How to Keep Your Heart Healthy?

Eat Fewer ‘Bad’ Fats

Eating a lot of tempting foods with lots of fat can be bad news for your heart.  Some of these foods are burgers, butter and cream.  Trans fat, like pastries, French fries and pies can also be bad news for your heart.  They raise the LDL, or ‘bad’ cholesterol levels in your blood and clog the arteries raising your chances of heart trouble.

Eat Better Fats

But not all fats are bad.  Some are very healthy for your heart.  You can protect your heart by eating a diet high in unsaturated fats.  Some good examples are nuts, flaxseed, avocado and vegetable oil.  Fish, like salmon, mackerel and tuna are good sources as they are high omega-3 fatty acids and give your heart less trouble.  Eat these good sources of fat at least twice a week.

Fitness is Good

Fitness, like tennis, riding a bike and walking, are good workouts that make your heart beat faster as well as lower your risk of high blood pressure and high cholesterol.  Shoot for 150 minutes for a moderate routine or 75 mintues of vigorous exercise every week.  If you are short on time—10-15 minute sessions are good for strengthening muscle; try working out at least twice a week.

Eat Fruits & Vegetables

A plateful of colorful vegetables are a good source of minerals and nutrients that keep your blood pressure steady and protect your heart.  Dark leafy greens, like spinach, broccoli, and red, yellow and orange fruits and vegetables are good for your heart too.

Ease Up on Sugar

Foods containing a lot of sugar, like soda, candy and desserts help you pack on the pounds and put a strain heart.  The American Heart Association suggests you eat no more than 6 teaspoons of sugar a day for women and 9 if you’re a man.  You can read food labels to know what you’re eating.

Limit Salt

Salty foods like pretzels and chips make you hold fluid in.  If you do eat these foods limit your intake as they boost your blood volume and makes your heart pump harder to push the blood in your body.  This will damage your heart over time.  So cutting back to 2,400 milligrams of salt or less everyday.

Quit Smoking

Smoking cigarettes are big trouble for your heart, meaning the chemicals in cigarettes narrow the blood vessels.  If you quit smoking, don’t frequent smoky places where you can ingest second-hand smoke, which is also bad for your health.

Learn Your Numbers

High blood pressure and LDL, the bad cholesterol, and high blood sugar elevate the risk for heart failure.  It is important for you to have your levels check by your doctor to avoid problems.  If your numbers are are high, you can keep track at home with a glucose meter and a blood pressure cuff.

Reduce Stress

Elevated stress can raise your blood pressure and put strain on your blood vessel walls.  And drinking alcohol, eating junk food and smoking cigarettes for stress relief can also be trouble for your heart.  Some excellent ways to combat stress are walking, yoga, meditation, or listening to relaxing music.  If the stress is still too overwhelming, you can make an appointment with a therapist or counselor to help.

Learn Your Family History

Do you have close relatives with a history of heart attack or heart failure?  Getting a medical history of genes and lifestyle can provide insight when it comes to your risk of heart problems.  Learn what history runs in your family so you can work on diet, exercise habits and other ways that are within your control.

Manage Your Health

If your have diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol, these are conditions that can damage your blood vessels and increase your chances of heart trouble.  It is important to get regular checkups by a your doctor to manage your health.  Take medicine if your health warrants it to make your heart as healthy as possible and make the necessary lifestyle changes as well.

Stick to a Healthy Weight

Weight around your mid-sections is a disaster for your heart.  Overweight or obese people are likely to have heart trouble with high LDL cholesterol, high blood pressure ad high blood sugar which makes your heart have trouble with the left pumping chamber and leads to heart failure.  A healthy body mass index (BMI) is 18.5-24.9 with diet and exercise.

Limit Alcohol

While a daily glass of red wine is healthy for your heart—more is unhealthy as too much can raise your blood pressure and the increased the fat levels in your blood can lead to heart trouble.  With your doctor’s okay, drink wine and beer in moderation, or no more than one glass a day for women and two for men.  If you don’t drink, don’t start.

Get Checked for Sleep Apnea

If your partner says you snore, it could be a sign of sleep apnea, which can block the passage to your airway while you breathe at night.  Studies have linked it to high blood pressure, abnormal heart rhythms, heart failure and stroke.  Even being overweight can be an issue.  So if you or your partner snores, it is best to get checked by your doctor or join a sleep study for sleep apnea.  It can protect your heart if you get treated.