Don’t Forget Your Heart

Albert Einstein said “I never came upon any of my discoveries through the process of rational thinking.” Heart is what makes us think irrationally, make us love, makes us empathetic but apart from all this, as a part Human Anatomy, heart is the most vital organ of our body as it pumps blood through our body circulating nutrients and oxygen to all the parts of our body & keeps us alive. But some people don’t think about their heart as much as it thinks about them & take it for granted and that when things starts getting out of hand. Every year, almost 25% of total deaths are the result of heart related diseases and almost every year, the death rate of men died from heart diseases is twice as much of the death rate of women dies from heart diseases. But this does not mean that you have to accept a heart problem as your fate. Knowing the warning signs & symptoms is the key to preventing any sort of misshapen. Here are some main warning symptoms & signs for Heart Attack:

1. Chest pain, Upper body pain or discomfort in the arms, back, neck, jaw, or upper stomach,
2. Breathing Shortness, Nausea, lightheadedness, or cold sweats,

Medical Conditions like Diabetes, etc. and choice of lifestyle like taking poor diet, being overweight, obesity, extreme alcohol intake, etc. also increases the risk of a heart attack.

By adopting a healthy lifestyle and lowering the level of cholesterol and blood pressure, you can prevent heart related diseases from happening. Here are some tips to keep your heart healthy:

1. Quit Smoking: Smoking or consuming tobacco in any sort compellingly increases the risk of getting a heart related disease. Tobacco has killed more people than the combined deaths from all other diseases (yes, all including cancer, Ebola or any other epidemic or disease). Apart from damaging lungs badly (as you can see as the image in any pack of cigarettes), the chemicals which are used in the tobacco & which people eventually intake while consuming it damages their blood arteries & carbon monoxide in cigarette get absorbed into the blood and increases the blood pressure, i.e. heart works harder than the usual to supply the necessary amount of oxygen & nutrients to various body parts. And when it comes to heart, any amount of smoking is unhealthy (i.e. smokeless tobacco, low nicotine cigarette, rare smoking, etc.). Although when you stop smoking, the risk of getting a heart disease falls to half within 1 year and within 4 to 5 years, the risk of heart disease drops to almost that of a nonsmoker.

2. Workout & stay active: Getting & staying active by doing physical activities and regular workout doesn’t only help you to achieve and maintain prefect body weight but also significantly reduces your chances of getting any heart related disease. Try to do minimum 4 Hours of workout each week, which you can divide into 15 minutes to 30 minute short workouts each day in the morning or in the evening as per your comfort (if 15 min, then twice a day). You could do jogging or running, cardio, stretching, yoga or aerobic activities in your workout and by gradually increasing the durations & intensity of workout, you will get really unbelievable results. And don’t hesitate to take part in housekeeping activities as the basic motive is to be indulged in physical activities and what’s better than housekeeping in physical activities.

3. Eat Healthy: When it comes to heart, there are some food items which are really bad and some which are really great. Eating food good for the heart is the key of healthy living and long life. In order to lower the risk of heart related diseases, a person should include fruits, vegetables and whole grains in his diet and try to keep distance from food items high in Saturated Fat and Tran Fat. Items high in Trans Fat are fried fast food items, bakery products, packed snacks, crackers, etc. and items high in Saturated Fat are some particular meats like red meat, dairy products, etc. But adding a little amount of saturated fat in the meal is okay. Maintaining blood pressure at a healthy level is an important aspect of staying away from heart problems and salt is kinda major reason for high Blood Pressure, so try to add less salt in cooking and once you will get used to of it, there will not be any problem. Fish like mackerel, sardines, fresh tuna and salmon are great source of omega-3 fats, which is really good for the heart and decreases the risk of getting heart attack drastically.

Apart from these major points, a person should keep in mind the following to keep his heart healthy & to live a long happy life:
1. Getting enough good sleep, i.e. minimum 7 hours a day (for an adult),
2. Maintaining a healthy weight (try to keep in accordance with your body mass index),
3. Get regular health checkup for things like BP, Diabetes, Cholesterol, etc.