Adopting a healthy lifestyle is the ideal prevention for Coronary Artery Disease and heart disease in general. You can't change your family history, your age, being male, or being a postmenopausal woman. However, you can lower your risk for CAD by:
- Managing your blood pressure if you have high blood pressure
- Managing your blood cholesterol if you have high cholesterol
- Controlling diabetes if you are diabetic
- Not smoking
- Not overeating and controlling your weight
- Eating a healthy diet low in saturated fat
- Managing your stress
- Exercising regularly and moderately
Manage your blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes
High blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes are all conditions that can be managed with regular medication and some of the lifestyle changes listed here. You should follow your physician's advice on how to manage these conditions.
Not smoking
Overall, not smoking is one of the best things you can do for your heart. If you are a smoker, stopping can decrease the stress on your heart and may improve any existing heart disease symptoms. Smoking affects your heart by:
- Damaging blood vessels
- Reducing the amount of oxygen in the blood
- Making your heart beat faster
- Possibly leading to clumping or stickiness in blood vessels
Exercise
Remember that moderate exercise is good for your heart and good for you. If you already suffer from heart disease, check with you physician before beginning a routine. Moderate exercise can help your heart get stronger. Some people experience the following benefits:
- Improvement in heart failure symptoms
- Reduction in stress
- Increase in energy level
- Weight loss
- Improvement in circulation and blood pressure
- Lower cholesterol levels
Moderate exercise will not hurt you. Just the opposite is true. If you have any signs such as chest pain (angina) and shortness of breath that continue long after exercise, see your doctor.
Manage stress
Stress is an inescapable aspect of modern life, but you can help lessen its negative impact on your health by practicing relaxation techniques. Research has shown that relaxation techniques such as meditation, progressive muscle relaxation and controlled breathing exercises can create a feeling of inner calm while decreasing your heart rate, blood pressure and stress hormone levels.
Last update: 31.07.2005
