Your daily lifestyle can have a significant impact on your cardiovascular health. It can help determine whether or not you develop heart failure and other conditions. High blood pressure and smoking cigarettes can increase your risk of heart disease. Having the proper lifestyle and taking the necessary steps to maintain it can help prevent these conditions from happening in the first place.
It can also help prevent heart failure from worsening and improve your overall health. Doing so can help decrease the risk of developing other chronic conditions such as cancer and stroke.
How Your Lifestyle Affects Your Heart
Getting active and maintaining a healthy weight can help prevent heart failure. Other factors such as avoiding smoking and maintaining a healthy diet can additionally help improve heart health.
Studies also suggest that adopting a healthy lifestyle can reduce a person’s risk of heart failure. In a study conducted in Sweden, researchers discovered that men who followed four healthy lifestyle practices were likely to have a lower heart failure risk than those who didn’t follow these guidelines.
-Regular Exercise
Being active is also beneficial for a person’s cardiovascular and overall health. It can help prevent various chronic diseases and improve the quality of their life.
The AHA suggests that adults stay physically active for at least 30 minutes daily. This can be done in moderate-intensity exercises such as walking, dancing, and gardening. It can be broken down into three or two 15-minute sessions.
For individuals unable to commit to regular exercise, the AHA also suggests that they should stay physically active for at least 15 minutes per day. Doing so can be done in different forms of vigorous-intensity exercise such as running, swimming laps, and hiking.
Contact a primary care practitioner or certified personal trainer to determine your ideal exercise program. They can help you develop a personalized exercise plan right for you.
-Keeping A Healthy Weight
Extra pounds can affect a person’s blood circulation and cause stress on the heart. It can also lead to heart failure. Losing a few of these can make a big difference in improving heart health.
A slight weight loss of 5% to 10% can help improve a person’s blood pressure and cholesterol level while lowering the risk of heart failure.
-Stop Smoking
High chemicals in cigarettes can damage an individual’s arteries and cause heart failure. Secondhand smoke can also be harmful, as it can raise the level of carbon monoxide in the blood.
There are various ways to stop, such as chewing nicotine gum or taking medication.
After 20 minutes, a person’s heart rate will decrease, and carbon monoxide levels will begin to decline within 12 hours. Within three months, the risk of heart attack will decrease, and lung function will improve. One year after giving up, the risk of coronary artery disease will be half that of someone who smokes.
-Reduce Salt Intake
High levels of salt in the diet can lead to an accumulation of fluid in the body, which can cause heart failure. If you have hypertension, reducing your salt intake is also essential. The most common foods contributing to this issue include processed products, high-sodium foods, and sweets.
One way to lower your salt intake is following the DASH diet, a dietary approach to reducing high blood pressure. This plan includes various healthy eating options, such as fresh produce, low-fat dairy, and lean meat. The goal is to reduce consumption to around 2,300mg per day or 1,500mg per day for individuals at a high risk of experiencing hypertension.