When it comes to improving our heart health, it’s never too late. No matter what age we are or what health we currently have, there are things we can do to improve our health and decrease our changes of having cardiovascular issues in the future.
The 3 Top Strategies For Quickly Improving Heart Health
Quit smoking
With everything we know about how smoking impacts our cardiovascular health, there shouldn’t be a need to even say this. But there are some of us out there who still smoke. Perhaps it’s how we learned to manage our stress when we were younger. Perhaps we think we can’t do without it and now that we’re older, what’s the point?
Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S. It’s also been shown that quitting at any age, even in later years can reduce the risk of stroke, cancer and heart disease over time. Speak with your doctor about quitting as there are many resources to assist. For online resources, check out Quit.com and QuitAssist.
Eat heart healthy and consider supplements
Sometimes when people hear “eat a heart healthy diet”, they think two things. One, that it’s boring and flavorless and two that it’s very expensive. Neither are true. Eating heart healthy means eating fresher, whole and non-processed foods. Higher in vitamins and lower in fats and sodium is the key. Have a peek here to understand more about a heart healthy diet: 7 Ways To Eat Heart Healthy On A Budget .
Increasing intake of Omega-3 / fish oils has also been proven to be helpful in the battle for cardiovascular health. The Conway Medical Center indicates, “These are full of the “good” type of fatty acid that helps the heart. While many people can get enough in two servings of fatty fish a week, for those who don’t, Omega-3 tablets can help. Examples of fatty fish include:
- Atlantic mackerel
- Sardines
- Salmon
- Herring
- Trout
- Cod
- Canned light tuna (in water)”
Get physically active
We hear all the time that exercise is the key to our health and it’s true. It’s been shown that regular, brisk exercise that increases our heart rates positively impacts our heart health. Exercise doesn’t need to be strenuous to be effective. The goal is to start with 5 or 10 minutes of an activity like walking or gardening and work up to a consistent 30 minutes of exercise, five times per week.
Consistency is key, not only for the cardiovascular benefits, but for weight control, which also greatly impacts out health. Regular exercise also helps us to manage stress and has positive impacts on our brain health and our body’s ability to heal itself.
Wrap Up
It can be common to think, “Now that I’m older, it’s too late to do anything to improve my heath”. This couldn’t be father from the truth. At any age, we have the ability to take small but important steps that can make a positive difference in our heart health.
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