5 Powerful Ways to Strengthen Your Heart Health: Heart health is one of the major public concerns in Australia. The good news is that besides taking doctor-prescribed medications, there are several actions you can take to improve heart health.
Read on for more information and tips to ensure you are making the right efforts to keep your heart as healthy as can be.
Know The Importance of Your Heart Health
The heart is a muscular organ that works beat by beat, second by second, for 24 hours a day. It is responsible for pumping blood, supplying oxygen and nutrients, and removing metabolic waste in the body.
Knowing that the heart is one of the most vital organs keeping us alive, it is important to treat it like the ‘central to overall good health as it is.
Despite that fact, heart disease ranks as one of the most common deaths among men and women, claiming millions of lives every year. Heart disease emerges when plaque (cholesterol-containing deposits in the arteries) builds up, restricting blood flow to the heart’s chambers. Interrupted blood flow can lead to heart attack, sudden cardiac death, and stroke.
While the possibilities are concerning, the good news is that there are simple lifestyle changes that can help you avoid or slow down the development of any heart-related problems. Making these changes can have the biggest positive impact on your heart health.
5 Ways to Keep Your Heart Healthy
Here are 5 powerful ways to strengthen your heart health.
Stay Active
Regular physical activity and exercise can significantly reduce your risk of developing heart disease. It can even reverse other risk factors, such as being overweight and having high cholesterol or high blood pressure (HBP).
Staying active means something other than buying fancy exercise equipment or enrolling in a gym. The key is to get up, move, and go for a walk. Even simple things like going for a walk, taking the stairs, dancing, or doing some sit-ups can help you stay active.
One of the best exercises to improve heart health is Aerobics or ‘cardio’. It helps strengthen the heart to efficiently pump blood to deliver oxygen and other nutrients to vital organs of the body. Engaging in regular exercise also helps lower the risk of developing plaque in the arteries.
Eat balanced diet
Eating the right foods can help maintain a healthy weight, blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol levels.
Balance is the key to eating healthy foods in the long run. A heart-healthy diet consists mainly of fruits, whole grains, nuts, and proteins. Eating this way most of the time can give the heart the nutrients it needs to become stronger.
Keep colour in mind as you choose from a variety of vegetables. Choose a colourful plate consisting of red, orange, yellow, and dark green vegetables containing the vitamins and minerals you need.
Try to eliminate and cut down ‘junk foods’ or heavily processed foods such think crackers, potato chips, and even drive-through foods. Instead, opt for foods that are low in sodium.
Drink water and cut off soda and emergency drinks that contains an incredible amount of sugar. Drinking at least 8 ounces of water a day can significantly impact your health for the better.
Watch Your Weight
Maintaining a healthy weight is the key to better heart health. The more weight you gain, the higher your body max index (BMI) will be.
BMI is a standard measure of body fat based on height and weight to work out if you are within the healthy range. The higher the BMI is, the higher the risk of health complications, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and high blood sugar levels.
Being overweight or obese is also linked to several breathing problems, gallbladder disease, liver disease, and cancer.
Healthy food choices with regular exercise are the best way to lose weight. Maintaining your BMI in a healthy range can make a big difference in your health.
Get enough sleep
A healthy adult needs at least 7 hours of sleep every night. However, it is alarming that 1 in every 4 Australians does not get the recommended amount of sleep. While this may be fine for a day or two, getting insufficient sleep over time can lead to serious health complications.
According to a 2011 study published by the American Heart Association (AHA), poor sleeping quality is connected to an increased risk of HBP, which is a potential cause of heart disease.
To prevent such, sleep a solid 7 or 8 hours every night to achieve good heart health. The better night’s sleep you get, the healthier the heart will be.
Manage blood pressure
High blood pressure (HBP, or hypertension) is a symptomless “silent killer” that quietly damages blood vessels and leads to serious health problems.
Staying active and eating a heart-healthy diet while lowering salt intake and managing stress can help prevent the development of hypertension and naturally lower your blood pressure.
Earlier and better treatment of high blood pressure has played a key role in that decrease.
The heart is the powerhouse of the body – which is why it is important to provide it with the attention and care it needs.
Learn First Aid
These little healthy changes today can result in big benefits for the heart over time. Consistently practising good lifestyle habits will enable you to reap the health benefits later in life.
Understanding the risk factors and associated causes is an important step to prevent yourself from becoming a statistic of this deadly disease. One of the most vital things to do is to follow a healthy lifestyle that is proven to decrease your risk of heart disease.
The more you know about heart health, the more power you have to stay healthy.
First Aid Pro Adelaide offers comprehensive first aid courses to help you understand your risk of heart disease and other health-related problems. Our courses can be tailored depending on individual or group needs – whether for personal or professional use.
To know more about first aid courses, call (08) 7120 2570 or visit our course page for more information.
