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H E A LT H Y
beat
NEWS
Ideas For Your Dream House
The 47th annual Johnson City Area Home Builders Association Home Sweet Home and Garden Show is a great place to find out about the latest home trends. › By Debra McCown From the basics to innovative new products and solutions that you might not have heard of, you’ll find everything you need to make your house a home.
“I
t’s everything under one roof that a consumer would need to either build or remodel a home with reputable businesses,” says Lisa Luster, executive director of the Johnson City Home Builders Association. “The consumer can basically do one-stop shopping.” The Home Sweet Home and Garden Show has grown in recent years, Luster says, and this will be its second year inside East Tennessee State University’s Mini-Dome, which offers three times the space of the former location. The larger venue has made it possible to add some unique features, including buildings constructed by exhibitors inside the arena and a broader range of activities, including workshops for kids. The annual show features everything related to home building and remodeling. Among the topics covered are excavation, landscaping, building, remodeling, paving, carpeting and flooring, roofing, HVAC systems, electrical systems, water treatment systems, windows and doors, siding, cabinets and countertops, appliances, outbuildings and garage doors. The show also includes local building departments to help answer questions and opportunities to connect with licensed professional contractors. “We are all about either new homes or taking the home that you’re in now and making
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it the living space At the home you’ve always wanted. and garden It’s still that American show you’re Dream,” Luster says. “We’ve also going to see noticed over the things you past few years that need, but a lot of people aren’t you’re also doing vacations; going to get an they’re saving their opportunity money, and they’re to see things doing staycations, that you never so our landscapers knew you are a huge part of needed. our show.” Other trends that › Lisa Luster have been building in the last few years include small structures—from tiny houses to workshops to guest cottages to elaborate playhouses. Despite highly publicized layoffs in the region, Luster says, the housing market— including new construction—is on the upswing in the Tri-Cities. Remodeling, including the addition of spaces like home theater rooms, is an even bigger trend. “At the home and garden show you’re going to see things you need, but you’re also going to get an opportunity to see things that you never knew you needed,” Luster says.
Want To Go? › THE JOHNSON CITY AREA HOME BUILDERS ASSOCIATION 47TH ANNUAL HOME SWEET HOME AND GARDEN SHOW › February 19-21 › ETSU Mini-Dome › jcahba.org
tchealthyliving.com › FEB’16
O T W HO A E V HA RT HEA K C A ATT BY JOANN GUIDRY
Every
seconds,
someone in the United States has a heart attack. As serious as a heart attack.
That’s a phrase that people often use to convey how serious they are about something. And it’s a fitting analogy because, indeed, a heart attack is serious business. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 735,000 Americans suffer a heart attack every year. Of that number, an estimated 525,000 are a first heart attack, 210,000 happen to people who have already had a heart attack and 120,000 people die from a heart attack. Also called a myocardial infarction, a heart attack happens when the flow of oxygen-rich blood to the heart is reduced or even blocked. The longer this blood flow is disrupted, the greater the damage to
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tchealthyliving.com › FEB’16
the heart muscles, possibly leading to death. The leading cause of heart attacks is coronary heart disease, which develops thanks to a condition known as atherosclerosis. Blame the latter on too much cholesterol plaque building up inside the coronary arteries that supply the oxygen-rich blood to the heart, thus disrupting the all-important blood flow. According to the American Heart Association, high levels (over 100mg/dl) or low-density lipoprotein (LDL), aka “bad cholesterol,” and low levels (under 40mg/dl in men and 55mg/dl in women) of highdensity lipoprotein (HDL), aka “good cholesterol,” increases the risk of a heart attack. A coronary artery spasm is a less common cause of heart attacks. The spasm can cut off blood flow through an artery, even in those not affected by atherosclerosis. According to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, a coronary artery spasm may be caused by cigarette smoking, extreme emotional stress or pain, taking certain drugs such as cocaine and exposure, particularly coupled with exertion, to extreme cold.
Her
activiteieasre 12
that ca contribu te to a he n art attack— and wha t you can do to low er your risk .
Smoke Even One Cigarette A Day. According to the CDC, smoking one to five cigarettes a day increases your heart attack risk by 40 percent compared with non-smokers. Smoking 20 cigarettes (one pack) a day increases your heart attack risk by 50 percent. In a University of Germany study of 30,000 people, half who were heart attack survivors, researchers found that smoking three cigarettes a day negates the protective effects of nearly two-thirds of cholesterol-lowering drugs and a daily aspirin dose. Smoking damages, thickens and narrows blood vessels; lowers good cholesterol; and raises triglycerides levels in the blood, all which contribute to heart disease.
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Eat Too Much Salt. In a Japanese study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, eating too much salt led to high blood pressure and an increased risk of a heart attack. The study involved more than 4,000 people who initially had normal blood pressure and who were monitored for three years. Eating too much salt long term or gradually increasing salt consumption over time both significantly raised the risk of developing high blood pressure in the study participants. At the end of the study, the least amount of sodium being consumed was 2,925mg daily and the most was 5,644mg per day. Most Americans on
2
average consume nearly 3,500mg daily, while the American Heart Association recommends consuming no more than 1,500mg of sodium per day. Sodium increases blood pressure because it causes excess fluid in the body, which stresses the heart. According to The Heart Foundation, a blood pressure reading of more than 140/90mmHg or 130/80mmHg in diabetics is considered high blood pressure or hypertension.
FEB’16 › tchealthyliving.com
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GreatDates BY DEBRA MCCOWN
It’s winter in the Tri-Cities, which means it’s probably chilly outside and there may even be some snow on the ground. But there are still lots of great places you can go—including some you may not have thought of—to make your sweetie feel special.
F
or Valentine’s Day and beyond, here are some ideas to help you get the wheels turning—and maybe even earn you some extra points for creativity.
Romantic Night on the Town Downtown Johnson City
Enjoy one of Johnson City’s best culinary experiences, then take your pick among two nearby music venues: a busy stage with a pub or a calm listening room with a coffee bar. If fine dining and quiet romantic moments appeal to you, then you may want to check out Ginocchio’s, a twice-a-month dinner that features a four-course meal for a set price. “We basically transform the whole restaurant,” says Tim Swinehart, the classically trained chef who turns Buffalo Street Downtown Deli into a fine dining restaurant for these special meals. “We serve unique northern Italian dishes with a very traditional flair.” If your date night doesn’t line up with the schedule of Ginocchio’s, you could visit another of Johnson City’s classy downtown restaurants like Tupelo Honey Café, which features romantic views from inside a
restored train station, or Portico, which features a tapas menu and brickoven pizza. For after-dinner entertainment, there are two great options right beside each other on East Main Street: The Willow Tree Coffeehouse and Music Room, a laid-back listening room that serves coffee and beer; and Capone’s, an entertainment venue along the lines of Asheville’s Orange Peel, which books a variety of well-known acts. Capone’s also has a pub and a dance club.
Willow Tree
Willow Tree owner Terri Dosher says the focus there is on the music, typically newgrass and folk, and they’re intentional about getting the music started early enough for the afterdinner crowd. “Sometimes it’s chill where you can just sit down,” she says of the
venue, whose walls are covered in local art. “Sometimes we pull all the chairs back so people will dance.” Capone’s is a bit more lively and is named for Al Capone, the early 20th century Chicago gangster said to have frequented Johnson City.
FEB’16 › tchealthyliving.com
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NUTRITION FITNESS BEAUTY
H E A LT H Y
FITNESS
Better Together
A recent study shows that working out with your significant other is incredibly beneficial. Here are just a few reasons you might want to hit the gym with your one-and-only. › You’ll be happier. Engaging in physical activity together will make you more satisfied with your relationship. Source: psychologytoday.com
› You’ll be more efficient. Bringing along a partner can boost your energy output. › You’ll be one step closer to your fitness goals. Caring about your own and your partner’s health makes it easier to be more active. PAGE
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MIND HOME FINANCE
H E A LT H Y
MIND
Negative Nancy Vs. Positive Polly
Happy people are generally more understanding and empathetic, right? Not necessarily, according to recent research in PLOS ONE.
Source: nymag.com
Researchers found that people who are happier have a harder time feeling empathy for others. The study suggested that happy people had a tougher time understanding other’s emotions than the people who were more pessimistic. In fact, the happy people were less likely to recognize the emotional tone of a negative monologue, despite claiming that they were confident in their answers. The people who thought more negatively tended to see the emotions of others and judge them accordingly. This goes to show that sometimes a happy-go-lucky person might not recognize the words that were left unsaid, so it’s always better to communicate effectively and just simply say what you mean.
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