After February 14th, the only place you’ll see hearts is in the 50-75% off bins. Our red clothing has been unceremoniously stuffed into the backs of our closets and we start looking forward to St. Patrick’s Day. However, we’re jumping ahead of ourselves a bit. February has been declared “American Heart Month” and the “Go Red” campaign is spreading the word. So don’t put away that crimson clothing yet, there’s still 2 weeks of heart health awareness!
In honor of American Heart Month, there was a Facebook event on February 4th titled, “My Heart…Your Heart…Every Woman’s Heart…Let’s See If This Works…” It involved putting a secret message about your heart in your status on National Wear Red day. Each event had over 18,000 participants on Facebook and helped raise heart disease awareness.
Heart disease is the number one killer in America, and also kills the most women 20 and older: one woman per minute, according to the American Heart Association. These statistics are staggering, especially when paired with the fact heart disease kills more people than the next four causes of death combined, including all forms of cancer. In the time it will take you to read this article, at least one woman will die of a heart disease-related ailment.
The good news is that by living a generally healthy lifestyle, you’re already helping your heart. The main risk factors are obesity, smoking, stress, family history, and inactivity. Family history is the most frightening, because it is unpreventable. However, if you know you have a family history of heart disease, you just need to be more aware of your heart. Here are some key things you can do to keep your heart pumping!
- Exercise – An active lifestyle is the best way to counteract many diseases, especially heart disease. Even if it’s only walking on the treadmill for 30 minutes a day, you are improving your heart’s health, and (as a bonus!) your mental outlook, fitness level, and energy will all improve.
- Get a checkup – The doctor can be frightening, but your health is more important. A heart health checkup includes Weight and BMI, Waist Circumference, Blood Pressure, Cholesterol, Heart Exam, and Fasting Blood. The good news is most of these are done in a regular physical.
- Know your history – Heart disease is one of the easiest ailments to inherit. If you have a family history of heart attacks or heart disease, your chances of getting it increase. So ask your mom, your grandparents, your aunts and uncles how their hearts are doing.
- Eat right – A well-balanced diet can keep your heart healthy. Lots of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean meats are the key components of a good meal. Fried foods and lots of fat can clog your arteries and increase your risk of heart disease. Believe it or not, studies have also shown an excess of sugar can increase your risk as well.
- Don’t Smoke! – I don’t think this one needs too much explanation. It’s bad for your lungs, your teeth, your breath, and of course, your heart. Ewww.
- Take this quiz – Provided by the American Heart Association, it analyzes your risk factors and gives some tips for decreasing your risk. Click here!
- Relax – Stress has a huge impact on mental and physical health, including cardiovascular disease. High blood pressure, which tends to be associated with high stress levels, can lead to heart disease and/or a heart attack. So take time to de-stress, you can use your Heart Health awareness as an excuse!
And don’t forget to eat your Cheerios! As they say, “a healthy heart is a happy heart.” So now that the romantic day of hearts is over, don’t forget to celebrate your life-sustaining heart all month. Keep it healthy and don’t put that red sweater away just yet!
Sources:
http://www.goredforwomen.org/HeartHealthyInYour20s.aspx#PreventionTips
http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#!/event.php?eid=176103435762484