Healthy Habits For A Healthy Heart

Do you remember those days, as a kid, when you would be constantly attracted to things that were supposedly ‘bad’ for you? Nothing much has changed, if you think about it, now that you are older! Even today, we are still attracted to things which are unhealthy for us and our health.

We still need our daily dose of reminders from our family or doctors or online publications or even various pharma manufacturers to stay away from harmful habits.

One part of our body which is greatly affected by our lifestyle habits is our heart. Time and again, we have been told to adopt healthy habits, which in turn will ensure a healthy heart.

Over the years, drug manufacturers, who are a critical part of our healthcare ecosystem, have informed us, of the importance of taking in various supplements which can lead to a healthy life. But, hold on! How are we supposed to take care of something we don’t know much about?

Can a factory worker be expected to repair and maintain a piece of machinery, without knowing anything about it or even how it works? No, he can’t! Similarly, we cannot be expected to keep our heart healthy without knowing anything about it and how it functions – after all, it is nothing short of a powerful machine and we are its keeper.

So, let’s learn something about our heart today!

Facts about our heart:

? Our heart pumps about 1 million barrel of blood during our entire lifetime!

? Our heart beats about 100,000 times a day!

? Our heart begins to develop when we are an 8-10 weeks old embryo and does not stop working since, until our death.

Anatomy of our heart:

Our heart is located between the left and right lungs, right in the center of our chest. Our heart is about the size of our fist and can weigh 280 to 340 grams in men and 230 to 280 grams in women.

Our hearts are made up of four chambers – right atrium, left atrium, right ventricle, and left ventricle. The atria are smaller and less muscular, compared to the ventricles and their function is to receive blood, so they are connected to veins which carry blood into the heart.

The ventricles are larger and stronger and they pump out the blood to arteries, which carry the blood to different parts of the body.

There – now we know something about our heart and how much work this organ does for us. Wouldn’t you agree, that our heart needs all the love and care it can get from us, for all the work it has to perform every day? If you agree, then read on to know how you can help your heart to stay strong, healthy and active.

Eating Healthy:

We all know that eating healthy is the best way to take care of ourselves, which includes the heart. But, the difficult bit is implementing it. How do we ensure, we eat healthy? Here’s how –

? Stock your kitchen with healthy food such as unsalted nuts, organic fruits and vegetables, various kinds of seeds and healthy grains. Nuts are good fats and few nuts a day will keep you healthy.

? Replace heavy fat such as butter and ghee with olive oil, canola oil and sesame oil.

? Try to avoid meat, especially red meat and go for fishes such as salmon, mackerel, and trout.

?Limit your purchases of processed and canned food which have high amount of preservatives.

? Reduce the intake of salt.

? Substitute wheat bread with whole grain bread and white bread with brown bread.

? Opt for fresh fruit and vegetable juices instead of soda

Staying Active:

If you are serious about taking care of your heart, then it’s very easy to incorporate few minutes of physical activities in your daily routine. Here’s how –

? Park your car further away from your workplace or home and walk the extra distance

? Take the stairs instead of elevators or escalators

? Use your cycle instead of driving when going to the local stores for an errand.

? Skip for ten minutes every day

? When on a phone call, try walking around instead of sitting in one place

? With hundreds of videos now available online, you can easily begin yoga at home

Sleeping Well:

Our body requires 7-8 hours of solid sleep every day to repair itself and work better. If this does not happen easily for you, then this is what you can do:

? Try and reduce the intake of caffeine

? You can go for a walk right before you go to sleep

? Ensure your bedroom is dark

? You can also read a book or out on some music/white noise, which can help you sleep.

Losing weight:

Working your diet and a bit of exercise will automatically help you manage your weight. However, for people who are overweight or even obese, stricter measures need to be taken. Exercising daily for an hour is a must as is moderating the amount of your food intake. Obesity is one of the major causes of heart diseases among youngsters.

Quitting Bad Habits:

Excessive drinking and smoking is extremely bad for your heart health. It can damage the heart to an extent where it is unable to carry out any of its functions. Agreed, quitting such habits is not easy and you may also need professional help but it’s not impossible. If you lead a stressful life, then you should definitely ensure you stay away from these habits, as they will put additional pressure on your heart.

Regular Check-ups:

Issues such as high-blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol can also cause your heart to weaken, increasing the chances of heart attacks and heart-related diseases. Regular checkups should be done and medications taken on time to reduce the impact of these illnesses on your heart.

Take Heart Healthy Supplements:

You may not always be able to follow all of these habits, however, you can always spare a minute a day to take a heart-healthy tonic/supplement, which will not only improve your heart health but also act as a powerful anti-oxidant for your body.

It will definitely take time, patience and a certain measure of practice, before you are able to incorporate all of these habits into your daily routine. And, as we mentioned before, knowledge is important too. By reading this article, you have taken the first step towards living a healthier life. Now start practicing.

Aries Drugs is one of the leading pharmaceutical company in Uttarakhand which is nutraceutical manufacturer in Uttarakhand.

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