Neglecting Your Health Can Be As
Serious As A Heart Attack

by Dr. Brett L. Lukert, DC

The heart is obviously one of the most important muscles in the body, and demands that we treat it accordingly. Many factors contribute to a healthy heart, but we apparently aren’t paying very close attention. For the last 80 years, heart disease has been the leading cause of death in our country for men and women with approximately 1.5 million new cases of heart attacks each year.

Heart disease occurs when the arteries that supply blood and oxygen to the heart become hardened or narrow due to plaque buildup. This causes blockage that eventually reduces or cuts off the blood supply, which results in a heart attack. While nothing can be done about our age, gender, or family history, we can control most of the risk factors relating to heart disease. These risk factors include smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, lack of exercise, obesity, and diabetes, which all can be controlled IF we decide it’s important enough. Until we change our mindset from one of damage control to one of proactive prevention, heart disease will continue to be the number one killer.

Here are 4 tips to a healthier heart:

1.  Eat healthier. A heart-healthy diet is one that is high in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fiber, and plenty of water (instead of pop). It is also low in trans fats, saturated fats, and salt. In other words, try to minimize fast food, junk food, and processed food.
2.  Exercise more. Start slow, but eventually work up to 30 minutes/day at least 5 days a week with some form of aerobic exercise (walking, biking, aerobics, elliptical, etc.)
3.  Improve lifestyle. Avoiding smoke intake (first or secondhand), minimizing alcohol consumption, reducing stress, and maintaining our ideal weight will decrease our chances of heart disease dramatically.
4.  Get blood work. Specifically, a lipoprotein profile will give you cholesterol, triglyceride, HDL (good cholesterol), and LDL (bad cholesterol) levels. This information will be a good indicator of how “at risk” you are internally.

Make it a priority now to take your health into your own hands and to set a good example for your family. These changes will no doubt help you be healthy, live healthy, and stay healthy!