Push Yourself Further With Your Heart Health Goals
It is no secret how serious the dangers of heart disease can be to our health and our bodies. Our heart is one of the single most important organs in our body, pumping blood and other vital materials throughout our system and helping our bodies, our brain, and our muscles properly function. Therefore, it should be common sense that we should take care of our heart as best as possible in order to keep healthy. Unfortunately, not everyone does.
Heart disease is currently the leading cause of death for both American men and women, with around 600,000 people dying from this disease in the U.S. every single year. The most common type of heart disease, coronary heart disease, kills more than 385,000 people annually and can often be prevented simply by making important lifestyle changes.
In honor of February's American Heart Month, today we are sharing some important, yet simple simple tips on how you can take steps to actively prevent heart disease:
Improve Nutrition
Eating heart healthy is one of the best things that you can do to lessen your risk of heart disease. After all, good nutrition is at the heart of good health. One of the easiest way to begin transforming your eating habits to become more healthier is start cooking at home with nutritious, heart-healthy ingredients (vegetables, nuts, brown rice, tuna, salmon, etc.). When you take the initiative to learn what kinds of ingredients go into each meal, which food elements are healthier than others, and what a normal serving size should look like, it will better educate you for when you do eventually dine out.
Get Active
One of the most important things you can do for both your heart health and your overall health is to participate in physical activity. Many studies have proven just how dangerous inactivity can be to our heart, and inactive is also one of the leading causes of adult and childhood obesity. Therefore, take just a little time out of your day to get active and get your entire family in on the exercise as well!
Mange Your Stress
If you have a lot of stress in your life, whether it is work-related, personal or just unnecessary pressures you are putting on yourself, it's important that you don't let your stress get out of control. Many studies have shown that excessive stress can set off a chain of dangerous events, including increased heart rate, raised blood pressure, damage to the artery walls, and even physical pain to your back, neck and muscles. Therefore, if you are under a lot of stress, try to slow down and evaluate what is causing you so much stress and how you can change it.
If you are interested in learning more about the dangers of heart disease and how you can prevent this dangerous disease from affecting you, be sure to stay tuned to our Dallas YMCA blog all month long during February's American Heart Month. We will be posting new, helpful information each week to help you achieve more in your heart health goals.
Information: CDC - Heart Disease