes affecting your heart may not.

When your periods stop, menopause does not suddenly give you heart disease. But the years around menopause can bring changes in cholesterol, blood vessels and where the body stores fat. Age also continues to influence blood pressure and blood sugar.

This is why menopause should be treated as a heart-health checkpoint.

Ask when you last had your:

– Blood pressure checked

– Cholesterol tested

– Blood sugar tested

– Weight and waist measured

Do not wait until you feel unwell. High blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes may cause no obvious warning symptoms.

Tell your doctor if your periods stopped before age 45. Earlier menopause is associated with a higher risk of heart disease.

If you are considering hormone treatment for menopausal symptoms, discuss your health history and personal risks with your clinician.

Your periods may have ended. Looking after your heart has not.

World Menopause Day

You bought oatmeal because you were trying to make a healthier choice.

Then the scale kept rising.

Before you blame the oats, look at the whole bowl.

Plain oats are a nutritious whole grain. Their soluble fibre can help lower cholesterol. But an oversized portion with sweetened milk, honey, granola, dried fruit and a large handful of nuts can contain far more energy than you realise.

You do not need to abandon oatmeal.

Measure the oats before cooking. Choose plain oats instead of heavily sweetened varieties. Use whole fruit for sweetness and measure your milk and toppings too.

Healthy ingredients are still part of your total food intake. The word “healthy” does not make portion size disappear.

And remember that one breakfast does not determine your weight. Look at what you eat and drink across the entire day.

If your weight continues to rise despite consistent changes, speak with a healthcare professional.