I am reprising this post from two years ago when I cooked my first low-sodium Thanksgiving dinner — attending to sodium because of my father’s congestive heart failure diet requirements. Most preparations are staying the same, though I am dividing the stuffing this year into two parts. The first half I will prepare in a … Continue reading
Filed under heart disease …
Don’t Forget About Your Blood Pressure
Over at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website, the Vital Signs September 2012 issue focuses on controlling good pressure. The article, Getting Blood Pressure Under Control: Many Missed Opportunities to Prevent Heart Disease and Stroke, explains that many people are not treating their blood pressure and many others are taking medication but not monitoring enough … Continue reading
Does High Tech Mean a Better Outcome?
Many of our aging parents live with heart issues, and making treatment decisions is not easy. Weighing all the evidence is especially difficult when we must decide between a high-tech, surgical procedures (heart bypass surgery or cardiac catheterization) or medications combined with lifestyle changes, and it’s even more confusing when both of these treatment options have … Continue reading
Figuring Out How to Adjust a Much-loved Thanksgiving Recipe, Low Sodium Diet, VIII
Recap: My dad has congestive heart failure, so he is on a low sodium diet. My husband and I decided that we too could join my parents’ adventure with low-sodium eating. I’ve been posting occasional updates about our experiences (read my first low-sodium post in the series). My Thanksgiving 2011 stuffing experiment is working! We … Continue reading
Thanksgiving Stuffing: Low Sodium Diet # VII
I am aiming to prepare a low-sodium Thanksgiving dinner. I’ve just read an article, Experts Warn: Thanksgiving Poses Hidden Sodium Dangers, describing the dangers of stealth sodium in Thanksgiving foods. The Associated Press article, which appeared in NJ.com points out that people can reach and exceed the appropriate daily sodium intake just in the one … Continue reading
Low Sodium Diet, Part I: Senior Parents Get Started in Their 80’s
Read other Low Salt Journey installments: Senior Parents Get Started in Their 80′s: Part I, Hospital Cafeterias With No Low-Sodium Options? Part II, Making Sense of Sodium Labels and Numbers: Part III, and 5 Lessons Learned About Cutting Back on Sodium: Low-Salt Eating: Part IV. My father left the hospital just over two weeks ago, after his heart attack. His discharge instructions directed him to … Continue reading
Taking Your Blood Pressure? Tips from the New York Times
I’ve just finished reading the best information about taking blood pressure in a December 13, 2010 New York Times article posted in the Science section. For years I’ve wondered about some of this information, and though I take my blood pressure on a regular basis, I could never get the answers to my questions. Read … Continue reading
Aging Mothers-Adult Daughters: Dreams of Chocolate
Just about everyone dreams of eating chocolate. Well, not everyone. My husband is someone who really doesn’t care for it that much. But recent research brings some interesting news for the rest of us — a little indulgence may be OK. According to an August 16, 2010 study, Chocolate Intake and Incidence of Heart Failure: … Continue reading
Cardiac Procedures and Surgeries – Good Descriptions
Last summer my father’s internist referred him to a cardiologist who found an abdominal aneurysm. Dad underwent several cardiac procedures. Understanding an enormous amount of information in a short time was difficult for everyone in our family, and especially for my parents. While the physicians’ explanations were clear and helpful to our family, many questions … Continue reading
As Our Parents Age 