A simple way to lower high blood pressure

Gene tests can reveal early Alzheimer's risk

View this email online September 25, 2022 by Carmel Wroth This week, we learn about a simple breathing exercise that can have a big impact on blood pressure and we meet three sisters who decide to get tested for for early Alzheimer's. Plus: Ryan Reynolds reminds us why we should be getting screened for colon cancer.  How a simple breathing exercise can lower high blood pressure SciePro/Getty Images/Max Posner/NPR A workout for your breathing muscles? It may sound farfetched but it turns out there's growing evidence we can tone up the muscles we use to breathe and doing so helps promote heart health and reduces high blood pressure. Scientists studied the effect of a daily five-minute technique using a resistance-breathing training device. The hand-held machine — one of several on the market — looks like an inhaler. When people breathe into it, the device provides resistance, making it harder to inhale. The results were a big reduction in blood pressure, the equivalent benefit to taking commonly prescribed drugs. Here's how the exercise works and how it could help with athletic endurance too.  PLUS: What you can be doing on a daily basis to prevent heart disease Newsletter continues after sponsor message Your Support Makes a Difference At NPR, every day we work to bring you the best information so you can make informed choices about your health. Our Bill of the Month series dissects and explains medical bills to shed light on the shocking cost of U.S. health care and to help patients learn how they can advocate for themselves.  The impact of the series has saved patients millions in medical bills, and it even helped get a law passed to ban surprise bills. This independent, public service journalism is made possible by your financial support. Please make a donation to WUFT 89.1 .  We remain committed to helping patients navigate our complex health care system. This work wouldn’t have been possible without support from people like you.   With early Alzheimer's in the family, these sisters decided to test for the gene Juan Diego Reyes for NPR In some families, Alzheimer's disease seems inevitable. Nearly a decade ago, Karen Douthitt, 57, June Ward, 61, and an older sister, Susie Gilliam, 64, set out to learn why Alzheimer's was affecting so many family members. "It was always in our peripheral vision," said June. "Our own mother started having symptoms at age 62, so it has been a part of our life." Since then, each sister has found out whether she carries a rare gene mutation that makes Alzheimer's inescapable. There are three mutations that make it almost certain an individual will develop the disease, usually before age 60. There's not much that people with these mutations can do except for participate in research to hopefully help future generations find a cure. And try to make the most of every moment they have left with family.  Read more about how Karen, June and Susie reacted to what their genetic test revealed.  PLUS: you can also listen to their story on NPR's Short Wave. Ryan Reynolds thinks you should get screened for colon cancer -- he's not wrong Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images Hollywood hunk Ryan Reynolds got a colonoscopy after losing a bet. And he's here to remind all of us to keep on top of the screenings, which can be life saving. "I made a bet. I lost. But it still paid off," Reynolds wrote on YouTube, as part of a public awareness campaign for colon cancer. He lost his wager with It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia star Rob McElhenney over whether McElhenney could learn to speak Welsh. If McElhenney won, Reynolds agreed to publicly film his colonoscopy. (Watch them talk about their  But while keeping his side of the bargain, Reynolds' doctor detected a benign polyp — tissue growths which can be a precursor to cancer. Reynolds, who has three kids and is expecting a fourth, had no symptoms of a growing polyp and it was "extremely subtle" before it was removed, his doctor said in a video posted on Tuesday about the experience. We know it's no fun but if Ryan Reynolds can do it, so can you. Here's what to know about when to start, how often to screen and the different ways doctors can detect signs of colon cancer. Before you go Carolina Reid Would you get a vaccine via mosquito bite? Uh-oh, looks like a there’s a twindemic looming this winter Listen: 8 glasses a day? The reality behind hydration myths Look up: City trees can be brimming with tasty fruit for those who dare to forage We hope you enjoyed these stories. Find more of NPR's health journalism on Shots and follow us on Twitter at @NPRHealth. All best, Carmel Wroth and NPR's health editors Listen to your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to hear live radio from WUFT 89.1 (edit station). What do you think of today's email? 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