Keeping Up With Heart Health For The Whole Family

You can keep heart disease off your doorstep. It's easier than you think to get your family heart-healthy. And, nothing could be more important.

First, let’s talk about the men in your family. While heart disease is the No. 1 killer of men and women in the United States, men usually develop heart disease 10 to 15 years earlier than women. In fact, it's responsible for one in every four male deaths. Even scarier, half of all men who die suddenly from heart attacks had no previous symptoms. But there's power in prevention.

Knowing heart disease risk factors is the first step, and they happen to be the same for men and women. (However, keep in mind that while men and women share many risk factors for heart disease, a few risk factors are unique to women.)

Am I At Risk For Heart Disease?

Heart disease risks for everyone in the family include:

• Smoking
• High blood cholesterol
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes and prediabetes
• Being overweight or obese
• Lack of physical exercise
• Excessive alcohol use (drinking more than 15 drinks a week for men and eight drinks per week for women, or binge drinking more than five drinks for men and more than four drinks for women within about two hours)
• Family history of heart attack or heart disease

You can’t change genetics, but there are other risk factors you can control, physicians say:

• Don’t smoke, or stop if you are currently using.
• Exercise 30 - 60 minutes, five days a week, or simply increase your activity level.
• Control blood pressure (less than 120/80).
• Control cholesterol levels.
• Control blood sugar levels if you have diabetes.

Does Heart Disease Run In My Family?

Knowing your risk of heart and vascular disease and taking steps to prevent it can minimize the potential of heart attacks and conditions such as heart valve disease. Family gatherings offer an opportunity to catch up on this knowledge. Physicians and staff at Franciscan Health Indianapolis Heart Center offer some tips on what information family members may glean from one another during the holidays:

Get health information from your mother, father, sister and brother.

• If relatives have had a heart attack or stroke, how old were they? (if your father or brother were younger than 55 years old or your mother or sister were younger than 65, your risk is higher) 
• Who in the family has high cholesterol, high blood pressure?
• Does diabetes run in the family?
• Have your parents had surgery for heart valve disease?
• Does any family member have peripheral arterial disease (bad circulation in the legs), aneurysms or blocked carotid arteries?

These are all signs of cardiovascular disease.

How Can I Prevent Heart Disease?

While some risk factors are not preventable, you can take steps to reduce your risk of heart disease. Build a foundation for heart health with these 10 tips:

1. Get Moving To Maintain Your Heart Health

Incorporate more physical activity every day, outside of scheduled workouts. Set aside 15 minutes a day for physical activity with family members whenever possible, and steadily increase the intensity and amount of time you exercise. Walk when possible, take the stairs, and park further away from the entrance. Wearing a pedometer or other device that can count your steps can also increase your day-to-day activity. Check out these exercises you can do at home.

2. Your Heart Can Benefit From A Healthy Weight

Research shows the higher your BMI goes, the more at risk you are of heart disease, diabetes and other health problems. Match your calorie intake with the amount of physical activity you do to manage weight.

3. Those Salt Shakers Can Harm Your Heart Health

It's time to ditch that last shaker of salt. Trimming your sodium intake to 1500 mg or less a day can help keep your blood pressure levels within normal range (Normal blood pressure is less than 120 mm Hg systolic AND less than 80 mm Hg diastolic  or <120/80).

4. Omega 3's Can Help Your Heart

Aim for at least 2 servings a week of an oily fish such as salmon or a heart-healthy nut such as almonds or walnuts.

5. Improve Heart Health With 5 Or More Fruits And Vegetables Each Day

Fruits and vegetables pack quite the punch when it comes to heart health. The more produce you eat, the higher your intake will be of heart-healthy soluble fiber and antioxidants. Your fruits and vegetables help fill you up as well helping to ward off that hunger. Check out these ideas for sneaking in more veggies.

6. Quit Smoking For Better Heart Health

Smoking can damage your entire circulatory system, and increases your risk for coronary heart disease, among other problems. Enlist the help of your physician and contact your local hospital for "tobacco cessation" or “quit smoking” programs.

7. Maintain Healthy Cholesterol And Blood Sugar Levels

Many people don't realize how much a role your cholesterol levels and blood sugars play in your heart health. The American Heart Association considers  diabetes  one of the six major controllable risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Aim to reduce or keep your fasting blood sugar under 100mg/dL.

8. Fiber Is Your Heart's Best Friend

Did you know that a diet high in fiber can actually reduce your blood cholesterol levels? For men aim for 30 grams/day and for women 25 grams. Oatmeal, produce, nuts, whole grain cereals, breads and pastas are a great source of fiber. Get to know the benefits of fiber.

9. Watch Fat Intake

We can’t talk about a heart-healthy diet without discussing fats, the good vs. the bad. Aim for most of your fat intake to come from heart-healthy sources such as nuts, seeds, vegetable based oils like canola or olive, and avocados. Decrease the saturated and trans fats when you can, found in many processed foods such as fast foods, packaged snack foods, and fatty, darker meats such as pork, beef, sausage and bacon. 

10. Keep A Food Log For A Heart-Healthy Lifestyle

Keep a log of your foods can help you determine what lifestyle choices you need to focus on. By writing down everything you eat and drink you become more aware of what foods you are consuming.

Setting Habits As A Family

The first step is to get the entire family involved. It's motivating when everyone is working toward the same goal. It's clear that any family member can benefit from focusing on making meals at home more heart-healthy. For example, childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in the last 30 years. Obese children are more likely to have some of the heart disease risk factors mentioned above, and more likely to be obese adults with those same health risks.

You can ask your healthcare provider to explain other ways to make your family’s heart health a priority. While several lifestyle choices can help your heart health, talking to your doctor about your health goals is essential. Your doctor can help you recognize when some of your lifestyle changes need more effort to be effective. They can also assist you with blood pressure monitoring and cholesterol levels.