5 Tips for a Healthy Heart

Jessica Vlasie, WHNP
February 8, 2023
08:07 AM

The leading cause of death in Montana is heart disease with more than 1,000 Montanans under the age of 80 dying from heart disease and stroke every year. However, with a bit of work, you can lower your risk of heart disease and stroke and improve your quality of life with a few changes. Here are five changes you can make to improve your heart health.

1. Choose Healthy Foods and Drinks

Eating healthy is an important part of keeping your heart healthy. To keep your heart healthy, limit foods high in sodium, saturated fat, added sugar, and alcohol. Eating lots of these foods can raise your cholesterol and blood pressure, putting you at higher risk of heart blockages and heart disease. Try to track what you eat using nutrition labels. The recommended nutrition information is listed below.

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2. Get Regular Physical Activity

In addition to a healthy diet, another way to increase your heart health is to get regular physical activity. Getting regular physical activity has many heart-healthy benefits, including helping lose excess weight, improving physical fitness, lowering "bad" cholesterol while raising "good" cholesterol, managing high blood pressure, and decreasing stress. Adults should aim to get more than two and a half hours of moderate physical activity a week and at least an hour and fifteen minutes of vigorous physical activity a week. Some suggested activities are below.

3. Practice Stress Management Activities

Did you know, stress can contribute to high blood pressure and increase your risk of heart disease? When you feel stressed, your body responds by increasing a hormone called cortisol and other stress hormones. Chronic stress, when you are in a constant or frequent state of stress, can cause high blood pressure, which can cause heart attacks and strokes. Decreasing stress will help to minimize your risk of heart disease in your life. Some healthy ways to reduce stress include:

Another important method to reduce stress is to make a list of the things in your life that cause a stress response. While you may not be able to completely avoid these things, minimizing your exposure can help you cope when you do have a stress response.

4. Get Good Quality Sleep

Another great way to improve your heart health is to make sure you are getting enough quality sleep. While you sleep, your body works to maintain and restore your health. This includes repairing your heart and blood vessels. It is recommended that adults get between 7 and 9 hours of sleep a night. Even if you can't get the recommended amount of sleep every night, you can make changes in your life to ensure that you are improving your sleep quality. Some ways to improve sleep quality include:

5. Check up on Your Blood Pressure

One of the major risk factors for heart disease is high blood pressure. Blood pressure measures how much your blood is pushing against the walls of your arteries as your heart pumps your blood around your body. If your blood pressure is too high, it can damage your heart and lead to plaque build up. High blood pressure can be caused by many things including smoking, age, and genetics. If high blood pressure is diagnosed early, your healthcare provider can recommend lifestyle changes or prescribe medications to lower it, lowering your risk of heart disease.

The best way to find out if you need to make changes to improve your blood pressure is to have your blood pressure checked at least once a year. This can be done at a doctor's office, or at some pharmacies. If you are concerned about your blood pressure and want to have it checked, consider scheduling an appointment at Alluvion Health. To schedule an appointment today call 406.454.6973 or come to Alluvion Health's Main Clinic at 601 1st Ave N for a walk-in visit Monday - Friday from 7am - 6pm or Saturdays from 8am - 5pm.

To learn more heart-healthy tips, visit https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/heart-healthy-living/sleep

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Jessica Vlasie, WHNP, is a Women's Health Nurse Practitioner at Alluvion Health. She enjoys having the opportunity to make a difference in her patients' lives!