As we age so does our heart, and with age, it requires constant nourishment and care. Most people lead their lives in erratic patterns and they forget to pay heed to what their body requires. Days spent eating right and sleeping for the required hours help one to achieve an ideal body clock. But our busy schedule and work commitments hardly ever allow us to do so. So starting today what changes should we make, and how should we be leading our life in order to have a happy, healthy heart?
Food: Leafy green vegetables like spinach, kale, and collard greens are well-known for their wealth of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Consuming whole grains, berries, avocados, walnuts, beans, and dark chocolate, etc is beneficial for the heart. Using plant-based oils for cooking like coconut or extra virgin olive oil helps lessen the pressure on the heart. Eating mindfully, not on-the-run is a habit that should be made into a lifestyle. Reducing or eliminating packaged foods, sugar, and red meat is also beneficial. Foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes are rich in antioxidants, fiber, and phytonutrients. This type of diet has been shown to lower the risk of cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, and cholesterol.
Exercise: We often ignore the effects walking has on our hearts and body. Brisk walking for 30 minutes a day lowers your risk for hypertension. Keeping fit otherwise, hitting the gym at least twice a week is important. When we talk about exercise it’s not necessarily restricted to the physical aspects of our body. Exercising your mind is equally important, meditating and continuously challenging yourself keeps your body and heart young.
Stress: When you feel overwhelmed with anxiety, take a very deep breath through your mouth and hold it in. While continuing to hold your breath, flex or tense every muscle throughout your body as intensely as you can. Feel every inch of your body tremble from the strain. Staying hydrated is such situations helps. The heart has to work harder to stabilize blood flow. Throughout the day, make sure you drink plenty of sugar- and caffeine-free beverages, such as water and herbal tea. Even minor stress can trigger heart problems like poor blood flow to the heart muscle. This is a condition in which the heart doesn't get enough blood or oxygen. And, long-term stress can affect how the blood clots. This makes the blood stickier and increases the risk of a stroke. Finding healthy ways to de-stress is important if you want to lead a healthy life.
Staying idle: According to several research works, staying idle for long periods of time is bad for health irrespective of how fit you are. According to one particular research involving 800,000 people, it was found that for those who sat the most, there is an associated 147 percent increase in cardiovascular events and a 90 percent increase in death caused by these events. The heart does have some ability to make new muscle and possibly repair itself. The rate of regeneration is very slow. That's why the rapid healing that follows a heart attack creates scar tissue in place of working muscle tissue.
The key to a happy, healthy life is having a happy, healthy heart. As long as you treat your body with care and supply it with the right kind of food, there is nothing to worry about. Starting today, let's be more conscious of how we treat our bodies!
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