Tuesday, February 1st marked the first day of Heart Health month. The first proclamation for Heart Health month was declared by President Lyndon Johnson back in 1964. Since then, every other president has followed his lead and have acknowledged the importance of a healthy heart and have commemorated February as American Heart Month.

Here are some tips you can follow to have a healthier heart.

1. Know what risk category you fall under.

A variety of conditions and factors can predispose people to heart diseases. Habits such as poor eating, smoking, no exercise can lead to increased chances for heart disease and having a heart attack. For anyone above the ages of 65, they already should be concerned about their heart because age is an important factor. The elderly also may have other health challenges that could exacerbate a heart condition. Diseases such as diabetes are of importance.

2. Eat right.

Your daily diet plays such an important role in maintaining a healthy cardiovascular system. Focus more on eating vegetables, grains, plant proteins, lean meat and fish as opposed to high calorie diets and junk food. High calories and junk food will put yourself at risk for obesity and clogging your blood vessels. This can have serious negative effects on the heart.

3. Avoid sedentary lifestyle.

One of the unfortunate results of the Covid 19 pandemic is that many of us really took on a sedentary lifestyle. We encourage you to find an activity or exercise routine. Spend up to 150 minutes a week on these activities to keep the heart healthy while burning down calories. Simply walking on a regular basis can be of much benefit to you.

4. Lose some weight.

The more excess weight you have on your body, the harder the heart must work for you.

5. Do not ignore your other health conditions.

Heart disease can also be attributed to other health issues. Things like high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol levels can be a trigger. It is important to identify these conditions and manage them appropriately.

6. Say no to tobacco.

If you’re smoking, ask a Doctor about how best to quit. There are options. It does take will power. But once you overcome that pull that smoking can give you, you’ll be on your way to a healthier heart.

7. Limit your alcohol consumption

Those who are at risk of heart disease can further increase their chances by consuming too much alcohol.

8. Get good sleep

One common problem that many of us have is a lack of sleep. Long term lack of sleep can only lead to more health issues and has been associated with obesity, diabetes and heart attacks. We recommend getting an average of 7 hours of sleep per night.

If we follow these tips, we may gradually win the war on heart diseases and drastically bring down the morbidity numbers. Here’s to a healthy heart!