World Heart Day: How to Keep Your Heart Happy & Healthy

Heart disease kills men and women in developed and developing countries more than any other disease. Heart-healthy living involves understanding the risk, making healthy choices, and taking steps to reduce the chances of developing a cardiovascular disorder. This World Heart Day, try to inculcate more habits that make your heart happy and healthy.

Read on to find out more.

• Get enough sleep.

Getting enough sleep is an essential part of keeping your heart healthy. If you are someone who does not prioritize sleep then you are at a stagnant risk of developing cardiovascular disease, no matter the age or health habits. Sleeping too little causes disruptions in underlying health conditions and biological processes, including blood pressure and inflammation. Hence, make it a point to sleep for at least 7-8 hours each night.

• Have healthy fats.

Fats are an essential part of the diet. But limit yourself from saturated fats, found in butter, ghee, margarine, fatty meats, dairy fats and processed foods such as pies, pastries and cakes. They increase the levels of cholesterol in the body. Keep an especial watch on trans fats, which increases the risk of developing heart disease or having a stroke over a lifetime. They clog your arteries by raising your bad cholesterol levels (LDL) and lowering your good cholesterol levels (HDL). Read the labels before buying anything from the supermarket, including the oils to eliminate having them under all circumstances.

• Exercise.

Exercising not only keeps you in shape but also keeps your heart muscles strong. Regular exercising can burn away any accumulated fat that could deposit in the arteries and keep the pipelines clean. You can choose from among the plethora of options like walking, running, jogging, cycling, swimming, aerobics, dancing or playing any sport.

• Don’t smoke.

Smoking ruins your health. It can not only lead to developing premature heart disease but can also make you suffer from chronic conditions like cancer, lung disease, premature ageing, and other problems that make you sick and old before time.

• Consume a diet high in fibre.

Whole grains, lentils, fruits, vegetables, beans and oatmeal are foods that contain plenty of fibre. Having a diet rich in fibre lowers the blood pressure, limits inflammation, and reduces the bad cholesterol in your bloodstream. Having 35-40 grams of fibre each day in your diet is recommended. In order to meet this, you can have 5 servings of fruits and vegetables in a day.

• Have green tea.

Having 3-4 cups of green tea in a day is your best option to get all the heart-healthy benefits. It has anti-ageing properties, reduces the bad cholesterol levels in the body, while also prevents the build-up of plaque in the arteries.

• Eat more heart-healthy foods.

Include more avocados, oatmeal, salmon, olive oil, nuts and seeds, berries, red wine, 100% dark chocolate, legumes, and green leafy vegetables in your diet. You also have to be mindful about avoiding oily foods, processed foods and artificial sugars for they clog the arteries and increase inflammation.

Over to you.
Maintaining a heart-healthy lifestyle is especially important in this day and age, wherein the options to choose from is limitless and the way of living is sedentary. Include the above-mentioned tips to keep your heart healthy because health is wealth and there can be no better exemplary embodiment of it than the current times.