Five Easy Ways to Improve Your Heart Health
Contributed by Ryan Peterson.
It’s estimated 33% of Americans have hypertension which contributes to heart problems. Not only that, cardiovascular disease is cited as one of the most common causes of death, with 17.3 million deaths each year. There are steps you can take to keep your heart healthy. First, avoid the obviously unhealthy choices, such as cigarettes and alcohol. They may feel like they help you unwind and relax, but in terms of your body chemistry, they are actually causing your body stress and damage. Second, incorporate healthy behaviors into your daily routine.
Improve Sleep Patterns
A big part of maintaining a healthy heart is improving the supporting conditions around heart health. That includes being active and eating a heart-healthy diet, but it also means getting enough good quality sleep. Poor sleep increases the risk of heart disease and contributes to many of the conditions around it, such as obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes.
Get Active
Continue reading12 Things To Do Everyday For Your Heart Health
Contributed by Ryan Peterson.
Unfortunately, we can’t stay young forever. By the time many of us realize we’re ‘getting on a bit’, some damage has already been done to our health. By vowing to take care of your overall health now, and especially your heart health, you’ll live a longer, better quality life with fewer healthcare costs in the long run. Living a healthy lifestyle does not have to equal ‘boring’.
Here are 12 things to do everyday for your heart health:
1. Eat Healthy Fats
Healthy fats include foods like nuts, peanut butter, and oily fish. Avoid trans fats at all costs – you typically find trans fats in processed food. Trans fats increase your risk of stroke and heart disease. Consuming trans fats regularly makes you more susceptible to problems. Become comfortable reading nutritional labels before buying products to ensure you avoid foods containing trans fats.
2. Practice Good Dental Hygiene
Oral bacteria associated with gum disease can travel through the bloodstream and increase your risk of heart disease. Poor dental hygiene can lead to heart disease. It isn’t about vanity – looking after your teeth is key for overall health. Make sure you’re doing the following:
- Brush twice a day.
- Brush teeth for two minutes, but do not brush so hard you wear your enamel down.
- Floss at least once a day to get rid of debris between the teeth.
- Using mouthwash to rinse away any leftover bacteria and freshen your breath.
- Use a tongue scraper. Brushing your tongue is good, but you may sometimes just move around the bacteria without getting rid of it.
3. Get Plenty of Sleep
Prioritize your sleep. You have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease if you don’t get sleep. It can be tempting to burn the candle at both ends if you have goals you want to achieve, but people who sleep fewer than 6 hours a night are twice as likely to have a stroke or heart attack compared to people who sleep 6 to 8 hours a night. Aiming for 7 to 8 hours of sleep a night is ideal. Implement a consistent bedtime routine. Going to bed at the same time each night is a great start.
4. Avoid Sitting Down For Too Long
Continue readingReduce Your Heart Attack Risk
Is the deck stacked against you when it comes to genetics and heart disease? If so, I’m right there with you. However, this isn’t a pass to just say “oh well, nothing you can do about it” and proceed to live an unhealthy lifestyle.
Heart disease and heart attacks are for the most part preventable. Deaths due to coronary heart disease have significantly decreased since 1980.
Here are 5 steps you can take right now to beat the odds:
- Know your numbers
Go to the free health screenings to have your cholesterol and blood pressure checked. Discuss with your doctor to determine how often more in depth lab work should be completed. Ignorance is not going to help you.
For cholesterol, the American Heart Association provides the following recommendations:
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Treat Sleep Apnea to Reduce Heart Disease Risk
Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder where there are abnormal stops (interruptions) in breathing or abnormally low breathing during sleep. Each stop (or pause) in breathing is called an apnea. This apnea can last anywhere from a few seconds to minutes and can occur repeatedly throughout the night.
Sleep apnea results in excessive daytime tiredness, impaired alertness, slower reaction time, vision problems, and behavioral effects (i.e. moodiness, belligerence, decreased attentiveness).
Increased Risk for Sleep Apnea
Here are a few characteristics that put you at increased risk of developing obstructive sleep apnea:
Excess weight – Excess fat deposits around the upper airway can obstruct breathing.
Large neck circumference – A neck circumference above 17 inches is linked to increased risk because the thicker neck may narrow the airway.
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Tips to Recover from Holiday Overeating
Why does holiday overeating make it hard to return to normal eating habits?
1 – Stomach is physically larger – Overeating causes the stomach to become enlarged and it can take more food to provide the same feeling of satisfaction.
2 – Lack of sleep – This is probably the biggest culprit for me. I do not usually get good nights sleep during the holidays as we travel between families. A lack of sleep leads to elevated levels of the hormone ghrelin which causes you to feel hungry.
So, what can you do to recover from holiday overeating?
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4 Steps to Overcome a Weight Loss Plateau
Hitting weight loss plateaus are a part of the weight loss journey. Don’t let them discourage you!
Here are four areas to begin evaluating first so you can overcome this hurdle and continue losing weight:
1. Too few calories
