Heart attacks can strike without warning, with nearly half of men and over half of women experiencing no prior signs of severe heart disease. Doctors and patients may rely too heavily on recognizing symptoms, placing greater importance on understanding the risks of cardiovascular disease and the prevention methods. Identifying the factors contributing to heart attacks and improving habits can significantly decrease these life-threatening risks.
Unchangeable risk factors
Family history of heart disease is one risk element that may not change. Still, understanding genetic tendencies for such diseases is essential. By focusing on improving modifiable risk factors, it’s possible to reduce heart disease likelihood caused by genetic predisposition. Epigenetics, or gene regulation by lifestyle and other influences, plays a role in minimizing these risks.
Key modifiable risk factors
To reduce the chance of a heart attack, consider these modifiable risk factors:
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
- Smoking
- Poor nutrition
- Sedentary lifestyle
- Stress
Healthy eating habits for heart health
To adopt a heart-healthy diet, consider the following guidelines:
- Consume living whole foods, making up over 90% of total food intake – these foods are fresh, unprocessed, and come straight from nature.
- Over half of food consumption should be raw food like fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, healthy oils, and sprouted or milled grains (not baked into bread).
- Take phytonutrient supplements or foods instead of lab-created vitamins. Phytonutrients are derived from living whole foods, herbs, and spices, and show evidence of lowering heart disease risk.
Some heart-healthy foods and beneficial phytonutrients they contain include:
- Fish: omega-3 fatty acids
- Green leafy vegetables: carotenoids
- Citrus fruits: vitamin C
- Tomato: lycopene
- Extra virgin olive oil: polyphenolics and oleic acid
- Green tea: tea polyphenols
- Soy proteins: genistein, daidzein, glyceitin
- Dark chocolate: flavonoid
- Pomegranate: polyphenols
Combating sedentary lifestyle
A sedentary lifestyle increases the risk of heart attacks. To increase your activity level, find an enjoyable exercise routine and involve friends or music. Exercise can be an effective stress reducer, impacting both physical and emotional wellbeing.
Managing stress
Poor stress management can lead to a cycle of increasing worry and fixation. To break this cycle, consider the following actions:
- Set aside 10 minutes for slow, deep breathing exercises. Visualize something enjoyable without any stressful distractions.
- Journal thoughts and feelings accompanied by calming music.
- Connect with someone through text, phone call, or in-person visitors to alleviate stress.
- Spend quality time with loved ones or close friends.
- Engage in sexual activity with a committed partner.
- Meditation, yoga, Tai Chi, or other meditative exercises can help with relaxation.
- Seek massage therapy, reiki, or emotional clearing.
- Listen to favorite music while focusing on enjoyable memories for at least 17 seconds. Doing so can significantly reduce stress chemicals in the body.
Supplements
There are various nutrients, herbs, and other natural treatments that have been proven as effective heart healers. Although these are not widely accepted by mainstream medicine, they can still help prevent heart attacks.
By addressing these heart disease risk factors alongside diagnostic test measurements, patients can better understand their health and take necessary steps to prevent life-threatening heart attacks.
