This is the final segment on modifiable lifestyle risk factors for heart disease to wrap up “American Hearth Month.” My other blog NewMexicoRD.blogspot.com, discusses foods and heart disease.
Stress management. It seems like a silly thing to some people and downright impossible tp others. Unfortunately the people who are most likely to stress out about things are probably the ones who are at higher risk for heart disease.
People who are “type A” personality, the ones who stress easier than others, are more likely to have the heart disease as a result. I’ve noted before, it isn’t the stressor that causes the stress, but the individual response to the stress that causes it.
There is some research indicating there is a relationship between heart disease risk and the amount of (perceived) stress in ones’ life.
Health behaviors can contribute to stress. Smoking, inactivity, and/or high fat diet can contribute more to the stress. However exercise and a healthy diet can help the body physically deal with stress as well as help us relieve some stress (a walk around the block perhaps).
High stress can lead to high blood pressure. Chronic stress can lead to chronically elevated blood pressure, a risk factor for heart disease.
Find some coping strategies to help when you are stressed. Find a hobby and work on it for an hour or two. Plan to take a day off – tomorrow or in a few weeks. Don’t tell anyone and relax and read a book or see a funny movie or be alone in a bath. Go for a very long, relaxing walk. Even if you can’t take a day off, take an hour or two to read, watch a movie and be distracted from your thoughts for a while.
Develop some coping strategies to deal with intermittent stress that you can’t walk away from such as counting to ten or a mantra such as “a year from now, will this matter?” Sometimes it will, but a lot of times it won’t.
It takes practice, and moving from a high stress person, to lower or even moderate stress person doesn’t happen overnight or even in a couple of weeks-months. It takes time and patience. But keep working on it. I often tell people who say they don’t have time to do these stress management techniques: you will have plenty of time when you are in the ICU following your by-pass surgery. Take time today to relieve your stress.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Heart Health Part IV: Quit Smoking
In part four of the “American Hearth Month” theme for February I continue with heart disease issues on this and my other blog NewMexicoRD.blogspot.com. Here continues the discussion of modifiable risk factors for heart disease.
Cigarette Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States and a significant independent risk factor for heart disease. Aside from the obvious cancer risk, cigarette smoking also contributes to heart disease, including increasing the risk of developing plaques in the arteries.
Even if you are not overweight and eat healthy, you are at significant risk for heart disease if you smoke.
If you are able to exercise, yet still smoke, you are still at significant risk for heart disease.
Smoking increases blood pressure and increased the risk of a blood clot.
Smoking decreases HDL-cholesterol (the one you want to be HIGH).
If YOU don’t smoke, but live with someone who does: premature deaths from heart disease are still significant even when it comes from other people’s smoke.
Need assistance in quitting? Ask you primary care provided about prescriptions for quitting, or contact 1-800-QUIT-NOW for more assistance on how to quit. Your life or the life of your family may depend on it.
Cigarette Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States and a significant independent risk factor for heart disease. Aside from the obvious cancer risk, cigarette smoking also contributes to heart disease, including increasing the risk of developing plaques in the arteries.
Even if you are not overweight and eat healthy, you are at significant risk for heart disease if you smoke.
If you are able to exercise, yet still smoke, you are still at significant risk for heart disease.
Smoking increases blood pressure and increased the risk of a blood clot.
Smoking decreases HDL-cholesterol (the one you want to be HIGH).
If YOU don’t smoke, but live with someone who does: premature deaths from heart disease are still significant even when it comes from other people’s smoke.
Need assistance in quitting? Ask you primary care provided about prescriptions for quitting, or contact 1-800-QUIT-NOW for more assistance on how to quit. Your life or the life of your family may depend on it.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Heart Health Part III: Leisure time Physical Activity
Continuing with the “American Hearth Month” theme for February I continue with heart disease issues on this and my other blog NewMexicoRD.blogspot.com. Here continues the discussion of modifiable risk factors for heart disease.
Physical inactivity is a risk factor for heart disease. If you are not a smoker and eat healthy, but don’t engage in regular physical activity, you are putting yourself at risk. If you choose the parking lot or parking space closest to your office or the entrance to the store, the thought of going for a walk is misery, or riding a bike is a childhood memory, your are putting yourself at risk.
I’ve mentioned it before, and it will likely be mentioned again, your leisure time physical activity:
Physical inactivity is a risk factor for heart disease. If you are not a smoker and eat healthy, but don’t engage in regular physical activity, you are putting yourself at risk. If you choose the parking lot or parking space closest to your office or the entrance to the store, the thought of going for a walk is misery, or riding a bike is a childhood memory, your are putting yourself at risk.
I’ve mentioned it before, and it will likely be mentioned again, your leisure time physical activity:
- needs to be consistent. It should not last for a few days or a few weeks and then be forgotten until next New Years or health scare.
- needs to be moderate-vigorous. It should not be a stroll around the mall or sauntering around the park while your dog is running around sniffing everything. The more vigorous, the better.
Now, this is not saying to go from couch potato to hot potato, but work on becoming a moderate to vigorous exerciser. It does take time, several weeks to several months, to work up to the vigorous activity. If you start out vigorous, you will very likely end up back on the couch and vow to never return to activity again.
Even if you never get to “vigorous” but remain at “moderate” just go at it regularly and forever. Vow to be that person at the assisted living facility who is the first person to sign up for the guided walks and other activities and beat out the other folks on the 1-mile walk, because if you are one of the Americans who starts engaging if leisure time physical activity you can prevent or control your personal risk of high blood cholesterol, diabetes and most likely will lose weight and prevent or reduce your risk of becoming obese.
Don’t want to run or ride a bike? No one said you needed to. Just get outside and walk. Walk for 15 minutes at least 4 days a week. Do this for 2 weeks; the following week work towards 20 minutes on each of those 4 days. As you feel comfortable with it, keep moving up by 5-10 minutes each week or two until you have reached a minimum of 30 minutes, 5 days a week and ideally 60 minutes, 5 days a week. This is consistent with the 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans that I blogged about back in November 2008.
This is so good for your heart, good for your weight, good for your blood pressure, good for your cholesterol, good for your blood sugar control, good for your bones, good for your joints, good for your stress levels, and great family time or alone time depending on which you choose.
If it is cold, bundle up. If it is hot, go early in the morning or in the evening and wear a hat. Either way, take water if you are going out more than 30 minutes.
NO EXCUSES! Heart disease has painful consequences if you wait too long, so get moving now.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Heart Health Part II: Are You Obese?
Continuing with the “American Hearth Month” theme for February I continue with heart disease issues on this and my other blog NewMexicoRD.blogspot.com. Here continues the discussion of modifiable risk factors for heart disease.
A major independent risk factor for heart disease is obesity. Simply put, obesity is defined as too much body fat, which unfortunately about a third of the country is classified as obese and another third of the country is overweight – making fully two-thirds of the nation with a risk factor for heart disease that they can do something about. And NO most of these people are not big boned or very muscular.
Previously I mentioned that you should know your numbers – blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood glucose – and take some steps to improve those numbers. Being overweight or obese can increase blood pressure, increase total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides, lower HDL cholesterol, and increase blood glucose. So the first step to improve those numbers: Lose Weight…
Even if these numbers are in “normal” ranges, obesity is still a risk factor for heart disease. The heart has to work harder every minute of every day to circulate the blood to the entire body.
How do you know if you are in the obese or overweight category? Generally speaking people who are in this category can do one of two things: calculate their BMI (aka Body Mass Index) or measure their waist circumference.
BMI measures and calculated a number based on your weight to your height and does not distinguish between men and women or lean body mass (bones, muscle, and water weight for example) and fat mass. It is your weight in kg divided by height in meters squared (kg/m2). There are many places on the web that can calculate it for you and tell you what it means. My favorite is the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, but you can “google” BMI to find one. A BMI value between 25.0 and 29.9 is overweight, and a BMI value of 30.0 or greater is considered obese.
Waist circumference is another way to measure your risk. Measure at your belly button, just so you know for next time where to measure again. Do not measure where you wear your pants, especially if you are a man, since many people wear their pants way below their fat/waist! IF you measure greater than 35 inches as a woman or greater than 40 inches as a man – you have a fat problem and need to do some work…Oh and if you want to suck it in when you measure, go ahead, but you are only sucking in air, not fat.
Do you need to lose weight? First thing, know you can reduce your risk by losing just 7-10% of your current body weight initially. That may not seem to daunting!
How do you lose the weight? Step 1: Don't do a silly crash diet. Step 2: Cut down on calories – don’t worry about cutting carbs, bread, white foods, blah, blah, blah…You HAVE to cut down on calories, so cut those portions down!
Step 3: Next post…will tell you another big key to help you with your weight/fat loss goal.
A major independent risk factor for heart disease is obesity. Simply put, obesity is defined as too much body fat, which unfortunately about a third of the country is classified as obese and another third of the country is overweight – making fully two-thirds of the nation with a risk factor for heart disease that they can do something about. And NO most of these people are not big boned or very muscular.
Previously I mentioned that you should know your numbers – blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood glucose – and take some steps to improve those numbers. Being overweight or obese can increase blood pressure, increase total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides, lower HDL cholesterol, and increase blood glucose. So the first step to improve those numbers: Lose Weight…
Even if these numbers are in “normal” ranges, obesity is still a risk factor for heart disease. The heart has to work harder every minute of every day to circulate the blood to the entire body.
How do you know if you are in the obese or overweight category? Generally speaking people who are in this category can do one of two things: calculate their BMI (aka Body Mass Index) or measure their waist circumference.
BMI measures and calculated a number based on your weight to your height and does not distinguish between men and women or lean body mass (bones, muscle, and water weight for example) and fat mass. It is your weight in kg divided by height in meters squared (kg/m2). There are many places on the web that can calculate it for you and tell you what it means. My favorite is the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, but you can “google” BMI to find one. A BMI value between 25.0 and 29.9 is overweight, and a BMI value of 30.0 or greater is considered obese.
Waist circumference is another way to measure your risk. Measure at your belly button, just so you know for next time where to measure again. Do not measure where you wear your pants, especially if you are a man, since many people wear their pants way below their fat/waist! IF you measure greater than 35 inches as a woman or greater than 40 inches as a man – you have a fat problem and need to do some work…Oh and if you want to suck it in when you measure, go ahead, but you are only sucking in air, not fat.
Do you need to lose weight? First thing, know you can reduce your risk by losing just 7-10% of your current body weight initially. That may not seem to daunting!
How do you lose the weight? Step 1: Don't do a silly crash diet. Step 2: Cut down on calories – don’t worry about cutting carbs, bread, white foods, blah, blah, blah…You HAVE to cut down on calories, so cut those portions down!
Step 3: Next post…will tell you another big key to help you with your weight/fat loss goal.
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