Congestive Heart Failure is a condition that occurs when the heart is not able to pump oxygen rich blood to the rest of the body. It can be caused by:
1. weakness of the muscles of the heart,
2. a disorder caused by the stiffening of the heart muscles, or
3. an increase in the oxygen demand by the body beyond which the heart is able to satisfy and deliver adequate oxygen-rich blood (e.g like in some cases of anemia).

The pumping action of the ventricles can be impaired in several ways. For example, the ventricular muscles can be weakened by previous heart attacks or infections (myocarditis). This gives rise to systolic dysfunction (diminished pumping ability of the ventricles due to muscle weakening). After systole (each ventricular contraction) the ventricle muscles need to relax to allow blood from the atria to fill the ventricles. This relaxation of the ventricles is called diastole. Diastolic dysfunction, on the other hand, occurs when the ventricles are not able to relax and fill. This can be caused by the stiffening of the heart muscles due to iron overload (Hemochromatosis) or amyloidosis. However, longstanding high blood pressure is the most common cause of diastolic dysfunction which can result in a thickened (hypertrophied) heart.

This video below (from Biodigitalsystems) gives a visual explanation to congestive heart failure.

What if you were diagnosed with a curable 'disease' or 'illness'? Would you allow your body to slowly deteriorate into nothingness or will you do what you can to get better and live longer??
If you're like most people you would probably choose the latter and try to live longer. Right??

Then, why are we allowing ourselves to flirt with our mortality by way of heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, chronic liver disease/ cirrhosis and arteriosclerosis, just to name a few. These conditions can be reversed by means of daily activity a.k.a exercise, healthy food choices, self control, and education.

Remember, you have the ability to make the necessary changes to improve your lifestyle and your health for the long term. All you have to do is want it.

So, what are you waiting for????

Americans everywhere are suffering from Low Back pain. It has become one of the most common chronic conditions today.

Some sources of low back pain can include (but are not limited to):
- Disc bulging or herniation
- End plate Fracture
- Pinched nerve
- Muscle sprains
- Arthritis, inflammation
- Fracture of posterior structures
- Spondylolisthesis (happens when a vertebrae moves forward, relative to the one below it)
- Actual tissue damage around spine
- One pain issue leading to or turning into another

For this post, we will focus on the first source, disc herniation. Please view the video below (from YouTube) for a detailed description of how herniation occurs.

Stay tuned to the ‘FanTasie Training’ section of this website, for more information about back pain sources, how they occur and how to they can be avoided.