There are few things more important than heart health. Your heart is the engine that keeps you going, enables you to keep up in a fast-paced world, and allows you to enjoy the incredible things life has to offer. When your heart struggles to keep up, your overall health will decline as well. Did you know that heart disease is the leading cause of death for women in the United States? According to statistics collected in 2017 by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), heart disease accounts for approximately 1 in 5 deaths.
The Happy Hormone Cottage is invested in all aspects of women’s health, from heart health to healthy hormones. Our team of specialists offers a comprehensive assessment of our patients’ health, examining all the ways that improvements can be made instead of conforming to a one-for-all therapy. Our focus is patient-first, tailoring our therapies to your unique requirements! With that said, we have decided to compile a shortlist of effective ways to improve your heart health and improve your quality of life!
5 Ways to Boost Your Heart Health
Fortunately, there is more than one way to improve your heart health and when done in conjunction with one another, the results are even more evident! We have listed some of the most effective ways to improve heart health below!
More Exercise
It’s called Cardio for a reason! Getting active and exercising is an outstanding way to improve your heart health. Routine moderate to intense workouts require the heart to keep up, strengthening it over time. A stronger heart doesn’t have to work as hard on a daily basis for simple things like climbing the stairs or walking.
Exercising is one of the foundations of heart health because it has other incidental benefits as well. When you exercise, it encourages you to eat well and also releases endorphins and hormones that reduced your stress levels. Now, this doesn’t necessarily mean you need to join a gym, any exercise is better than none! But if you can find 30 minutes a day to get the blood pumping, your heart will thank you in the long run!
Eliminate Smoking
We know that this may be the most challenging thing on this list, but smoking has an incredibly adverse effect on your body, especially your heart and lungs! A lot of the focus around smoking is how it damages your lungs, but that damage extends to the heart as well! As your breathing becomes more of a challenge and the oxygen intake of the lungs decreases, your heart has to work significantly harder to meet the oxygen demands of the body!
If you are able to stop smoking, the total body health benefits are so profound and far-reaching that we couldn’t fit the list here!
Heart-Healthy Foods
Another incredible opportunity to improve heart health is to look at the foods you eat! We have compiled a few examples of foods that are packed with essential vitamins and nutrients responsible for supercharging the heart!
- Leafy greens are an excellent source of vitamin K and an excellent source of fiber
- Whole Oats, 3 servings per day have shown to decrease the risk of heart disease by 22% (NIH)
- Avocados are packed with healthy monosaturated fats as well as potassium, with one serving containing 28% of your daily recommended requirement.
- Fatty fish like salmon is loaded with omega-3’s which are renowned for improving heart health
- Berries are a rich source of antioxidants, great for their anti-inflammatory properties and preventing oxidation stress
- Nuts like walnuts and almonds are packed with essential nutrients like magnesium and copper and are proven to reduce cholesterol.
Limit Your Stress Levels
Excessive stress can have seriously adverse effects on heart health. If levels of cortisol are too high for extended periods of time, a symptom of chronic stress, it will cause damage to your heart and other key systems in the body.
If you find yourself constantly stressed, consider setting aside 20 minutes a day for de-stressing exercises like meditation or simple breathing exercises. Stress and anxiety are often intertwined. You overthink and worry about everything, all the time, and are stuck in a state of perpetual stress. Meditation is the art of focusing on being present, focusing on the moment you are in, and simply…breathing! Controlling your breathing can have an immediate ‘grounding’ effect that eases your mental stress and allows you to relax.
Functional Medicine
If you are concerned about your heart health and would like to take steps towards regaining your quality of life and longevity, you need to consider functional medicine! The Happy Hormone Cottage works in conjunction with the Integrative Hormone Center to offer a completely comprehensive assessment of your health and provide therapy that is unique to your needs! Instead of focusing on general heart health therapy, we assess your overall condition and provide treatment that stands to benefit you the most! We base treatment on your current condition, health history as well as lifestyle choices!
If you find it challenging to get enough of the essential vitamins and minerals, have trouble getting enough sleep, or regulating stress, we have an incredible line of supplements that we offer our patients to help them achieve better health! Supplements that reinforce your arteries, Omega boosters, and adrenal/stress regulators!
A Healthy Heart for a Better Life!
Heart health is so incredibly important for a happy and full life. When your heart functions at it’s best, you can keep up with friends and family without missing a step! If you would like to learn more about Heart health or the treatment options offered at the Happy Hormone Cottage, call or book an appointment online to speak with a specialist today!
