Pacemakers are battery operated devices that are used to transmit electrical signals through the heart. They are placed into the human body through a minor surgery which requires doctors to thread the wires of the pacemaker device to the heart. On reaching the targeted spot, the machine is tested through transmission of low intensity electric signals. If the process turns out to be successful, the generator of the pacemaker carrying its batteries is inserted into the abdomen through a small incision and the wires connected to the cardiac muscles are attached to this portion.The purpose of implanting a pacemaker is to regularize heart beats which might be irregular due to arrhythmia. Arrhythmia is a condition associated with abnormally slow or fast heart beats. A heart block or significant damage to the cardiac muscles can cause Arrhythmia.

Pacemaker surgery procedure is relatively simpler than major cardiac operations and a safe method of relieving patients from symptoms of arrhythmia which may include fatigue, exhaustion and shortness of breath. It is interesting to note that there are different types of pacemakers to address various cardiac problems. There are demand pacemakers that conduct an automatic examination of the patient’s heart and send out electrical signals upon detecting irregularities. However, a few pacemakers transmit electric signals all the time, irrespective of the functioning of heart. Such devices are called fixed rate pacemakers. Some other types of pacemakers adapt to the intensity of electrical signals which need to be transmitted in accordance with variations in the patient’s physical activities. These are known as rate responsive pacemakers. A pacemaker can also be temporary and worn outside the body during the time a patient is in the hospital under medical examination. » Read more: Pacemaker Surgery

Although high cholesterol is sometimes a condition that requires medication, there are many people that can benefit from simple changes to their diets, including recipes lowering cholesterol. And even those people who need medication can sometimes take a lower dose and stay healthier if they eat better. Hypercholesterolemia is the formal name for high cholesterol. The cholesterol molecule is essential to the function of life. Because it is a lipid (fatty molecule), it does not dissolve in water and must be carried through the blood by proteins that are water soluble. The two main types of cholesterol-carrier complexes are called HDLs and LDLs, which stand for high- and low-density lipoproteins. They seem to have opposite effects on health, with HDL improving health and LDL causing problems.

Because of its essential nature in the body, humans produce this molecule. Some people make too much, and these are the people that need medication, even if they eat well. Others eat poorly and can solve their problem with a better diet. Some are in-between, where their bodies make too much of the substance, but not so much that it is a problem unless they also eat badly. Avoiding the substance itself in foods is important, but this is not the only issue. Foods high in saturated fats also appear to exacerbate hypercholesterolemia, and should be avoided. It is not necessary to follow a strict low-fat diet, as unsaturated fats appear to improve heart health, but any diet for people suffering from this problem should be low in saturated fats. Saturated fats are usually those that are solid at room temperature, with a few exceptions. Oils tend to be higher in unsaturated fats and should be substituted for butter and other solid fats wherever possible. Do not use margarine in place of butter unless it contains no hydrogenated oils, as these have trans fats and trans fats are actually worse for you than saturated fats. » Read more: Foods and Recipes Lowering Cholesterol