One of the topics that we focus on in our Child Safety courses is car seat safety, and we wanted to share some tips with you!
Newborn, Infant, + Child Safety Classes for New Parents
Heart-Healthy Lifestyle Tips
Living Heart Healthy
Can you take a guess at what the leading cause of death amongst Americans is, regardless of race or gender? I’m sure that based on the title of this post you can gather what the answer might be. That’s right, heart disease.
Every year there are 647,000 people in the US that pass away due to a heart attack or other cardiovascular disease related issues. That equals to 1 out of every 4 deaths in America. To give you an even more precise idea of the intensity of this issue, the data shows that not every hour, not even every minute, but every 36 seconds there is a cardiovascular related death. I don’t know about you, but those numbers scare me.
When it comes to race, the heart takes no consideration either. The CDC recorded that in 2015 the percentage of cardiovascular related deaths amongst white people was 23.7%, amongst black was 23.5% and amongst hispanic was 20.3%.
So what do we do to change this? Well first, we need to know our risk factors.
What are the risk factors?
There are many risk factors when it comes to your heart health and some of them are not something that we can change. Things that aren’t changeable include your age, gender and family history.
However with that, there are also many risks that you are in control of like whether or not you are getting enough sleep, and whether you are overweight. Lifestyle changes that help keep diabetes and blood cholesterol levels to a minimum can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, as well as lowering stress levels and avoiding smoking.
While there are risk factors that we simply cannot avoid due to human nature and genetics, making healthy choices is our best option for reducing our overall risk.
So how can I prevent heart disease?
While there is no direct sure-fire way to avoid heart disease, we have compiled a small list of steps that you can take to help your heart stay as healthy as possible.
#1 Exercise
Most people will simply roll their eyes and move on as soon as they see the daunting word exercise. However, the truth is not that you must be vigorously exercising everyday until your body is sore and you are dripping with sweat.
Studies have shown that simply being physically active for 30 minutes a day, 3 times a week can greatly reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease. Not only does it help with the obvious like weight loss, but it is a wonderful tool for controlling stress levels.
#2 Eating Healthy
Again this topic is one that many will simply disregard because it’s true that it is not easy to change your diet. Though many do not realize how easy it can be once you start finding options that you enjoy!
Processed products like frozen meals and packaged snacks are high in trans fat and when consumed frequently they can negatively affect your heart health. Once you start substituting those processed foods for fresh alternatives you will quickly stop craving the things that aren’t as beneficial for your health.
Salt intake is another factor that can greatly increase your risk for heart disease when it is not controlled. When the level of salt that is consumed is too high, it can cause hypertension. The best way to avoid too much salt is increasing your use of other herbs and spices, which are a healthier alternative to getting that extra flavor in your meals.
Even lowering your alcohol intake can help reduce your risk. No more than one to two alcoholic drinks per day for men, and one per day for women are the maximum amounts to keep your heart healthy.
#3 Get some rest
In today’s world, we have a scary habit of valuing hard work over everything and anything, including our own mental and physical health. But even actual machines lose energy and need time for rest and maintenance.
Getting a minimum of 7 hours of sleep per night, when combined with a healthy diet and some exercise, can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease by 65%! That sounds worth it to me. Who doesn’t love a good reason for some rest?
#4 Know the symptoms
Symptoms of heart disease can be hard to detect in many cases but nonetheless knowing them can help you to know when to seek medical attention.
Signs of cardiovascular problems like heart attack, heart failure or arrhythmia can include:
Pain, numbness or tingling
Shortness of breath
Chest pain or neck pain
Lightheadedness
Dizziness or confusion
Headaches
Cold sweats
Nausea or vomiting
Fatigue
Swelling of the ankles, feet, legs, stomach or neck
Problems with normal activities
So what does it cost you, other than your health?
When you take treatment, doctor visits and hospital stays into consideration - heart disease is not cheap.
Writers at healthline.com stated;
“Heart attack is one of the most expensive conditions treated in U.S. hospitals. Its care costs an estimated $11.5 billion a year.
By 2035, more than 45 percentTrusted Source of Americans are projected to have some form of cardiovascular disease. Total costs of cardiovascular disease are expected to reach $1.1 trillion in 2035, with direct medical costs expected to reach $748.7 billion and indirect costs estimated to reach $368 billion.”
Sources
https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/facts.htm
https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/about.htm
https://www.healthline.com/health/heart-disease/statistics#Who-is-at-risk?
https://www.pexels.com/@marcus-aurelius/
