High blood pressure affects millions of people worldwide. If left unmanaged, it can lead to hypertension. US Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) categorises people with hypertension as those who have a blood pressure of more than 130/80 mm Hg, while the normal rate is 120/80 mm Hg. Therefore, it advises hypertension patients to follow this one rule while eating, that is, to eat very carefully. It is because there are certain foods that can elevate their blood pressure and thus, put an enormous strain on their heart.

Careful Measures For People While Eating, As Per Experts

Dr Amir Khan, a well-known US NHS doctor, has shared straightforward and practical ways that people can take control of their blood pressure from the comfort of their own homes. Taking to social media, he shared the following tips focussing on simple lifestyle adjustments that can have a significant positive impact on blood pressure levels without necessarily requiring immediate medication.

Cut Down on Salt

Drastically reduce your daily salt intake to no more than one teaspoon (six grams). Be mindful of hidden salt in processed foods and flavor meals with herbs and spices instead of salt. Choose tinned food in water and unsalted nuts.

Eat Potassium-Rich Foods

Increase your consumption of foods high in potassium, such as bananas, tomatoes, and carrots. Potassium helps to balance the effects of sodium in your body and can contribute to lower blood pressure readings.

Get Active and Maintain Healthy Weight

Engage in regular physical activity, like brisk walking or cycling, to strengthen your heart. Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight also reduces the strain on your heart and blood vessels, helping to manage blood pressure.

Stop Smoking

Quitting smoking is crucial as it damages blood vessels and raises blood pressure, significantly increasing your risk of heart disease and stroke. Avoiding smoking is a vital step for cardiovascular health.

Moderate Alcohol

Limit your intake of alcoholic beverages. Excessive alcohol consumption can lead to a rise in blood pressure over time. Adhering to recommended guidelines for alcohol intake is important for blood pressure management.

Ignoring persistently high blood pressure can lead to a cascade of serious and even life-threatening health problems down the line. When your blood pressure stays too high for too long, it puts extra strain on your heart, blood vessels, and other vital organs. This can significantly increase your risk of experiencing things like heart attacks and strokes, where the blood supply to the heart or brain is blocked. It can also lead to heart failure, where the heart can't pump blood effectively, and kidney disease, where the kidneys can become damaged and unable to filter waste properly. Taking steps to manage high blood pressure is therefore crucial for protecting your long-term health and well-being.

One concerning thing about high blood pressure is that it is similar to cholesterol, it does not have any obvious symptoms. While you can monitor with at-home devices, one must take proactive steps to ensure they are not going overboard. Unchecked high blood pressure can have big consequences for your health. The National Health Services England explains that reading of 140 over 90 (written as 140/90 mmHg) or higher when taken at a pharmacy, a doctor's office, or a clinic indicates high blood pressure. However, at home, a reading of about 135/80 mm Hg or higher is considered high.

Showering is not just for hygiene for many people; it is about self-care, downtime, and relaxing. From a health perspective, showers can have benefits and some downsides, like the cleanliness of the washroom, the products you are using, etc. Sometimes, a neglected shower soap or an expired shampoo bottle could be the reason you fall sick.

Another thing you must be careful about is the porcelain floors and slippery tiles as they can be a health hazard. In a recent post, a doctor pointed out another thing that could be a surprising factor of health concern in the showers: urinating.

Doctors have issued a warning for people who may be in the habit of urinating while standing in the shower. While it may seem like a harmless activity, may be a bit uncomfortable to talk about, it can have health consequences you may not have considered.

How Does Urinating In The Showers Put Your Health At Risk?

American urogynaecologist Dr. Teresa Irwin, a board certified in female pelvic medicine and reconstructive surgery (FPMRS), took to the social media platform TikTok to advise people against this practice, which polls suggest is quite common, with 60-80% of the public reportedly admitting to it. In her video, Dr Irwin explained that peeing while showering can train the brain to associate the sound of running water with the urge to urinate.

Running Water Can Trigger Unwanted Urge

Speaking to her followers, Dr Irwin drew comparisons between this habit with the Pavlov's dog experiment, where the sound of a bell triggered salivation. She explained that over time, every time you hear running water – whether washing hands, showering, or doing dishes – your bladder might start to feel the urge to empty, even if it's not truly full.

Dr Irwin cautioned that this learned association could disrupt the body's natural internal control over the bladder in the long run. This disruption might lead to more frequent and unnecessary trips to the toilet as the bladder becomes overly sensitive to the sound of running water.

Dr Irwin also pointed out potential health hazards specifically for women who urinate while standing in the shower. She mentioned an increased risk of urinary tract infections (UTIs) and, in more severe scenarios, even kidney failure.

Why Shouldn’t Women Urinating Standing Up?

Unlike men, whose bladder is supported by the prostate when urinating while standing, women lack this anatomical support. Dr Irwin explained that women who try to urinate while standing put extra strain on their pelvic floor muscles, which can hinder the bladder from emptying completely.

Dr Alicia Jeffrey-Thomas, a Pelvic Floor Physical Therapist who shares informative videos on social media explains that there can be more consequences for women urinating upright. She explains a pelvic floor therapist based in Boston, has previously supported the idea that women's bodies are "not designed to pee standing up." She explained that the pelvic floor muscles won't relax correctly in that position, making it difficult to fully empty the bladder.

While the primary concerns are related to bladder control and potential UTIs, there's also a minor risk of skin infection. If there are open wounds on the lower body, bacteria present in the urine could potentially cause an infection. However, experts suggest this risk is relatively low as the shower water should wash the urine away.

As anti-obesity medications like Ozempic and Wegovy become increasingly popular, American employees are making career choices based on access to them. A recent poll found that 1 in 5 Americans would be willing to switch jobs to get insurance coverage for these in-demand medications. But as the craze for GLP-1 drugs takes hold of the workforce, the question is—are we becoming a healthier society, or merely taking a medically approved shortcut?

In a world where job benefits such as remote work, unlimited time off, and child care allowances drive the benefits discussion, there's a new player in the mix: weight loss drugs. A 2024 survey by 9amHealth found that 67% of Americans would remain at a job they disliked if it included retaining access to drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy. And if workplaces don't pay for them? 20% of respondents would actively seek another job.

This behavior is not without purpose. Out-of-pocket expenses for GLP-1 medications such as Ozempic can run over $1,000 monthly. Confronted with this expense, some users report skimping on necessities such as food and entertainment in order to pay for their monthly supply. Coverage under employer-sponsored insurance, thus, becomes not only a benefit—but a necessity.

What is the Frenzy of GLP-1 Drugs?

Contrary to older weight loss drugs that normally achieve a 5% drop in body weight, newer GLP-1 medications provide up to 20% weight loss or more. Their impact has been so significant that Science identified GLP-1 medications as the 2023 "Breakthrough of the Year." The medications act by emulating a hormone that controls blood glucose and hunger, leading to both enhanced metabolic function and reduced hunger.

Initially approved for type 2 diabetes, Ozempic and other medications such as Mounjaro have been used extensively off-label for weight loss, driving stratospheric demand. In February 2023 alone, over 373,000 prescriptions for Ozempic were filled—a 111% increase from the year before.

Ozempic: High Demand, Higher Costs, and Potential Misuse

But with increasing demand comes increasing expense. Ozempic and Mounjaro were among 800 drugs that experienced a median list price increase of 4.5% this year, the Wall Street Journal reported. Some large institutions, such as Ascension Health and the University of Texas System, have even withdrawn coverage in light of skyrocketing prices—reporting a 233% increase in expenditures related to them.

There's also an increasing worry about the abuse and stigma surrounding these medications. Although Ozempic is now a cultural buzzword and an alleged "magic bullet" for rapid weight loss, physicians warn that it's not a sustainable solution in and of itself. "Without robust support for behavior change, weight loss is generally short-term and tends to be followed by weight regain," experts in endocrinology and metabolic care stated.

In fact, 38% of respondents to the 9amHealth poll confessed to exploring black market sources prior to settling on FDA-accepted treatments—courageous behavior that reveals the desperation and lack of education about obesity management.

Why Obesity is an Expensive, Long-Term Health Problem Employers Can't Dismiss?

Over 40% of American adults qualify for the CDC's definition of obesity, a BMI of 30 or more. The disorder is a significant cause of comorbidities such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease—a combination frequently called "cardiodiabesity." Alone, obesity costs the U.S. healthcare system $173 billion per year and accounts for $6.38 billion in lost productivity in the workplace.

With these daunting numbers, employers are finally realizing that managing obesity up front may be cheaper in the long term. In 2023, only 25% of employers were covering GLP-1s, but this might increase to 43% in 2024, says health consulting company Accolade.

But selling prescription medications without complementing them with health support is a lost chance. Specialists recommend a combined approach—of accessible pharmaceuticals along with dietary advice, exercise routine, psychiatric help, and regular medical follow-up.

Medical Experts Call for Balanced Approach

While the temptation of GLP-1 medications can be tempting, specialists advise against its use as a single solution. Pills can trigger weight loss, but long-term health is derived from behavioral modification. Fitch and others suggest addressing obesity as any chronic illness, with long-term, multidimensional management.

Employers who are seriously interested in tackling obesity in the workplace need to look beyond providing coverage. They must make available comprehensive health packages that consist of individualized interventions, ongoing tracking, and lifestyle change support systems for enduring change.

For the time being, it appears GLP-1 medications are not only changing waistlines, but also workplaces. Workers are willing to make drastic life adjustments—including job-hopping—for access to these drugs. Whether this is a significant shift in corporate healthcare priorities or a troubling shortcut remains to be determined.

One thing is certain: the workplace is emerging as a central front in the battle against obesity. And as the stakes grow higher, so does the onus on employers to provide intelligent, sustainable, and equitable solutions for the long-term health of their employees.

A baby's first steps are one of the biggest newborn milestones for parents. It is a sign that your baby is growing healthily and happily. However, when these steps are delayed over the period of time kids are expected to walk, that is a cause of great concern for parents. Many worries like whether the kid had an injury, or does it have any cognitive or motor disability that could be causing this delay?

Usually, it is not a big concern for there to be a little delay; consult your pediatrician and follow their advice. Not all delays are bad, and a new study shows that babies who take a little more time to walk actually do better academically. According to the study published in the Nature Human Behaviour journal, late steps could be linked to better academic performance in kids.

Why Is Taking Longer To Walk Better?

Researchers have made a significant discovery about why some babies walk earlier than others. They've found a strong link between the age at which a baby takes those first wobbly steps and the genes they get from their parents. Even more surprisingly, their research shows that the very same genes that decide if a baby walks early or late might also play a part in how well they perform in their schoolwork. This means that our bodies' blueprints could influence both our physical development, like learning to walk, and our brain development, which helps us learn at school.

The study also hints at another possible good thing about taking a bit longer to start walking. The researchers found that babies who walk later might have a lower chance of developing something called Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, or ADHD. This is a condition that can make it hard for kids to focus and sit still. So, it seems that taking your time to walk might have some unexpected benefits for how kids' brains develop and how they behave as they grow up.

What Role Do Genes Play In A Baby’s Growth?

Researchers found that the same body instructions that make some babies walk later are also linked to doing better in studies and being less likely to have ADHD. She said that this was the first time scientists had looked at so many body instructions and how they relate to when babies start walking and other things like learning and attention.

Experts also pointed out that there's a big range in when babies start to walk. Some start as early as eight months, while others take as long as two years, and most start around 18 months. Until now, scientists didn't really know all the reasons why some babies walk much earlier or later than others. This new study helps us understand some of the things that cause these differences in when babies take their first steps.

Strong Link Between Genetic And Baby Development

For a long time, scientists knew that things around a baby, like having space to move, affect when they walk. But this new study gives us strong proof that the instructions inside our bodies, our genes, are also very important. The scientists looked at the body instructions of over 70,000 babies and found 11 specific parts that seem to be connected to when a baby starts to walk. This shows us that both what's inside us and what's around us help shape how we grow and develop, even when it comes to taking those first steps.