Have you ever had a day where you don’t feel well, but you are not sure why? So did James, our Vice President of the Service Department. He just wasn’t feeling “right” and although he could have shrugged it off, he went to his doctor. The office examination revealed his heartbeat was irregular. More tests revealed the heart wasn’t fully pumping the blood through the chambers and this was causing his symptoms. With an accurate diagnosis he was able to understand his condition and take steps to prevent a more serious medical incident from taking place.
Unfortunately, far too many people wait until they have a heart attack, stroke, or similar serious scare before taking control of their health. While preventing any further damage is a strong incentive for adopting a well-balanced diet and getting regular exercise, waiting to that point means the body has already been harmed to some level. When it comes to heart health we want to revive the old saying that “An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.” The earlier one develops a lifestyle of heart-healthy living the more likely we are to avoid having a medical crisis later.
Do you own either a mobile phone or a smart watch? If so, you have all the tools you need to monitor your heart health every day. Phones come pre-populated with a health app. When you wear a smart watch it has access to your pulse and other biometric measures. It can send you alerts when you are outside a normal range. Alternatively, for around $40 you can buy a blood pressure monitor cuff for use at home. These simple devices help us stay mindful of our heart rate and that is a good start.
If you haven’t been getting regular physical check-ups, consider scheduling one in 2023. Your doctor might request fasting blood work like a Lipid panel (fat/cholesterol), A1C (sugar level), Liver panel or others. An examination and lab results can help your doctor advise a personal plan for health goals.
Because the heart is central to our health, a number of factors influence it’s well-being including: healthy diet, daily activity, ample rest, managing stress and above all of these; the number one help to a healthy heart is to avoid tobacco. Let’s examine each of these briefly.
–Quit Tobacco-
Education campaigns have spread the word for years about the many harmful effects from smoking. The American Heart Association cites, “…traditional cigarettes, e-cigarettes and vaping, is the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S., including about a third of all deaths from heart disease.” If you use tobacco, ask doctor to help you identify options helpful for breaking nicotine cravings.
-Diet-
Something we can all do is choose a heart healthy diet; low in sugar, low in fat and high in fiber. Fruits, vegetables and whole grains provide the highest fiber in food. A great example is the Mediterranean Diet. A step to increase your fiber right away is to incorporate a smoothie into your day or several times a week. Blend fresh and or frozen fruit and add in spinach, which is flavorless in a smoothie. You can increase the nutrition by making it with plant milk like almond, or oatmilk and add protein powder, whey or vegan pea protein which all lower cholesterol.
-Control Cholesterol & Manage Blood Sugar-
What is so bad about cholesterol? The risks of eating a fatty diet can lead to high cholesterol. Normally cholesterol is absorbed into the intestines during digestion. However, when too much cholesterol is present the excess remains in the blood stream and overtime will be absorbed into the veins instead. Those fatty deposits thicken the wall of the vein which narrows the interior of the vein. Narrow passages force the blood through at a higher pressure, and narrowing areas can become blockages. Similarly eating too much sugar or having diabetes also hurts this process, because excess sugar can weaken the wall of the veins to increase absorption of cholesterol. In this way, low fat and low sugar go hand in hand.
-Stress Reduction & Rest-
Part of being human means all of us will experience mental strain in the course of just living life. In fact, our brain is hard-wired to protect us by noticing all things threatening and leans toward a negative outlook. To counteract this, we can place intentional focus on the positive with mindfulness, breathing exercises, or keeping a gratitude journal. When we experience stress, the body releases hormones and over a long period of time these chemicals can negatively affect the heart.
When we feel overwhelmed many of us will unwind with a mindless TV show or chill out with video games, but brain scans have shown that these activities actually do not help reduce our stress, and in some cases add to it. Whereas, creative activities like doing art or playing musical instruments effectively process stress due to a connection between hand movements and the brain. According to the American Heart Association even listening to the right music will, “… tone things down, reduce stress, prepare to sleep, or just change the overall mood.” In addition, getting 8 hours of sleep a night is still the best way to fully rest your brain and keep your heart and body healthy.
-Stay Active –
The WAM family will have the opportunity to get our steps in daily moving about at our expansive building in Union City! A good goal for daily activity is 30-60 minutes with intensity during exercise that causes heavy breathing for some portion of your time. Measuring daily activity by tracking your steps with a pedometer or watch is easy, offers reminders to move, and is rewarding. Start walking at pace you are comfortable with now and gradually increase up to 10,000 steps a day for optimal activity level.
Making healthy changes can feel overwhelming. But, picking just one area to focus on like ample rest or increased activity can make starting more manageable. Making a 10% change can be much easier to stick with and can keep you moving in the right direction for meeting your longer-term health goals.
For more helpful ideas for taking control of your personal heart health, schedule a physical with your doctor and check out this guidance from the American Heart Association website, “Life’s Essential 8 Comprises Two Major Areas Health Behaviors and Health Factors.”
(https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-lifestyle/lifes-essential-8.)