Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the United States and the risk of heart disease increases with age and other health issues. Fortunately, there are ways to reduce your risk! Some risk factors are uncontrollable, like age, race, and family health history, but there are some health risk factors that can be managed.

• Diabetes – This disease has a major impact on your risk for heart disease, among many others. By preventing or properly managing your diabetes, you can reduce your risk of heart disease.
• High Blood Cholesterol – High cholesterol will cause fatty deposits in your blood vessels. This makes it challenging for the heart to pump the blood through the obstacle course of fat deposits.
• High Blood Pressure – Hypertension causes your heart to work harder. Preventing and controlling high blood pressure are essential to ward off heart disease.
• Physical Activity – Any type of physical activity will get your blood pumping and circulating. It will also reduce or eliminate your risk for other illnesses or diseases.
• Smoking – Smokers are up to six times more likely to suffer a heart attack than nonsmokers. By not smoking or quitting, you will greatly lower your risk for heart disease. 
• Weight – Those that are overweight are more prone to develop heart disease, even if they don’t have any other risk factors. Studies have shown that losing just 5-10% of your current weight will lower your risk.

Everyone wants a healthy heart. Fortunately, there are easy ways to give your heart the love and attention it deserves.

• Enjoy healthy foods. Throw lots of colorful vegetables and fruits into your diet. Keep your saturated fat and cholesterol down and bump up that fiber content. Skip out on those highly processed foods. Feed your body with fuel, not garbage.
• Get moving! Exercising will get you to a healthy weight, lower your cholesterol, and lower your blood pressure. This doesn’t mean you have to spend an hour at the gym every day. The American Heart Association recommends 30 minutes per day. They even suggest breaking it down into three 10-minute sessions. 
• Monitor your Body Mass Index (BMI). By doing the two steps above, this step will work itself out. When you’re eating right and moving more, your BMI will head towards the healthy range, if it’s not already there!
• Cut out the toxins. Smoking and alcohol add stress and toxins to your body. Eliminate or minimize these and you will might add years to your life.

Want more information on how to decrease your risk of heart disease? The U.S. Department of Heath and Human Services put together an informative guide to Physical Activity and Your Heart. If you’re looking for help on when to be tested for diseases such as high cholesterol or diabetes, this website is and interactive tool to get those details. You answer a few questions and based on your responses, they will tell you what health tests you need, how often you should be tested, and important questions/topics you should be discussing with your doctor. 

Take time this month to care for your heart. Compassionate Care can assist you on your journey to a happy heart, just give us a call to see how our services can be customized to suit your heart health needs.