Heart Tip 10: Exercise
This one is a no-brainer. When you lift weights, your muscles get stronger and healthier. Your heart is a muscle, so the same thing holds true for it. Doctors recommend 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise three times a week at the bare minimum. If you want to really get yourself into shape, you should try and get that 30-minute workout in five to seven days a week. Not everyone loves to jog or go to the gym. This is why the key to any exercise plan is to make it something that you enjoy.
Heart Tip 9: Sleep
This tip is one most people can probably get behind. In today's hectic world, it seems like some of our basic needs aren't often met -- sleep is one of them. Although it varies for everyone, doctors suggest that you should get about 8 hours of sleep per night. Almost 60 percent of adults have problems sleeping, and only 37 percent get that recommended amount per night [source: National Sleep Foundation]. Not only does being tired all day hurt your performance, but research shows that too little or too much sleep can have some poor effects on your blood pressure and ticker, specifically.
Heart Tip 8: Aspirin
In 1998, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advised people that have already had a heart attack to begin taking an aspirin a day to help prevent another one. The popular pain reliever, in low doses, works to help prevent clotting by thinning the blood. If your blood isn't clotting, you're less likely to have a heart attack. The American Heart Association (AHA) also suggests a daily dose of aspirin to help prevent a first and second heart attack.
Heart Tip 7: Lower Your Cholesterol
You can combat this in a couple of ways. There's the age-old advice to quit smoking, get on a healthy diet and exercise. Then there's a drug treatment called statins that can help lower your LDL levels.The American Heart Association recommends that fat not exceed 25 to 30 percent of your daily intake and your cholesterol from food not be more than 300 milligrams. You should also get 25 to 30 grams of fiber into your diet each day and see tip No. 1 for your exercise routine. Statins are the other option. If your doctor finds that your LDL levels are more than 130 grams per deciliter, he may decide to put you on one of the six brands of statin drugs on the market. Whether it's through diet and exercise, statins or both, lowering your cholesterol is a great way to help you avoid the dangers of a heart attack.
Heart Tip 6: Lower Your Blood Pressure
A lot of people may hear the words blood pressure and not even know what that actually means. It's pretty simple -- blood pressure is the measurement of the force of the blood against the walls of your blood vessels. When your blood pressure is measured, there are two readings -- systolic and diastolic. The systolic part refers to the pressure when your heart is expanded, and the diastolic reading is when your heart is at rest. They're given as systolic over diastolic, like a fraction.
Heart Tip 5: Chill Out
Everyone knows that being stressed out isn't a good feeling. Turns out, it goes a little deeper than that -- stress can actually have some pretty severe effects on your body. Research scientists in Canada performed a study and found that people who had heart attacks and returned to a stressful career were twice as likely to have a second attack as those who held down reasonably stress-free jobs [source: Time Magazine]. University of London researchers found similar results for people who had stressful intimate relationships.
Heart Tip 4: Stop Smoking
File this one under no-brainer as well. Every smoker on the planet knows that it's not good for them. The problem is that it's really difficult to quit. So difficult that nearly two-thirds of adults who want to quit aren't able to [source: Food and Drug Administration]. So hard that almost half of patients that undergo surgery for lung cancer continue to smoke. That's how tough it is. It's also extremely bad for your heart.
Heart Tip 3: Undergo Preventive Screenings
Preventive health screenings can give you and your doctor a lot of information about how at risk you are for cardiovascular disease. The Department of Health and Human Services recommends that you start getting your blood pressure checked every two years starting at the age of 18. It also recommends having your cholesterol levels checked at age 18, and from then on, as often as your doctor thinks is necessary.
Heart Tip 2: Know Your Family Medical History
This one isn't as easy as you might think. Some families never suffer through a divorce and are open and honest about everything that goes on. Other families are fractured and distant, with medical goings on swept under the rug for the sake of not worrying children. Because of divorce, death and parents giving their children up for adoption, many adults may not even be acquainted with one or both of their parents at all, much less their medical histories. Some people have genetic predispositions to certain diseases and illnesses -- heart disease is no exception. If your father died from a heart attack at the age of 50, then chances are you may be headed down that same road. Even the healthiest of individuals can't do anything about the genes they inherited.
Heart Tip 1: Adopt a Heart-healthy Diet
You really are what you eat. If you dine on a steady flow of bacon and eggs, cheeseburgers, French fries and Twinkies, then you and your heart aren't going to be in the best condition. Adopting a heart-healthy diet is the most important thing you can do to benefit your ticker. It will help you to lower your blood pressure and cholesterol and limit the amount of bad fat you take in.
Legumes like beans and lentils are loaded with protein, fiber, iron and calcium and are free of fat and cholesterol. Nuts are packed with antioxidants, omega-3s, fiber and vitamin E, among other things. The important thing is to not think of it as a diet, but as a lifestyle change. Stay away from boxed food, head for the fruit and veggie aisle, and you're on your way to making sure there are no ambulances in your future.
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