February is Heart Month
No, not the Valentine's Day kind of heart, but the one that actually keeps your blood pumping and your body alive.
What better time to stop and think about the most important organ in our bodies and how we can best take care of it.
What is Heart Disease?
Your heart is a muscle that gets energy from blood carrying oxygen and nutrients. Having a constant supply of blood keeps your heart working properly. Heart disease is actually a group of conditions affecting the structure and functions of the heart and has many root causes.
Coronary artery disease, for example, develops when a combination of fatty materials, calcium and scar tissue (called plaque) builds up in the coronary arteries that supply blood to your heart.The plaque buildup narrows the arteries and prevents the heart from getting enough blood.
Are you taking care of your heart the best way you can? Heart disease is manageable. By controlling the risk factors that could lead to coronary artery disease, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking, stress, excessive alcohol consumption, physical inactivity and being overweight, you can help to prevent a disabling or life-treatening heart attack.
What is a Heart Attack?
When the blood supply to the heart is slowed or stopped because of a blockage, a heart attack occurs. Atherosclerosis, the narrowing of coronary arteries due to plaque buildup, causes more than 90% of heart attacks.
A heart attack may also occur when a coronary artery temporarily contracts or goes into a severe spasm, effectively shutting off the flow of blood to the heart. The length of time the blood supply is cut off will determine the amount of damage to the heart.
Some heart attacks may not affect the heart's functioning, but others may interfere with its ability to pump blood effectively and may ultimately lead to cardiac arrest.
Steps to Reduce your Risk of Heart Disease
- Know and control your risk factors
- Be smoke-free
- Be physically active
- Know and control your blood pressure
- Know and control blood cholesterol levels
- Eat a heart-healthy diet
- Achieve and maintain a healthy weight
- Limit alcohol use
- Reduce stress
- Visit your doctor regularly and follow his/her advice
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