Cardiovascular diseases are one of the world’s leading killers. The instances of occurrence of heart attacks and strokes have been increasing day by day. The causes and the risk factors are too much to count at this point. Some of the major ones are tobacco use, unhealthy food consumption, hypertension, high levels of cholesterol, and obesity, But the main thing to focus on here is the ways that can be used to take care of the heart.
It is never too late to start changing your lifestyle and start working on yourself, be it related to heart health or the overall health of the body. The best heart specialist in Karachi says that a lot of people neglect their heart health as they are unaware of the ways that can at least help them maintain a healthy heart even after a stroke or a heart attack.
Let’s all understand ways that can be used to take care of your heart.
1- Increase Regular Physical Activity
Physical activity can help a lot in improving blood pressure, controlling weight, maintaining cholestrol levels, and other blood lipids. Some physical activity is always better for anyone whether or not they are suffering from heart disease.
People that are inactive should always start with something easy. It must be made sure that physical activity is being made part of a routine and then the frequency and intensity of the activity must be increased.
It is recommended that adults must indulge in 150 minutes of moderate physical activity. Now, this can include, dancing, climbing up the stairs, brisk walking, doing house chores, gardening, or any other activity that involves movement of the body.
2- Eat a Healthy Diet
Diet plays a very important role in keeping the heart healthy and exercise alone cannot be enough if you have serious heart issues. A healthy diet consists of a combination of different foods including vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts, and legumes. Cut down foods like salty meats such as bacon, sausage, and hotdog, including salty food such as dried fish. Instead of high-sodium foods like fish sauce, ketchup, and soy sauce go for vinegar to season your food. With that, avoid fast, canned, and processed food.
When it comes to sweetened foods, try and replace sweet foods like cookies and doughnuts with foods like fresh fruits and vegetables. When you are thirsty and craving fizzy drinks and sodas, grab yourself some fresh juices or water.
3- Have your Blood Sugar and Blood Pressure in Check
Another important way to maintain a healthy heart includes checking your blood pressure and blood sugar level every day. This is essential as a lot of people do have issues regarding heart health because of high blood pressure that they are unaware of.
It is the duty of every individual to discuss the risk factors with their healthcare provider as soon as they find out about their heart health deteriorating. So, it is very important to keep a check on your blood sugar levels as well, if you are suffering from any heart disease. Set targets with your doctor to keep a check on the blood sugar levels and blood pressure.
4- Lose Extra Weight
Being overweight and obese does add to you getting at higher risk of deteriorating your heart health. A person is considered obese when he/she has a body mass index is 25 or above it.
Adiposity on the other hand is defined as having a high waist circumference of more than 80cm for females and more than 90 cm for males. A waist-high circumference means having more abdominal fat and is also associated with a higher risk of developing cardiovascular diseases.
It is best to reduce 500 kilocalories in your diet every day which can help in decreasing the weight by approximately half to one kilogram a week. Try and maintain a healthy weight if you want your heart to keep functioning, as more fat in the body adds to deteriorating health overall.
5- Stop Tobacco Use
The use of tobacco is associated with bad heart health. Quitting the use of tobacco can be really important for overall health and most significantly for the health of the heart.
Smoking even if is second-hand can be very harmful to the heart. Quitting the use of tobacco in any form is the greatest gift that one can give themself. This not only saves your heart from getting affected but also increases your life span by 10 years.
Conclusion
Heart health is as important as living is for a human being. It is very important to take care of this organ that pumps blood to all the other organs. The consumption of correct food options, regular exercise, and reduced tobacco use can make a huge impact on heart health. So, make sure to make these little changes that have a bigger impact.
Apart from this if you are interested to know more about 11 Actionable Mountain Bikes Tips That Work Like a Charm then visit our Health & Fitness category.
