American Heart Association “Clarifies” Hands-Only CPR Position
By admin on Mar 31, 2008 in Uncategorized | comments(0)
Ok. What do dark chocolate, antioxidants, and CPR all have in common? Give up? They’re all good for the heart, granted, each in a different way. Today, a new American Heart Association press release introduced their new Hands-only CPR recommendation, sometimes referred to as compression-only CPR. They called this a “clarification” of their 2005 ECC CPR guidelines, coming short of calling it a new standard. In my humble opinion, I personally view this as a carefully crafted marketing ploy to “one-up” their competing national CPR training course providers. But, again, that is just my humble opinion. 
The American Heart Association even has a spiffy new Hands-only CPR website with a, dare I say, somewhat fun and edgy video promoting the “clarified” 2005 ECC guidelines. Here, check it out for yourself.
All right, just kidding! Here is the real video from the American Heart Association.
Cool, huh? Almost like something a marketing agency would put out, rather than a medical research organization. Go figure!
All kidding aside, as a professional CPR instructor, I do truly believe that the “clarified” AHA guidelines will save additional lives and increase bystander comfort with performing CPR on an adult victim of witnessed sudden collapse. Keep in mind though, that the AHA is NOT recommending that hands-only CPR replace standard CPR, it is only saying that it is a viable option under CERTAIN conditions. Would you like to know more about the clarification and under what circumstances hands only CPR would be used? Then please go to my BLS & ACLS for Dentistry blog.
Of course, there is something even more effective then Hands-only CPR? And what is that you ask? Why, thank you for inquiring! The answer is - PREVENTION. People need to educate themselves on how to avoid sudden cardiac arrest in the first place, and then, more importantly to follow through on that education. That may even involve lifestyle changes, including regular exercise and good nutrition. That is where heart healthy chocolate comes into the picture. Healthy chocolate (not the candy junk that you get in the discount department stores) is rich in antioxidants that promote heart health. This is well documented in many scientific journals, including those published by, yes, the American Heart Association. Check out one example of what the AHA has published on this subject.
AHA - Dark Chocolate Can Lower Blood Pressure
If you want to read more about the scientific findings about chocolate and health check out the following site:
You might also find this HealthWatch new program video of interest too.
Of course as many of you already know, raw cacao (from which chocolate is made) is the #1 source of antioxidants in the world, #2 being the acai berry. Well, the Xocai brand of dark chocolate products are the world’s ONLY chocolate made with a patented cold-press process that avoids the heat normally used in chocolate manufacturing. Heat is raw cacao’s sworn enemy. It destroys nearly 75%-80% of the antioxidants found in raw chocolate. Xocai locks in all of those vital heart-healthy antioxidants and polyphenols with our world exclusive manufacturing process. All of our products also include the benefits of the acai berry. You have to try this stuff out! You think you love chocolate now, just wait until you taste chocolate like this. I promise, you will never go back to the fat and sugar filled versions in the department stores. Most importantly, you will be adopting a heart-healthy lifestyle that will diminish the possibility of some future bystander having to perform Hands-only CPR on you. So, do yourself (and that bystander) a favor and start eating healthy dark chocolate by Xocai today! Want more info? Contact Shannon & Sue Ann Miller below.
