February is Heart Month: Take action for healthier lifestyle | Mark Mahoney

Heart disease is a catch-all phrase for a variety of conditions that affect the heart’s structure and how it works. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. About 695,000 people in the United States died from heart disease in 2021 — that’s 1 in every 5 deaths (CDC, 2021).

You have the power to take action to protect yourself against heart disease. Small heart-healthy actions like adding more movement to our day or choosing healthy foods can have a big impact on protecting our heart health.

Heart-healthy living involves understanding your risk, making healthy choices, and taking steps to reduce your chances of getting heart disease, including coronary heart disease, the most common type.

By taking preventive measures, you can lower your risk of developing heart disease that could lead to a heart attack. You can also improve your overall health and well-being.

Learn about the steps you can take to live a heart-healthy lifestyle.

Understand your risk for heart disease

The first step toward heart health is understanding your risk of heart disease. Your risk depends on many factors, some of which are changeable and others that are not. Risk factors are conditions or habits that make a person more likely to develop a disease. These risk factors may be different for each person.

Preventing heart disease starts with knowing what your risks factors are and what you can do to lower them.

Risk factors for heart disease

• Have high blood pressure

• Have high blood cholesterol

• Have overweight or obesity

• Have prediabetes or diabetes

• Smoke

• Do not get regular physical activity

• Have a family history of early heart disease, for example if your father or brother was diagnosed before age 55, or your mother or sister was diagnosed before age 65

• Have a history of preeclampsia, which is a sudden rise in blood pressure and too much protein in the urine during pregnancy

• Have unhealthy eating behaviors

• Are age 55 or older for women or age 45 or older for men

Each risk factor increases your chance of developing heart disease. The more risks you have, the higher your overall risks.

Some risk factors cannot be changed. These include your age, sex, and a family history of early heart disease. Many others can be modified. For example, being more physically active and eating healthy are important steps for your heart health. You can make the changes gradually, one at a time. But making them is very important.

Coronary heart disease

Coronary heart disease is a type of heart disease where the arteries of the heart cannot deliver enough oxygen-rich blood to the heart. It is also sometimes called coronary artery disease or ischemic heart disease.

About 20.5 million U.S. adults have coronary artery disease, making it the most common type of heart disease in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Coronary artery disease affects the larger coronary arteries on the surface of the heart. Another type of heart disease, called coronary microvascular disease, affects the tiny arteries within the heart muscle. Coronary microvascular disease is more common in women.

The cause of coronary heart disease depends on the type. Coronary artery disease is often caused by cholesterol, a waxy substance that builds up inside the lining of the coronary arteries, forming plaque. This plaque buildup can partially or totally block blood flow in the large arteries of the heart.

Coronary microvascular disease occurs when there is damage to the inner walls of the heart’s small blood vessels. For most people, coronary heart disease is preventable with a heart-healthy lifestyle and medications (if needed).

Symptoms of coronary heart disease may be different from person to person even if they have the same type of coronary heart disease.

However, because many people have no symptoms, they do not know they have coronary heart disease until they have chest pain; blood flow to the heart is blocked, causing a heart attack; or the heart suddenly stops pumping blood, also known as cardiac arrest.

Thanks to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) for much of the content in today’s column.

You can choose healthy habits to help prevent heart disease and take charge of your medical conditions.

If you have coronary heart disease, you may need heart-healthy lifestyle changes, medicines, surgery, or a combination of these approaches to manage your condition and prevent serious problems.

Let February be a proactive call to action for a healthier lifestyle and an improved quality of life for everyone.

Additional Resources

Cardiovascular disease, heart disease, and coronary heart disease may sound similar but they are not one in the same. This fact sheet will help you understand how these conditions differ. Check out the link to the fact sheet at nhlbi.nih.gov.

Learn about the steps you can take to live a heart-healthy lifestyle. Check out the following link where you can download a fact sheet on a heart-healthy lifestyle. Take Action for Your Heart: Get Started! Fact Sheet | NHLBI, NIH

The link to the self-care tips for heart health fact sheet will allow you to download an overview of what self-care for your heart means at nhlbi.nih.gov.

Mark A. Mahoney, Ph.D. has been a Registered Dietitian/Nutritionist for over 35 years and completed graduate studies in Nutrition & Public Health at Columbia University. He can be reached at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: February is Heart Month: Evaluate risks and take action