Boost Your Heart Health in 7 Easy Steps

All organs are important in their own ways, but the heart is one of the most essential. Heart problems rank among the most severe because of their ability to damage other vital systems and kill the patient. What’s worse, heart disease symptoms are often silent — meaning they can easily go unnoticed until it’s too late.

Medicine has come a long way in treating heart disease, but preventing issues from starting is definitely a better approach. Here are seven areas that, when consistently followed, can help improve your heart health and reduce your risk for heart disease:

1. Increasing Daily Movement
   Moving regularly is important to keep your heart strong and improve circulation throughout the body. Adding exercise into our routine is another great way to get our blood flowing, reducing blood pressure and helping our weight loss goals.
2. Quitting Smoking or Avoiding Smoke
   Smoking is one of the major risk factors for heart disease, so avoiding smoke or quitting the habit can literally add years back to your life.
3. Eating a Healthy, Well-Balanced Diet
   Healthy diets and healthy organs go hand in hand. By eating foods that help your circulatory system (as well as other areas of your body) perform their best, you can reduce chances of disease. By eating better, we will also be able to at least partially manage our blood pressure, reduce our blood sugar levels, control our cholesterol and maintain a healthy weight. 

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4. Reducing Blood Sugar
   Having high blood sugar on a consistent basis can damage a variety of systems in your body, including your heart. By keeping our sugar levels in check, we can ensure our blood pressure and vascular system aren’t overstressed. 
5. Maintaining a Healthy Weight
   Excess fat surrounding organs and vessels can place additional stress on the heart. By keeping a healthy weight, your cardiovascular system can pump optimally without being overworked.
6. Controlling Cholesterol
   Bad cholesterol (known as LDL cholesterol) can collect in your arteries, attach to walls and eventually lead to serious disease. By keeping your bad cholesterol low, you can help keep your vessels clear and functional.
7. Managing Blood Pressure
   High blood pressure is another stressor that can lead to heart stress and failure. By making consistent lifestyle changes, you can lower your blood pressure and keep it within normal range.

Take the Next Step to Protect Your Heart
While genetics play a big role in our overall health — and there may be things out of our control — improving any of these seven areas listed above will lead to better health over the course of your life. If you are unsure of your current heart health, take our online assessment today. It’s a simple questionnaire that uses your answers to determine whether you may be at risk.

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