Has your doctor told you that you are at high risk for heart disease? Or, maybe you’ve already have had a heart attack or a stroke? Relax, if you follow a few simple guidelines and make a few lifestyle changes, such as choosing foods wisely and being physically active, as well as taking medication can help. Let’s start with a common heart related occurance.
What, in a nutshell, is Coronary Artery Disease and how can I deal with it?
Coronary artery disease is caused by a narrowing or blocking of the blood vessels that go to your heart. It’s the most common form of heart disease. Your blood carries oxygen and other needed materials to your heart. Blood vessels to your heart can become partially or totally blocked by fatty deposits. A heart attack occurs when the blood supply to your heart is reduced or cut off. Here’s something to take to heart, no pun intended, prevention is the best medicine.
The causes are a combination of a poor diet, such as lots of fatty foods and not enough fruits and vegetables. Simple enough, but over the years all of that junk food, along with too much alcohol and cigarettes will catch up to us. A healthy eating plan includes the following short list:
* Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fat-free or low-fat milk and milk products.
* Also include lean meats, poultry, fish, beans, eggs, and nuts.
* Make certain that your food is low in saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol, salt (sodium), and added sugars.
Some people who have coronary artery disease and insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle (ischemia) do not have any symptoms. This is called "silent ischemia." In rare instances, you can even have a "silent heart attack," a heart attack without symptoms. Again prevention is the best medicine. A simple exercise regimen will work wonders when combined with a proper diet: Here are some basics:
* Be physically active for at least 30 minutes most days of the week.
* Increasing the intensity or the amount of time that you are physically active can have even greater health benefits and may be needed to control body weight.
* About 60 minutes a day may be needed to prevent weight gain.
* A brisk 20 minute walk 3 to 4 times a week is an excellent way to exercise the heart and burn calories.
* Swimming is perhaps the best all around exercise, bar none.
Put it this way, there is a huge list of illnesses, not just heart disease, that can be avoided, usually completely, just by deciding to change our lifestyles.
Speaking from personal experience, that First Step can be a bitch, but very soon, you’ll feel so good that you’ll wonder why you waited so long!
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Tags: heart beat, heart attacks, heart disease, heart disease causes
