Introduction
Every year, September 29 is denoted as World Heart Day. This year's theme is “Don’t miss a beat”. Each year, cardiovascular disease (CVD) claims over 20.5 million lives. Up to 80% of premature CVD deaths are preventable through affordable access to care, early screening, and more opportunities to make healthy choices in nutrition and stay active.
Contents
Protecting Your Heart, Protecting Your Future
Heart diseases are chronic diseases that need to be treated lifelong. Because of high medical bills, treating heart diseases can put financial burdens to your family. So it is better to prevent heart diseases with the following tips.
● Don't smoke
One of the best things you can do for your heart is to stop smoking. Even if you're not a smoker, be sure to stay away from secondhand smoke.
The risk of heart disease starts to drop in as little as a day after quitting. After a year without cigarettes, the risk of heart disease drops to about half that of a smoker.
● Get moving
Aim for at least 30 to 60 minutes of activity daily. Physical activity helps control your weight. It also lowers the chances of getting other conditions that may put a strain on the heart. These include high blood pressure, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes.
● Eat a heart-healthy diet
A healthy diet can help protect the heart, improve blood pressure and cholesterol, and lower the risk of type 2 diabetes.
A heart-healthy eating plan includes:
● Vegetables and fruits.
● Beans.
● Lean meat and fish.
● Low-fat dairy foods.
● Whole grains.
● Healthy fats such as olive oil and avocado.
Take in less of the following:
● High-sodium meals.
● Sugar or sweetened beverages.
● Highly processed food
● Alcohol.
● Saturated fat and Trans fat.
● Maintain a healthy weight
Being overweight — especially around the middle of the body — raises the risk of heart disease. Extra weight can lead to conditions that raise the chances of getting heart disease. These conditions include high blood pressure, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes.
Even a small weight loss can be good for you. Reducing weight by just 3% to 5% can help lower certain fats in the blood called triglycerides. It can lower blood sugar and cut the risk of type 2 diabetes. Losing even more helps lower blood pressure and blood cholesterol levels.
● Get quality sleep
People who don't get enough sleep have a higher risk of obesity, high blood pressure, heart attack, diabetes and depression. Most adults need at least seven hours of sleep each night.
● Manage stress
Stress can play a role in higher blood pressure and other risk factors for heart disease. Some people also cope with stress in unhealthy ways. For example, they may overeat, drink or smoke. You can boost your health by finding other healthy tactics including physical activity, meditation and yoga.
● Get regular health screening tests
High blood pressure, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes can damage the heart and blood vessels. But if you don't get checked for these conditions, you likely won't know whether you have them. Regular screening tests can tell you what your numbers are and to get early treatment.
Complications of Heart Diseases
Heart diseases cover coronary artery disease, arrhythmia, cardiomyopathy and valvular heart disease. Many forms of heart disease can be prevented or treated with healthy lifestyle choices.
But if treatments are postponed due to high medical expenses or the diseases are incurable because of late stage, the patient will suffer from:
● Heart failure
● Heart attack
● Stroke
● Aneurysm
● Peripheral arterial disease
● Sudden cardiac arrest
So it is important to reduce the risk before heart diseases happen.
Heart diseases are under the category of critical illness with medical expenses. It is important to prevent heart diseases and at the same time, you should prepare a backup financial plan in case of an unexpected situation.
PRUFlexiprotect CI can cover expenses for critical illnesses like heart diseases. So protect your future with PRUFlexiprotect CI so that you can treat it peacefully without spending your family's savings.
Learn more about PRUFlexiprotect CI here.
