Health Buzz: Don't ditch that potato, it can reduce blood pressure

Here’s a round up of the latest in health news from around the world…

Potatoes can reduce blood pressure

A regular in almost all dishes, yet often sidelined by many because of fatty carbs, latest research claims that eating spuds (smaller potatoes) can actually help lower your blood pressure. The most effective it seems are slightly purple spuds cooked unpeeled in a microwave. Researchers who fed 18 overweight and obese volunteers six to eight spuds twice a day, found the their blood pressure reading lower after a month. Bonus: there wasn’t any additional weight gain. Lesson to take back before you justify those fries: the potatoes were devoid of oil and cooked in the microwave. (PTI)

How long you will live may depend on how fast you can walk.

We didn’t know until now that a walk in the park could actually be a revelation. University of Pittsburghresearcher’s recently crunched data from nearly 35,000 subjects 65 years or older and discovered that each increase in gait speed of 0.1 metres/second correlated with a 12% decrease in the risk of death. According to Stephanie Studenski, MD, and study author, the reason speed reflects vitality is that so many organs and systems are involved in how we move, and a slow pace could indicate a deeper problem. ( Oprah.com )

Breastfeeding as a kid may alter how your brain functions

Kids who are breastfed as babies had higher scores on vocabulary tests and reasoning at just five years old that those who weren’t breastfed according to Institute for Social and Economic Research at the Universityof Essex. ( Yahoo News )

Abortions may affect mental health

Women who undergo abortions are at a greater risk of suffering from mental health problems in comparison to other according to a new study. Carried out by Priscilla Coleman and published in the British Journal of Psychiatry, the study also claims that one in ten of all mental health problems were a result of abortion. (PTI)

Stroke rates rising among young

Researchers at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say stroke rates in five to 44-year-olds rose by about a third in under 10 years. The common causes were higher blood pressure, diabetes and obesity — which are skyrocketing in India, as well. Dr Lorna Layward told the BBC, “We know that high blood pressure is the biggest risk factor for stroke, along with other factors such as obesity, diabetes, poor diet and smoking. This research emphasises the need for people to be aware that stroke can affect younger people, and for all of us, regardless of our age, to check our blood pressure and adopt a healthy lifestyle.”  ( BBC News )