According to the latest data published by the National Institute of Statistics, about 30% of deaths that occur in our country are caused by cardiovascular disease, which makes it the leading cause of death in Spain. A fact that sets off alarms, especially if we consider that “80% of heart diseases and up to 90% of heart attacks could be prevented”, as stated by the Heart Foundation.
The quality of life is important, we should emphasize our heart health and follow these instructions as a part of our daily routine and learn how to check heart health at home.
Maintain the correct diet
An inadequate diet can negatively affect the health of our heart. You have to be especially careful with excess salt and sugar, watch your cholesterol and eat foods rich in fiber, such as fruits and vegetables. In addition, it is not true that we should avoid all types of fats, reduce the consumption of saturated ones and avoid trans fats. Omega-3 fatty acids(belonging to the group of unsaturated fats) are essential for our heart’s vitality and proper functioning. The WHO recommends that we get 250 mg of them every day. We may get there by eating two to three servings of blue fatty fish each week and including almonds and milk into our diet. Enriched, since, with just one glass of this milk, we can take 50% of the recommended daily amount of omega-3.
Perform exercise
We must not forget that the heart is a muscle and therefore needs us to exercise it to beat and pump properly. The most recommended activities for this are anaerobic types, such as walking, cycling, or swimming. Of course, we should not consider them as a great challenge but as a daily habit. It’s better to get at least half an hour of exercise every day than just one day of vigorous activity a week. If we succeed in doing so and put aside the sedentary lifestyle, we will obtain great health benefits, such as weight control or lowering of blood pressure, and we will be able to prevent the appearance of cardiovascular diseases.
Get rid of bad habits
According to several studies, excessive alcohol consumption, which can increase blood pressure, is related to the onset of cardiovascular diseases, so we should try not to exceed the measure of one glass of wine a day. For its part, tobacco and passive smoking entail overexertion of the heart since it reduces the caliber of the arteries, which ends up favoring, for example, the risk of thrombosis. In addition, nicotine and carbon monoxide can dangerously increase the heart rate, reducing the quantity and quality of oxygen in the blood.
Take your time to rest
If we do not sleep the recommended hours, or if we can never disconnect from work, we could end up suffering a state of stress that will end up affecting our entire body, including our heart. And it is that the lack of rest influences our emotional state and also translates into high-risk physical consequences, such as tachycardias or different metabolic problems. That is why we must take it seriously, sleep a minimum of 6 hours a day every day and take several breaks during the day to alleviate symptoms such as exhaustion, tension, or anxiety.
Visit your specialist
Not only should we go to the doctor when we notice certain symptoms, such as chest pain or unusual fatigue, but we should also go ahead and carry out periodic reviews (at least once a year) to prevent the appearance or favor detection early of these diseases. It is especially relevant in people who have related diseases, such as diabetes, and those in whose family history there have been related cases. And also, we should not wait until old age both to go to the check-ups and to start taking care of ourselves. We must become aware of the importance of caring for the heart every day and from an early age, trying to carry out all these guidelines from 40.
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