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The Amazon Echo must have been a popular gift this year, because downloads of the Alexa app are topping charts across iPhone and Android. The app is the number one downloaded app on iPhone and number two in Google Play.

Its popularity shows the Echo is staying ahead of smart speaker competitors like Google Home. On the list of top downloads, Google Home placed seventh on Google Play and ninth in the iPhone App Store. (Neither app made Apples top ten apps of 2019, released earlier this month.).The two devices are enmeshed in bitter competition. Last year, it looked like Google Home might prove a serious challenge to Amazon, but for now the device is lagging. In the U.S., Amazon Echo holds 70% of the smart speaker market, while Google Home has 25%, according to the Consumer Research Intelligence Partners. Globally, the Echo has 36.6% of the market in the third quarter, putting it significantly ahead of Google Home (12.3%) and a pack of competitors, according to analysis firm Canalys.

The Alexa app wasnt the only winner Christmas Day. Unsurprisingly, both Disney+ and YouTube were high up on the list of downloads this holiday season, as many crowded in front of the television to watch movies and kids programming, while Netflix lingered around number 10. Tik Tok and Snapchat also beat out Instagram for downloads this Christmas, illustrating their rise as popular social apps among the youth (and maybe now their parents).

Finally, FitBit surged into the top 10, indicating that consumers are still buying each other this affordable fitness tracker in hopes of losing weight, being more active, or attaining some other metric of health in the 2020. Like many New Years resolutions, expect this one to lose steam over the next few weeks.

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These were the most popular apps of Christmas 2019 - Fast Company

Four years ago, Chris Pridham was excited to jet off on a holiday of a lifetime to Mexico, but it quickly turned into a nightmare when he struggled to get in his seat.

When he finally managed to do his seatbelt up he decided he would have to make some changes to his lifestyle, after holding everyone up on the breathless walk to the plane.

Chris said his experience at the airport "set the tone" for the whole holiday and due to his 24 stone weight, he could not partake in all of the activities with his partner and old friends.

He said: "When we boarded the plane I could hardly get my seat belt on and there was no way the table would go flat as my stomach was very firmly in the way. Arriving in Mexico was amazing as Id never been anywhere quite like it but I found the heat and humidity so uncomfortable.

However, I was determined to make the most of it and we booked ourselves on to an excursion to a medieval place. When we got there I realised it would be a challenge as I weighed in at over 24 stone and the terrain was steep and difficult to walk around."

He said it was "a real kick in the teeth" when his friends suggested that he used a mobility scooter.

After two weeks back at home I ended up in hospital with an infected mosquito bite and got sepsis and cellulitis. I was really ill from that and the extra weight didnt help" Chris said.

He was spurred on to lose the weight after his partner "point black" refused to travel abroad with him again.

"It was a bit of a wake up call and when I recovered I said to my partner that I wanted to visit my daughter who lived and worked in New York.

"She refused point blank!!

"She said she couldnt go through another airport and plane experience and said I had to lose weight if I wanted her to go with me.

That was the shock I really needed and I went online to look up my nearest WW workshop. I found one in Saltash and signed up immediately."

Chris said his coach, Gemma Medlicott has been "brilliant" in explaining the programme and he was able to understand the smart points system, which has now helped him lose more than six stone.

He said: "Basically, I was given a daily budget of smart points and every food had a value. It was up to me to balance my budget which I did and in a short space of time, I lost two stone and went to New York with my partner to visit my daughter.

"I could walk around and thought, this is brilliant.

I love bread and before joining WW would have three or four slices of thick white bread with lashings of butter and marmalade for breakfast, a big sandwich for lunch and a huge dinner. I now start the day with fruit and yoghurt; at lunchtime I have two slices of granary bread with a boiled egg and salad; dinner is stir fry veg with left over roast meat.

"I eat a lot of salad and am never hungry!

"I dont deny myself anything and have realised you have to have a bit of what you fancy otherwise you dont stick to it.

"I always make sure I have enough smart points for a couple of glasses of wine with dinner and two glasses of scotch for later in the evening! I even track those in the morning so I know how many points I have left for the rest of the day.

Chris said his partner is "delighted" by his transformation as now he can walk around, which was one of his "biggest struggles" before.

He said: "The WW programme has three pillars, food, movement and mindset. Walking around was one of my biggest struggles before but now I walk a mile and a half every day with the dog and I do the housework and help around the house.

"My partner is delighted!!

Research carried out by WW has identified what is known as the ripple effect.

This shows that when somebody joins a weight loss programme, the other members of the family can lose weight too without even trying as they are influenced by the new healthy habits they see.

A few years before, Chris had been best man at his nephew Gareths wedding.

Gareth had asked him to take on the role as his father, Chris brother had sadly passed away when he was only 60 years old.

Gareth and his wife Aimee had watched Chris transformation and were so impressed, they asked if they could come with him and join the same WW workshop.

They too found the flexibility and freedom the myWW programme offered them fantastic and a year later have lost nine stone between them which makes an astonishing difference of fifteen stone lost in total!

Chris added: I am a life time member of WW now because I want to maintain my weight loss. My GP is delighted with me and has given me a recommended weight leaving me 7lbs away from that and then Ill be at goal!

"Aimee produced this photo of the three of us and it looked horrendous and now we are unrecognisable as we have lost 15 stone between the three of us. People dont recognise us at all.

My partner is delighted. Weve been on lots of holidays and even did a cruise in the Caribbean. We flew to New Orleans and walked around for six days.

"I have no problems walking anywhere now. No more mobility scooters for me!! My biggest nightmare is fitting myself out with new clothes as Ive spent a fortune and all my bigger clothes have gone to the charity shops as my waist has gone from 48 to 38.

"If it wasnt for Gemma, my coach and the workshop I belong to and those lovely and encouraging Thursday night members I would not have stuck at it. I have never stuck at it before and Ive tried everything.

"I look forward to Thursday nights now and I still turn up even if Ive had a bad week. WW has given me back my life and I am so grateful!

Chris WW coach, Gemma Medlicott said: I am so proud of Chris, Gareth and Aimee! They have embraced the myWW programme by changing how the eat, move and most importantly by shifting their mindsets to recognise they could change.

"Health is wealth and they have transformed their futures together as a family.

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Weight Watchers family lose 15 stone in incredible weight loss transformation - Plymouth Live

( Fitbit via Twitter )

Fitbit has come a long way since its initial plain fitness tracker days. The FitbitCharge 3now has a few smart features like notification mirroring, while theVersa 2has a larger suite of apps available. With all these new customizable smart features, Fitbit owners might want to do a little bit of fiddling to make the most out of their Fitbit. We've got a list of X things that every Fitbit user should know to make the most out of their Fitbits.

These are some tips useful to owners of every type of Fitbit, from Inspire, Charge, Versa, to Ionic.

ALSO READ:Got Weight Loss New Year's Resolutions? Here Are The Best Apps To Help You Lose Weight

Here are some tips specific to the more capable Versa tracker, especially for users of the Versa 2.

2018 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.

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10 Tips to Make the Most Out of Your Fitbit - Tech Times

Research shows that nearly half of us make New Years resolutions, but only about 10% of us keep them. For many people, better exercise and nutrition are common January 1 goals.However, Tova Eastman, the Modiin-based owner of Ignite Fitness for Women, says it does not have to be that way. A personal trainer, nutrition coach and busy mom of two, Eastman said the key to keeping ones 2020 health goals starts with setting the right goals.Dont take on anything too fast, Eastman said. Going from zero to 60 will feel like too much and it wont last. She recommends setting weekly rather than yearly or lifetime goals, and adding on a little more each week. This, she said, will ultimately lead to healthy habits.I always tell my clients, it took me two years to completely cut sugar out of my coffee, Eastman, 28, said with a smile. I went from two tablespoons to one-and-a-half tablespoons and on until one day I tried my coffee with no sugar, and it was sweet just with milk. I slowly retrained my taste buds.On her Ignite Fitness Facebook page, Eastman shares many personal stories that help inspire her clients. She shared some of them with the Magazine, too. For example, when she was a teenager in Baltimore, Maryland, she used to travel to school in Silver Spring. Shed come home tired and in a terrible mood. Then, one day, she started going to the gym.I went as a social outlet, but I got all this energy and felt so good, she recalled. I decided I wanted to do this for the rest of my life.At 18, she came to Israel to learn in seminary and decided to immigrate. At the same time as she completed a degree in psychology from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, she became certified as an ACE personal trainer. When she graduated, she started her own business. Eastmans original goal was just to help people get toned like me, but quickly she realized that health is about so much more than how you look. It became very meaningful.When she became pregnant about a year into opening her business, nutrition became a focus, too, first because she wanted to make healthy choices for her baby-to-be, and then to lose the 30 pounds (not counting baby) she gained during pregnancy. SO SHE studied to become a fitness nutritionist as well, and her coaching became more holistic. It is not just workout or eat or sleep or stress management, it is all of it. I teach my clients to incorporate all of it and improve their quality of life.Her next piece of advice? Someones goal should never be to look like someone else. Everyone has a different shape, different bone structure. Your goal should be to become the healthiest version of yourself, she told the Magazine. A third tip is balance. As an observant Jew, Eastman said she allows herself to eat a little more on Shabbat or holidays. A lot of people get hyper-focused on food and they cannot stop thinking about it, she continued. The biggest thing is to not go into a holiday saying, I am going to lose weight over the holiday. Rather, before the holiday, plan out what you want to do and be OK with it.This could mean allowing yourself to eat a piece of cake, for example. If you are aware of what you are going to do and you are OK with it, it changes the whole picture, she said, noting that people dont realize how easily one can convert unhealthy food into a healthier one, such as by using date honey instead of white sugar in their desserts.Eastman added that consistency is king.Dont give up when you hit a roadblock, she said. It is the people who keep going that see these beautiful, amazing, mental and physical results.Most recently, Eastman launched an online course to share how busy moms can achieve their health goals, which can be accessed via her website or here. A lot of women dont have time to come in for personal training or the finances, Eastman said. So many of my clients are moms that are busy and on a budget.The course can be done on your own time, its cheaper than personal training and includes everything from basic exercise plans to how to meal prep and everything in between. It teaches them how to make health happen for themselves, she said.Her final tip: Dont say I want to look a certain way; say I want to be healthy. If the goal is health, youll keep going you want to be healthy for your life.

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How to stick to your fitness New Years resolution - The Jerusalem Post

WITH 2020 just round the corner, the New Year health is looming.

And the low-carb and keto diets are the two most popular diet plans, touted for weight loss.

Getty - Contributor

Keto involves eating no more than 30g of carbs a day plus a high amount of good fats, meat, dairy, nuts and oil.

It works by persuading the body to start burning its own fat supplies putting the body into a state called ketosis rather than burn the carbs in your diet.

A low-carb diet, on the other hand, means you can eat more carbs but without the generous portion of fats that you get with keto.

With both keto and low-carb diets being recommended by celebrities, friends and experts you may be left wondering which one to try.

To solve this, top nutritionists Terri-Ann Nunns and Helen Bond have shared their tips with us on which one really is the most effective

Many people claim a low-carb diet is the best way to get quick and easy weight loss results.

And nutritionist Terri-Ann, founder of theTerri Ann 123 Diet Plan, has now shown her support for this diet which has helped hundreds of her clients lose weight.

She emphasises that this regime will help speed up weight loss as by increasing your intake of proteins youll feel fuller.

Low-carbohydrate diets are a very successful way to lose weight sustainably, she says.

In a low carbohydrate diet, you reduce your intake of items such as bread, pasta, potatoes and sugary foods whilst protein foods such as meat, fish and vegetarian alternatives should be increased.

Having a high-protein element in your diet will help you to feel full

Reducing carbohydrates, for example bread, potatoes, pasta and sugars, is known to be effective in helping people to lose weight.

Having a high-protein element in your diet will help you to feel full despite consuming a lower amount of calories.

As well as blitzing body fat, Terri-Ann also stresses that low-carb diets can have other health benefits like lowering diabetic markers.

The obvious health benefit of following a low carb plan is weight loss, she adds.

Carbohydrates themselves are not necessarily the cause of weight gain.

The NHS says theres no evidence that eating bread and other wheat-based foods causes weight gain more than any other type of food.

If you eat more energy than your body uses, you will put on weight, regardless of what you eat.

The NHS says: Cutting out carbohydrates from your diet could put you at increased risk of a deficiency in certain nutrients, leading to health problems, unless youre able to make up for the nutritional shortfall with healthy substitutes.

Replacing carbohydrateswith fats and higher fat sources of protein could increase your intake of saturated fat, which can raise the amount of cholesterol in your blood a risk factor for heart disease.

Reducing the amount of carbohydrate in the diet can also help to improve blood sugar levels and insulin response which means it could be an effective diet for people with diabetes, pre-diabetes or polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS).

Despite this, Helen Bond,registered dietitian and spokeswoman for the British Dietetic Association, says she isnt keen on a low-carb diet as carbs are part of a healthy diet.

She adds: I am not a fan of low carbs carbs are a key part of a healthy balance diet and bring with them B vitamins for energy and fibre for a healthy gut.

Carbs and fibre are also the food for our gut microbes which new research also links to better weight and health overall.

Kim Kardashian, Gwyneth Paltrow and Tyson Fury are just a few of the celebrities who have credited the keto diet for keeping them in shape.

And while it can help people lose weight, Terri-Ann says it isnt the most sustainable of diets.

The keto or ketogenic diet is a very low-carb, high-fat diet, she says.

This means that the body uses fat for energy instead of carbohydrates, producing ketones an alternative energy source.

The keto diet, if done correctly, can help people to lose weight.

For weight loss that can be maintained, keto is not something I would recommend

Although it works for some, I dont often recommend it because many people arent able to sustain it in the long-term.

In particular, Terri-Ann says the keto diet is more for people looking for something to stick to in the long-term, rather than quick results.

She adds: You need to be very committed to stick to this diet for life.

Because of the nature of this type of diet, people tend to find it work best for a quick fix, however long-term and for weight loss that can be maintained, it is not something I would recommend.

There are four common mistakes people make on a keto diet that could be making them fatter

1. Dramatically cutting carbs

People go from a diet that is probably consumed moderate or high amounts of carbs to an extremely low amount, and this is a drastic change for the body. This is when theyre at risk of theketo flu.

2. Not drinking enough water

The body is washed-out of a lot of fluid especially when losing fat mass. The body flushes out the ketones in the urine which also depletes not just water but sodium, an important electrolyte, from the body.

3. Eating the right veg

Vegetables have carbohydrates and for a lot of people, this means watching how much is actually consumed. If youre not careful of the types of carbs on theketo diet, the affect is that people wont stay in that ketosis state.

4. Checking with a GP

Its important to check with a local doctor or a dietitian when thinking about undergoing the keto diet for the first time. People who are pregnant and breastfeeding should not undergo the keto diet because the risk follows in becoming insufficient in nutrients not only for yourself but for the infant.

On top of this, Helen Bond says that completely removing carbs from your diet can trigger other health drawbacks.

She adds: The aim of keto is to force the body to use fat as its main energy source when this happens a person produces ketones to fuel parts of the body that cannot use fat as an energy source like the brain.

Side effects of this are tiredness, fatigue, low mood, lack of concentration and bad breath.

Overall, both diets come with health benefits, including weight loss and an improvement of diabetic markers.

However, if you want to blitz body fat and not have a completely restrictive diet low-carb is probably the best way to go.

In particular, low-carb seems to be more sustainable whereas keto can be unrealistic for people who actually like eating carbs and who struggle to get enough fibre.

On top of this, a low-carb diet does not involve putting the body into an unnatural state like ketosis which is difficult to maintain and can trigger the keto flu and poor moods.

However, as Helen Bond says, carbs are a key part of our daily diet and provide us with energy and fibre for a healthy gut.

So, if you are going to opt for the low-carb diet, make sure youre still having a healthy balanced diet.

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Weight loss: Low carb vs keto diet experts reveal which helps you shed pounds faster - The Irish Sun

2019 was a year to remember. We enjoyed a chicken sandwich war, got really into ros and discovered Trader Joes sells wine in a can. Chalk this year up as a win.

But not everything was rosy were all still making egregious mistakes out there in the food world. Perhaps another year and a little more perspective will turn the tide as we age into the roaring 20s.

Here are just some of the things that need a do-over.

1. Gluten-Free When You Dont Need To Eat Gluten-Free

Death, taxes and seeing gluten-free everywhere you go. As we embark on the 20s, its high time we get a little perspective when it comes to that wonderful substance that gives bread that singular chew we find so addicting.

Unless you have a true diagnosed celiac disease, its usually the other ingredients that are a problem [for your health], like quick rise yeast and a lot of sugar, said Mareya Ibrahim, celebrity chef and author of Eat Like You Give a Fork.

Not to mention, many gluten-free flours are just refined white flours, which arent great for you, Ibrahim added. As weve written in the past, breads that are high in sugars and refined flour tend to pack on the weight and dont offer the nutrients of whole-grain breads.

Obviously, those with celiac or gluten allergies absolutely need to abstain, but in many ways the gluten-free trends popularity is just a smidge ridiculous.

As Ibrahim put it, Listen, youre not fooling anyone with a gluten-free fried doughnut.

Valeriya Tikhonova via Getty Images

Its an avocado. Its bread. I dont care if youre throwing watermelon radish or regular radish on it, its not worth $13.

Is it good? Yes, avocado toast is amazing. Its also why Ive been making it in my own kitchen since I discovered bread and the wonderful spreadability of the avocado.

Now I cant get a sensibly priced avocado toast outside the home because so many of you have decided that dropping serious coin on this overpriced menu item is reasonable at brunch. I feel like we should blame the bottomless mimosa for such a poor fiscal decision.

The first rule of the ketogenic diet is that you tell everyone that you are on the ketogenic diet. The second rule is that you get a friend to join as if you were trying to recruit for your downline.

Theres a reason you know at least a couple of people on this diet: It sounds amazing. At its root, keto means eating low-carb, high-fat until you inevitably fall off the pizza wagon or decide that you can indeed have too much bacon for one lifetime.

One worry about a diet like this is that its restrictive, often cutting out foods that are actually beneficial for your body.

Ibrahim referred to one of her Facebook videos on cleansing: Thats where diets like ketogenic diets worry me a little bit, because theyre so focused on fat and not so much on the fiber. You need the fiber think of it as a broom through your system just raking things through.

As a lover of foods healthy and not-so-healthy, I also find it insanely difficult to subsist on steaks and bacon and wonderfully fatty foods and not want to dive into a bowl of spaghetti. There is a question of how sustainable this type of diet can be for people who struggle to make good nutritional choices.

Also, when you load up on fat, there are other concerns. Eating a ton of bacon and cheese is not a long-term approach to overall health, Ibrahim said. Your poor arteries.

4. Believing Plant-Based Meat Alternatives Are Perfect

When it comes to plant-based meat alternatives, squeezing the texture and taste of actual meat out of a faux substance is indeed possible. But some liberties are taken in its creation.

Animal meat is high in saturated fat, but plant-based alternatives have their own issues.

Often manufacturers of these plant-based meats load them with excess sugar, fat and sodium to compensate for their bland taste and texture, explained nutritionist and Candida diet creator Lisa Richards. The sodium content of some meat alternatives can reach nearly 20% [daily value] for sodium while most animal burgers stay around 5% DV.

Ibrahim has previously dissected the benefits and pratfalls of the budding plant-based meat industry.

She found that while a ground beef patty has about 4.2 grams of saturated fat, a Beyond Burger of the same size has 6 grams and an Impossible Burger comes in at 8 grams.

It seems counterproductive to add fat to a plant-based meat, but this is common practice for some manufacturers, Richards said. Check the trans and saturated fat content to confirm you are consuming less than you would with an animal-based alternative.

5. Unicorn Anything

At some point, we all became pretty jaded with toast for being, well, too milquetoast. The solution was to unicorn it up.

Instead of making the toppings delicious, we colored them and moved ever closer to living in a Skittles commercial.

The amount of sugar in these over-the-top rainbow bowls overflowing with toppings that look like a unicorn pooped on it is killing people, Ibrahim said. They might be pretty, if youre 5, but not healthy, especially in the morning.

Johner Images via Getty Images

6. Celery Everything

Sadly, very few people in the history of the world have ever shoehorned how delicious celery was into a conversation. Then, 2019 happened and everyone looked to celery as a savior, because when the world hits rock bottom you tend to grasp at anything.

Richards does give major props to it, though: Celery contains some healthy micronutrients, including lots of beneficial flavonoids. These are plant compounds that act as antioxidants in our bodies and reduce inflammation.

But as for being a miracle vegetable, hold your horses.

No one food can cure all of your ailments, and the claims that celery juice can cure cancer and other serious medical conditions on its own has not been proven by any scientific studies, registered dietitian Alyssa Pike explained to HuffPost in April.

7. Expensive Juices

Unless it comes in tandem with your breakfast meal at the drive-thru, youre going to pay handsomely for juice. Were not talking the orange juice served in a shot glass at the local diner, which is expensive as well. Were talking about that ginger, turmeric, apple-flavored Divine Clarity juice you get at the local juice bar the kind of place that only lets you in if youre wearing yoga pants or are currently embroiled in a conversation while wearing AirPods.

The thing is, juicing is a science. And done poorly, it can rob you of proper nutrition.

Juicing has gotten out of hand, Ibrahim said. You lose all the fiber when you juice, which can make sugar content [go] through the roof. And the cost is prohibitive.

Juicing obviously has myriad benefits. As with anything, widen the scope of what youre eating and imbibing.

Juicing is popular for its supposed health benefits, Richards said. While juicing can lead to weight loss, it does not tend to be sustainable and juices should not replace whole foods and meals. There may be a significant amount of nutrients in these beverages, but there are many that are missing from simply following a balanced diet, especially protein to balance out the concentrated carbohydrates.

Or as Ibrahim suggested, Eat the food! It is better for exercising your metabolism, too.

8. Intermittent Fasting

One interesting way to lose weight has been to call off eating altogether, at least for a short period of time. Intermittent fasting has become increasingly popular, and for good reason.

Intermittent fasting does closely replicate the way that many of our ancestors would have eaten, explained Richards. It slows metabolism less than traditional calorie restriction and, if implemented correctly, can lead to sustained weight loss.

But the concern is that a trending diet like intermittent fasting could lead to egregious missteps for the uninitiated.

While reducing calories [is] an effective means of losing weight in the short term, it can sometimes lead to weight gain in the long term, warned Richards. First, it causes your metabolism to slow down. Your body essentially begins to believe it doesnt need as many calories as it used to, so when you do begin eating more calories, they get stored as fat more quickly. Second, it can actually lead to over-eating in some cases. If you are fasting for a 24-hour period and you have a moment of weakness, you can over-indulge due to hunger and lack of calories.

Done improperly, intermittent fasting can actually put on the weight.

Westend61 via Getty Images

9. Food Created For The Gram

Lets be honest, some of the food out there is designed for Instagram rather than for the belly.

I would love to see over-the-top garnishes disappear, said Joey Schwab, pastry chef at Spiaggia and Caf Spiaggia. Whether its milkshakes accented with a sickly amount of sweets or Bloody Marys with an entire meal on top, its excess for excess sake.

Rather than conjuring something that will leave an indelible culinary mark on the taste buds, their creators often design the items just to look pretty.

These dishes are created with social media in mind in hopes that the photos go viral but with the aesthetic as the top priority, the drinks lose their culinary focus, and in turn, the final product isnt very special, Schwab continued.

Ibrahim echoed the sentiment: The whole Pinterest-perfect and noodled-to-death with tweezers has to go.

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9 Food Trends That Need To Calm Down In 2020 - HuffPost

A wife who "nagged" her husband to go to the doctor's about his sore knee said he probably wouldn't have seen Christmas without their GP's quick-thinking.

Fit and active 81-year-old Ken Layhe had been struggling with his knee for a while when walking and only visited Bodowen surgery in Holywell because wife Irene forced him to get it looked at.

What happened next left Mrs Layhe fearing her husband wouldn't see this Christmas Day.

Dr Rolf Major examined Mr Layhe in October and while checking his abdomen noticed swelling and ordered him to go for a CT scan as soon as possible. He had the scan three days later on October 26.

Within two days he was summoned to hospital after doctors discovered a potentially fatal aortic aneurysm - called a "triple A" (abdominal aortic aneurysm) - measuring between 9-10cm.

Lifesaving surgery, to put a stent in the aneurysm and one in each of the femoral arteries in each thigh, was carried out in early November.

Mr Layhe is now convalescing at his Brynford home with his wife.

Mrs Layhe, 76, said: "It was frightening and I couldn't show it because Ken's a worrier. I thought 'this is serious'. I nagged Ken to go to the doctor's with his knee.

"If Dr Major had not spotted it and those wonderful staff at Ysbyty Glan Clwyd hadn't done such a thorough job I don't think Ken would have been here for Christmas.

"We were just amazed at how kind they were. No matter which ward he went to they were so charming and upbeat. They even came to check on him in the high dependency unit. The care was just amazing."

An AAA can form if the sides of theaorta weaken and balloon outwards. It's not always clear why this happens, but there are things that increase the risk.

Speak to your GP if you're worried you may be at risk of an AAA. They may suggest having a scan to check if you have one and making healthy lifestyle changesto reduce your risk of an AAA.

The recommended treatment for an AAA depends on how big it is.

Treatment is not always needed straight away if the risk of an AAA bursting is low.

Ask your doctor if you're not sure what size your AAA is.

There are several things you can do to reduce your chances of getting an AAA or help stop one getting bigger.

An aortic aneurysm is a bulge in the main aorta carrying blood from your heart to the rest of your body. If it ruptures it can cause death within seven minutes and eight out of 10 people die before reaching hospital.

The aorta normally measures 2cm in diameter and become an aneurysm at around 3cm. Mr Layhe's was three times that size.

Mr Layhe, who also underwent a quadruple bypass 14 years ago, said: "The doctor insisted I had the CT scan as quickly as possible. An aneurysm between 4-5cm is considered fairly large and would need attention.

"Everyone over 65 is entitled and should go for an aneurysm check. It's age-related in some respects."

The free GP check is available for men in their 65th year as the risks of developing a "triple A" increase with age, whether you have smoked and whether you have high blood pressure - among other factors.

Reflecting on his close call Mr Layhe was full of admiration for his wife of 45 years. He said: "It makes you think and you start to worry and prepare things - it isn't easy. But Irene's a very positive person and she nagged me to get it seen to."

Joanne Garzoni, Vascular Network Manager, said: "Were really pleased to hear Mr Layhes comments about his care. It shows a great example of teamwork between our vascular and cardiac physiology colleagues at Glan Clwyd Hospital.

"The Health Board and Public Health Wales work together to provide aortic aneurysm screening and treatment for men aged 65 and over.

"Its really important that men who are invited for a routine scan take advantage of the screening programme to pick up what is a potentially deadly condition."

For information on the Wales AAA screening programme, follow this link

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The husband who wouldn't have seen Christmas if it wasn't for quick-thinking GP - Daily Post

A tidal wave of fat, and the ailments that come with it, now appears virtually inevitable in the United States.

New research finds that by 2030, nearly half of American adults 49.2% to be exact will be obese. In every single state, no fewer than 35% of adults will have a body mass index of at least 30, the threshold that defines obesity.

New years resolutions aside, this is not about whether youll fit into your skinny jeans a decade from now. Body mass index, a measure of fatness based on a persons height and weight, has its limitations as a predictor of personal health. But in large populations where rates of obesity are higher, people tend to be sicker, live shorter lives, and incur steeper healthcare expenses.

And that means the new study results are a harbinger of pretty poor American health.

Even worse: As the nation continues to accumulate fat, nearly 1 in 4 U.S. adults will havesevere obesity.

Defined as having a BMI of 40 or above, severe obesity will become about as common in 2030 as regular obesity was in the 1990s. Where Americans were already obese, the generation behind them is expected to become severely obese and their risk of joint and back problems, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, certain cancers and early death will be even higher.

The findings were published in this weeks edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Public health researchers at Harvard and George Washington University made these projections by applying established weight trends to Americans across the lifespan and across the map. To hone in on states obesity rates, they combed through existing data and corrected it to account for the fact that people routinely lie to researchers about their weight. Then, they used each states history of weight gain to forecast its future.

The resulting projections represent a stark increase from current obesity rates. In 2015-2016, the last period for which there are reliable figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 39.8% of adult Americans were obese. That translates into 93.3 million people with a condition that the American Medical Assn. calls a disease state.

The weight of these grim statistics is not distributed evenly. For instance, 21.1% of U.S. men are projected to be severely obese in 2030, along with 27.6 % of U.S. women. In fact, severe obesity by then will make up the largest single weight category for women.

In addition, severe obesity will affect 23.4% of non-Latino white adults, 24.5% of Latino adults and 31.7% of non-Latino black Americans.

Income matters too, with severe obesity heavily clustered at the bottom of the economic ladder. It is projected to affect 21.6% of adults in households with incomes above the 2030 equivalent of $50,000 and 31.7% of adults in households making $20,000 or less per year.

States like California, Colorado and Hawaii long appeared to buck the national trend of inexorable weight gain. But by 2030, they too are expected to have populations in which more than one in three adults are obese.

In a cluster of southern states dubbed the stroke belt, the situation is more dire. Close to six in 10 adults in Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Oklahoma are expected to be obese in 2030, and the proportion of adults in those states who are severely obese is projected to top 30%.

Zachary J. Ward, lead author of the study, said the increase in the nations obesity rates has shown few signs of slowing since the 1980s. Despite decades of hand-wringing, fat shaming and obesity-prevention campaigns, no state whose population has remained steady has succeeded in stabilizing its weight, much less reducing obesity.

The failure of obesity-prevention efforts aimed at children, in fact, is helping to drive these continued increases in adult obesity, Ward said.

An earlier simulation exercise by his research group projected that 57% of American kids alive in 2017 will be obese by the time theyre 35. And the evidence is clear that for at least several decades after that, an adults weight typically continues to climb.

The result: Not only is obesity established earlier, driving population rates upward. When it sets in in early midlife, the stage is set for more people to develop severe obesity.

By 2030, that escalation of weight gain will have the curious result of reducing the proportion of Americans who are expected to be considered overweight, defined as having a BMI between 25 and 29.9. (A BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 is considered a healthy weight.)

While a reduction in overweight Americans might be seen an an encouraging sign, the reality is far less positive, Ward said. Weight gain has become so rapid that more adults will pass quickly through the overweight phase and proceed directly to obesity or worse, to severe obesity.

The disparities in obesity along gender, ethnic, economic and geographic lines mean that no one strategy is going to solve this problem, Ward said.

What works to stabilize weight in Latinos may differ from what works in African-Americans. In Arkansas and Oklahoma, public health experts might look for ways not only to prevent obesity, but to forestall the expansion of severe obesity. Many of the cultural and environmental factors that contribute to weight gain in low-income Americans are likely different than those that promote weight gain in higher-income households.

In any case, its clear that simply exhorting people to lose weight is not enough, Ward said. With obesity threatening to become the new normal among American adults, public health experts might do well to redefine what counts as success.

Prevention is key, Ward said. But even for people with obesity, each step up the BMI ladder increases the risk of serious health problems. At this point, helping the obese to stabilize their weight, whatever it is, might be the best way to improve Americans health prospects, said Ward.

That could still be a public health victory if we could get people to stop gaining more weight, he said.

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By 2030, nearly half of all U.S. adults will be obese, experts predict - Los Angeles Times

Be honest. Do you read the nutrition labels on your yogurt, bread or salsa at the grocery store? Maybe you peek at the calorie content, but do you look at the other nutritional components or the serving size before putting it in your cart?

Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services.Policy

Here preventive cardiology dietitian Kate Patton, RD, LD, explains 7 key things you should look for on food labels to help you manage any cardiac risk factors you have.

You probably know that calories are listed in bold type near the top of food labels, where its visible at a glance. But If you are trying to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight, this number isnt enough.

Check the amount of calories per serving, Patton says. Serving size is very important.

Because consumers are more likely to buy foods with a reasonable calorie content, the calories may be listed for an unrealistic portion size like 10 chips.

You cant assume its for the entire bag or box, Patton says. If you dont watch the portion size, its easy to consume many more calories than you expect.

The amount of total fat in a food is listed in grams, with types of fats listed separately below.

On the right, youll see the number of grams for total fat and saturated fat as percentages of the recommended amount per day, now called percentage of daily value (%DV), on a 2,000-calorie-per-day diet.

If you have high cholesterol, the amount of saturated fat is important. To lower your cholesterol, no more than 5% of your total daily calorie intake should come from saturated fat, Patton says.

The recommended amount of cholesterol is 300 mg a day, but Patton says this is too much.

Strive to consume less, she says.

Because sodium causes water retention, a low-sodium diet is a must for people with heart failure or hypertension. A food can be labeled low sodium if it contains 140 mg or less.

If you have heart failure, your doctor will set a daily limit for sodium.

If you have hypertension or are at risk for it, you should restrict sodium intake to a maximum of 1,500 mg a day. You are considered at risk if you have diabetes or kidney disease, are African-American or are age 50 or older.

Most other people can limit their sodium intake to 2,300 mg a day.

Carbohydrates (or carbs) are sugars and foods that turn into sugar.

Bad carbs raise blood sugar quickly and contribute to the formation of harmful triglycerides. Bad carbs are listed on labels as added sugars. The category includes table sugar, honey, molasses, high fructose corn syrup and any other form of sugar that is not naturally found in the food.

The %DV for added sugar is 36 g a day for men (about 9 teaspoons) and 25 g a day for women (6 teaspoons).

If you have prediabetes, diabetes or high triglyceride levels, you want to steer clear of bad carbs.

Foods high in dietary fiber are considered good carbs. Thats because they turn into sugar more slowly, which helps keeps blood sugar levels even and prevents spikes.

Just about everyone should eat more fiber, Patton says. Its especially important when trying to lower your cholesterol. Aim for at least 25 g of fiber a day. Men need up to 35 g, she says.

The DV of protein is 50 g, although most Americans consume more than that, Patton says. Protein is always listed on the label, even if its not present in the food.

Knowing the amount of protein may be important for someone with chronic kidney disease, who has to limit protein intake, she says.

Many vitamins and minerals used to be listed last on the labels. Today, youll find only those considered important for a balanced diet. These include vitamin D and potassium.

Thats because many Americans do not get the recommended amounts, Patton says. Vitamin D is necessary for bone health. Potassium is important for controlling blood pressure. Calcium and iron are also listed.

Look at the %DV, just so you make sure you understand how much that serving will contribute to the total amount you need in a day, Patton says. You can trust that the figures are based on new scientific evidence for the amount of nutrients you should consume or not exceed.

Besides the actual nutrition facts label, Patton says its important to read the actual ingredient list. She recommends you:

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How to Read Food Labels If You Have Heart Disease - Health Essentials from Cleveland Clinic

MONIKA Bhudia watched her husband Mitul opening his Christmas presents, tears spilling from his eyes, as she choked back her own.

The devoted dad was losing his fight with incurable lung cancer and they both knew this was the last Christmas he would spend with his wife and two young daughters, Amiya, now 10 and Vianna, six.

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Just three months earlier the couple from Harrow, who met when they were 17 and married in 2007, had been blissfully happy.

Life was amazing, we couldnt really ask for more- our family was all that mattered," Monika tells the Sun Online.

"Mits loved cars, holidays and food, he was passionate about his job as a heating engineer and had recently been promoted to team manager.

But in September 2018, their world fell apart when Mitul was diagnosed with lung cancer and, by December, they knew he had less than a year to live.

Sadly, the devoted dad-of-two passed away in January and, last month, Monika, 38, went back to Northwick Park Hospital in London to thank the Macmillan cancer nurse who helped them through their darkest days.

If Macmillan hadnt been there for Mits, I think he wouldve worried a lot more and been a lot more scared, says Monika. They gave him advice and answers to his questions. If he was unsure, there was someone to ask.

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In August last year Mitul, who had smoked since he was a teenager, developed a persistent cough.

He initially put it down to a smokers coughand was prescribed antibiotics.

But a month later he began to lose weight and developed night sweats, which doctors suspected were symptoms of the bacterial infection Tuberculosis. He also had a golf ball sized lump in his neck.

After a biopsy on the lump and blood tests, Mitul was given an appointment with a consultant at Northwick Park Hospital and opted to go alone.

He told Monika It's going to be fine. Theyre going to tell me its TB and give me some medication and then I'll meet you for lunch.

But at 2pm, he called with devastating news.

He asked me to come to the hospital straight away and said he had lung cancer. My world fell apart.

I just broke down. I was in shock and there were so many emotions going through my head. I was thinking, Why us? What does it mean for my daughters? How are we going to cope?"

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Lung cancer is the third most common cancer in the UK, and around 46,400 people are diagnosed with it each year. About 1 in 10 people who get lung cancer (10 per cent) have never smoked, and more than 4 in 10 people (44 per cent) who are diagnosed are aged 75 and over.

Initially, Mitul was reluctant to reveal the diagnosis, telling only immediate family.

My first reaction was what and how are we going to tell our children, says Monika. Cancer silenced us. I felt broken at the thought of losing my husband, father of my children my soulmate. You want to protect those you love.

The couple decided to be as honest as they could with the girls, then nine and five.

We sat them down and told them that Daddy has cancer, but Im not sure they completely understood, says Monika.

It was really hard. Both our girls needed their daddy.

Mitul began chemotherapy treatment in October but at the beginning of December he began to develop breathing problems, and was admitted to A&E.

After further tests, doctors discovered the cancer had spread to his right lung, lymph nodes, neck, windpipe and bones.

Monika says: Mits was distraught. Although he asked not to know his life expectancy, the clear implication was that he would be dead within a year.

The Macmillan nurses suggested Mitul wrote letters to his loved ones, especially the girls, but he assured Monika there was no need.

He was a man of very few words and he just got on with it. He had a very positive outlook," she says.

"Even through the treatment he insisted he would get through it, everything was going to be OK but I wish he had written those letters.

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That Christmas, the couple tried to make it as special as possible, for the sake of the girls.

We had prepared ourselves mentally that this was going to be our last Christmas together as a family, she says.

By now, the girls knew that Daddy was very ill and that we needed to look after him and make every occasion special for him.

Normally, we go crazy with friends and family and we pack so much in - but last Christmas it was just the four of us for Christmas lunch, which he enjoyed.

We opened all our gifts together in the morning, as we usually would do. But this time he was in tears, knowing he may not be here to open presents next Christmas.

Nobody wants to see their husband cry so that was hard, but I knew I had to be strong for him and stop myself from breaking down.

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In the new year, Mituls health deteriorated further, and he was admitted to another hospital and underwent a course of radiotherapy.

On January 29, he was discharged but the following day, as Monika prepared breakfast for the children and got them ready for school, she heard her husband shout from the bedroom.

The metal stents the doctors had inserted to keep his airways open collapsed, and Mitul died almost instantly, with his family by his side.

It happened very quickly, in about five minutes. Both the girls were crying and I had to ask them to step aside and let the paramedics do what they needed to do. But they couldnt save him.

Devastated at losing her soulmate, Monika has vowed to keep his memory alive in the girls minds.

We talk about him all the time and this summer we scattered his ashes off the Seychelles, because he loved the Indian Ocean, she says.

That gave us some closure. But I think about him every day. Last week I was just making breakfast for the girls and I broke down. Any little memory can trigger me.

Special occasions like Christmas, birthdays and Diwali are especially hard because you see others celebrating with loved ones.

When there's somebody missing in the household it's hard to carry on as usual. This Christmas will be very lonely.

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Since his tragic death, Monika and Mituls close family and friends have raised a staggering 30,000 in Mituls memory for Macmillan Cancer Support, with a team of over 30 taking part in fundraisers including Run Regents Park and did their own London to Brighton bike ride in October.

Monika adds: Cancer makes you realise whats really important. I just try to be positive and enjoy every day I continue for my girls and the promises that Ive made to Mits - I take nothing for granted.

Without Macmillan, I think the world would be a very scary place. Its quite hard to imagine what it would have been like without them, which is why I decided I wanted to give back.

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I just wanted to raise money to thank them for everything they do to support people affected by cancer. You never know when you might need their help yourself, and I encourage people to do the same through events like Worlds Biggest Coffee Morning the money raised really does make all the difference.

Cancer doesnt stop at Christmas and neither does Macmillan Cancer Support. Without your donations we simply cannot support the growing number of people who need us no matter what time of year it is. Donate today to help us this Christmas: https://www.macmillan.org.uk/donate

Mituls tribute fundraising page can be found here: https://macmillan.tributefunds.com/mitul-bhudia

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My husband wept as he opened presents on Christmas morning because he knew it was his last one - The Sun

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