Health
Amazing facts about the human heart
Every Valentine’s Day, homes and businesses
dress up their decor with cupids and hearts
to celebrate a day all about love and affection.
The heart shape has been used to symbolically
represent the human heart as the center of
emotion and romantic love. Hearts symbolizing
love can be traced back to the Middle Ages.
Those familiar with human anatomy realize
that an actual heart bares very little resemblance
to the ideographic heart shape used in art
and imagery. Similarly, the human heart really
has nothing to do with human emotions. Despite
this, there are many interesting components of
the heart, and a man or woman truly cannot love
or live without one.
The heart as an organ is relatively small in
size. It is roughly the size of a fist and weighs
only 11 ounces on average. Although diminutive,
the heart is responsible for pumping 2,000 gallons
of blood through 60,000 miles of blood vessels
each day. It accomplishes this by beating 72
times a minute in a healthy adult. All of the cells
in the body receive blood except for the corneas
in the eye.
The heart works harder than any other muscle
in the body. In a fetus, it begins beating at
four weeks after conception, and will not stop
until a person’s time of death. Even then, sometimes
the heart can be revived. A heart can also
continue to beat outside of the body provided it
has an adequate oxygen supply.
Although many people refer to all of the blood
vessels in their body as “veins,” they’re actually
a combination of veins and arteries. Veins carry
fresh, oxygenated blood to the body through arteries.
The main artery leaving the left heart
ventricle is called the aorta, while the main artery
leaving the right ventricle is known as the
pulmonary artery. Blood traveling back to the
heart f lows through veins after it has passed
the lungs to pick up oxygen. The thumping noise
that is heard while the heart is beating is actually
the chambers of the heart closing and opening
as blood f lows through.
Camp reunion
COURIER L 36 IFE, JAN. 4–10, 2019 M B G
While the heart may not be the cornerstone of
emotions, it can be affected by feelings. Studies
have shown that a “broken heart” is a real occurrence,
according to Live Science. Bad news
or a breakup with a loved one can put a person
at increased risk for heart attack. This type of
trauma releases stress hormones into the body
that can stun the heart. Chest pain and shortness
of breath ensue but can be remedied after
some rest.
Conversely, laughter and positive feelings can
be beneficial for the heart. Research has shown
that a good laughing fit can cause the lining of
the blood-vessel walls — called the endothelium
— to relax. This helps increase blood f low for up
to 45 minutes afterward.
Although having a big heart colloquially
means that a person is loving and goes out of his
way for others, physically speaking, a big heart
is unhealthy. An enlarged heart can be a sign of
heart disease and compromise the heart’s ability
to pump blood effectively. Left untreated, it
can lead to heart failure.
There is good reason to get amorous with a
loved one on Valentine’s Day or other times during
the month. Being intimate can provide a
physical workout, in some instances doubling a
person’s heart rate and burning up to 200 calories.
That’s the equivalent of a brisk 15-minute
run. Also, a study of 2,500 men aged 49 to 54
found having an orgasm at least three times a
week can cut the likelihood of death from coronary
disease in half, according to The New England
Journal of Medicine.
The heart is an amazing organ responsible
for sustaining life. Although it is not directly
tied to love and emotions, without the heart such
feelings wouldn’t be possible.
Seniors gathered at Borough
Hall on Dec. 13 for the Camp
MetroPlus Holiday Reunion, a
fun-filled holiday party exclusively
for MetroPlus Medicare members.
The elders were all participants
of Camp MetroPlus, a program
launched last summer as part of the
health plan’s drive to reduce isolation
among seniors.
The summer program brought
together MetroPlus Medicare members
over a period of five weeks to
participate in health, wellness, and
social activities, according to reps
for the health plan.
Borough President Adams was
on hand to greet the attendees, and
talk about lessons learned in his
own life about the healing power
of love. The event featured wellness
activities, health screenings,
and safety tips, as well as arts and
crafts, food, music, and dancing.
Camp MetroPlus’s Holiday Reunion
and Camp MetroPlus are part
of a series of initiatives designed to
bring health and wellness services
to the health plan’s members and
the community.
To learn more about the Camp
MetroPlus Holiday Reunion or
Camp MetroPlus, call Kathryn
Knox Soman at (212) 908–8588 or email
somank@metroplus.org.
For more than 30 years,
MetroPlus Health Plan has built a
reputation for providing access to
affordable, quality healthcare to
residents of New York City. A wholly
MetroPlus staff posed with one of the health plan’s camp alumni, second from left, at the
Camp MetroPlus Holiday Reunion held at Brooklyn Borough Hall. MetroPlus team members
pictured from left include Tricha Griffi th, Debra Williams, Jessica Melendez, and Stanley
Peek. MetroPlus
owned subsidiary of NYC Health
+ Hospitals, the largest municipal
health system in the United States,
MetroPlus is the plan of choice for
more than half a million New Yorkers.
Senior alumni of MetroPlus health plan’s
summer camp reunite for holiday party
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