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How Can Running Improve Your Health? by Dr. Rajan Bhatt

Everyone knows that exercise helps improve your health, but perhaps you are wondering what specific benefits running provides. Rajan Bhatt, MD, discusses three health issues that can be improved by running.

Running will lower the LDL levels (bad cholesterol) and raise the HDL levels (good cholesterol) in your blood. It will also improve your heart function. Researchers at the University of British Columbia discovered that increasing the number of calories burned by 1000 per week, which is equivalent to running ten miles in a week, decreases your risk of premature death by 20 percent.

Diabetes can be managed by running. Researchers have found that adding about five miles of running per week will decrease the occurrence of Type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes happens when your body produces insulin but does not properly use the available insulin.

Another disease helped by running is osteoporosis. Athletes who participate in high-impact sports, such as running, have a higher bone density than athletes who only participate in low-impact sports, like bicycling or using an elliptical machine. Women who already have osteoporosis can decrease the severity of their disease by running.

Dr. Rajan Bhatt is a cardiologist and an avid runner. Dr. Bhatt is licensed to practice in Arizona and Florida.

A Brief Overview of Echocardiography

As a member of the American Society of Echocardiography since 2007, Dr. Rajan Bhatt possesses a deep understanding of the techniques used in echocardiography. In 2010, Dr. Bhatt and three co-writers published an article titled “Are All Ventricular Septal Defects Created Equal?” in the Journal of the American Society of Echocardiography. The article examined the case of a man who developed endocarditis. An echocardiogram revealed a ventricular defect, which led Dr. Bhatt and his co-authors to suggest that certain defects created a greater risk for endocarditis. Echocardiography, which is also known as a cardiac ultrasound, is a sonogram of the heart that is used to diagnose cardiovascular diseases. It is one of the most common diagnostic methods used today.

An echocardiogram, showing a ventricular septal defect. The colors indicate direction and speed of blood flow.

Echocardiography utilizes ultrasound technology to develop a two- or three-dimensional image of a patient’s heart. In some cases, doctors use the Doppler ultrasound to increase the effectiveness of flow-related measurements in the heart. A sonogram of the heart reveals a picture of the velocity of blood flow and state of cardiac tissue. When a doctor obtains an accurate echocardiogram, he or she can assess the patient’s heart health and observe any defects in the heart. The most common form of echocardiography is known as a transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE). In a TTE, a probe is placed on the chest of the patient and a non-invasive sonogram is taken through the chest wall. Alternative echocardiography options include transesophageal echocardiograms (TEE), in which a probe is inserted into a person’s esophagus.