Cardiovascular Disease is One of the Most Deadliest Diseases Known to Mankind
Over 451,000 Americans die of heart disease each year, accounting for over a quarter of all deaths. Many Americans, particularly men over 45 or women over 55, or with a family history of heart disease, are at risk. If you might be among them, or want to decrease your risk later in life, you need to act now.
Fortunately, there are many known ways of reducing your chances of cardiovascular disease. The most important thing to lower your risk is avoiding smoking, and if you are currently a smoker, to quit smoking. Even only occasionally smoking cigarettes drastically increases your risk of heart disease. Smoking damages the heart and blood vessels, and smokers are more prone to narrowing of the arteries, a common cause in heart attacks. Nicotine also increases your blood pressure, another risk factor. The risk of smoking increases with age, especially over age 35. Fortunately, though, your health starts to improve at the moment you quit ? within one year, the risk of cardiovascular disease will drop significantly. No matter how long you have smoked, there is a great health benefit in stopping today.
Body weight is also a large component in the risk of cardiovascular disease. Too much fat, especially in the area of your waist, increases risk of heart disease as well as many other ailments including stroke, high blood pressure, gallstones, and diabetes. If your BMI, or body mass index, is greater than 25.0, you are considered overweight, and BMI of 30.0 or more indicates obesity. You can calculate your BMI through many online calculators, such as this one: http://www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/ Lowering weight, even if you can?t reach your ideal weight, will decrease stress on your heart and increases the average lifespan as well. Along with losing weight, increasing your intake of fruits and vegetables is also something that correlates with lower risk of heart disease.
Health screenings are important in order to prevent cardiovascular disease in order to pinpoint problems early. One common problem that contributes to heart disease risk is high blood pressure. Blood pressure is the amount of force with which the blood is being propelled through the blood vessels. High blood pressure can damage the body over time, including the heart and the blood vessels themselves as well as other organs (like the kidneys). A doctor can help you with monitoring blood pressure, as well as other factors ? such as cholesterol and triglyceride levels ? that may impact blood pressure. For example, getting a lipid profile (http://www.emedicinehealth.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=4170) would give a far fuller picture of your risk of cardiovascular disease than just knowing your cholesterol level. It?s important to act as quickly as possible in order to prevent cardiovascular disease.
Heart disease prevention can start with even very simple changes to your daily habits and can potentially add years to your life. No matter what your age or health level, you can take action to lower your risk.
