Go
Saints!

Thursday
March 28th, 2024

hearthealthyHeart disease is a formidable foe. According the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, heart disease accounts for nearly 25 percent of all deaths in the United States each year. 

Issues relating to the heart affect both men and women, and an estimated 15 million adults in the U.S. have coronary heart disease, the most common type of heart disease. And heart disease is not exclusive to the United States, as the Heart Research Institute says that every seven minutes in Canada someone dies from heart disease or stroke.

Such statistics are disconcerting, but they can serve as a wake-up call that compels people to prioritize heart health. Fortunately, heart disease is often preventable and people can employ various strategies to reduce their risk.

  • • Stop smoking right now. One of the best things to do to protect the heart is to stop smoking. The Heart Foundation indicates that smoking reduces oxygen in the blood and damages blood vessel walls. It also contributes to atherosclerosis, or a narrowing and clogging of the arteries.
  • • Eat healthy fats. When eating, choose polyunsaturated and unsaturated fats and avoid trans fats as much as possible. Trans fats increase one’s risk of developing heart disease by clogging arteries and raising LDL (bad) cholesterol levels. Read food labels before buying anything at the store.
  • • Keep your mouth clean. Studies show that bacteria in the mouth involved in the development of gum disease can travel to the bloodstream and cause an elevation in C-reactive protein, a marker for blood vessel inflammation. Brush and floss twice daily, and be sure to schedule routine dental cleanings.
  • • Get adequate shut-eye. Ensuring adequate sleep can improve heart health. One study found that young and middle-age adults who regularly slept seven hours a night had less calcium in their arteries (a sign of early heart disease) compared to those who slept five hours or less or those who slept nine hours or more. 
  • • Adopt healthy eating habits. Changes to diet, including eating more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein, can help you lose and maintain a healthy weight, improve cholesterol levels and reduce blood pressure — leading to a healthier heart.
  • • Embrace physical activity. Regular moderate exercise is great for the heart. It can occur at the gym, playing with the kids or even taking the stairs at work.

A healthy heart begins with daily habits that promote long-term heart health. 

comprehensive behavioral health center

Liberal Local News

Planning, zoning requests dominate commission agenda

city commission manriquezElsa Manriquez with Al Shank Insurance looks over some notes while talking to the Liberal City Commission Tuesday evening about the city’s comprehensive insurance renewal. After several minutes of discussion, the commission ultimately unanimously voted in favor of the renewal. L&T photo/Elly GrimmELLY GRIMM • Leader & Times

 

Planning and zoning issues dominated the discussion for the Liberal City Commission during its most recent meeting Tuesday evening. 

Up first for the commission was a request for the approval of a new member to the Planning & Zoning Commission. 

“Per the agenda packet, there came an open slot on the Planning and Zoning Board due to Ernesto Goitia Jr. being removed due to his lack of attendance, and there ended up being four applications for that spot,” Code Enforcement Supervisor Keith Bridenstine said. “The board voted unanimously to recommend Jeremy Benton to fill that vacant seat, and staff is recommending the Liberal City Commission follow the recommendation of the Planning & Zoning Commission.”

The commission ultimately unanimously approved the recommendation, and then moved on to discussion of the final plat of the Alco Addition replat, which Bridenstine also talked about. 

“As the commission might remember, the preliminary plat came before you all last April, and this is a replat of the block located between 14th Street and 15th Street, which is by Dillons,” Bridenstine said. “The addition was platted as one lot, so in order to split the property into three lots as requested, a replat must be done due to how those rules go. It’s basically a housekeeping plat. All ownership issues have been resolved, it’s been checked out by Seward County officials, and the Planning and Zoning Commission voted unanimously at its regular scheduled meeting on March 14 to approve the final plat of the Alco Addition. A difference between then and now is the preliminary plat had different ownership since there was a spot that was originally deeded to three different people, and when the new owner bought the block, he got deeded one-third of that chunk, and it was kind of a mess, but all of that has been cleaned up. With all of that we’re recommending the commission approve the final plat of the Alco Addition replat.”

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NATIONAL HEADLINES

Opinion

Living with a cat

THE POSTSCRIPT, Carrie Classon

 

We have had our adopted Mexican street cat, Felix, for a month now.

“Has he bulked out?” I asked my husband, Peter, as we watched Felix, standing on his back legs and walloping the tattered mouse hanging from his sisal scratching post. Felix looked like a boxer, beating the remaining stuffing out of his helpless little toy mouse. Bits of fur and mouse innards were strewn around the kitchen. But the carnage was not limited to the kitchen.

Living with a cat, you start to eye gravity with suspicion. Small items that appeared to be securely in place must be scrutinized, as if living under the imminent threat of a major earthquake. Living with a cat is like living in a spaceship. Items cannot be expected to remain where they are put. Everything needs to be put inside something else to prevent it from floating away or, more accurately, being batted around the house at 3 a.m.

The sink stopper is missing. The spare tip to Peter’s hiking pole has mysteriously disappeared. Socks appear in surprising locations.

“What happened to my cough drops?” I asked Peter.

I keep a little bowl of cough drops on my bedside table. While all of Peter’s possessions were knocked to the ground in a perfunctory manner in the first few days of Felix taking residence, I was feeling somewhat smug because my personal items remained untouched. Until yesterday. There were cough drops beside the bed, under the bed, under the nightstand and under my desk in the next room.

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