Healthy Heart – Healthy Life! Take Action to Get Healthy Today!

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What is Cardiovascular Disease (CVD)?

  • Broad term describing range of diseases affecting heart & blood vessels
  • #1 worldwide cause of death of men and women
  • Can lead to heart attack, angina (chest pain), or stroke
  • Responsible for 40% of all deaths in the USA, more than all forms of cancers combined
  • Includes coronary heart disease (blood vessels), heart rhythm problems (arrhythmias), congenital heart defects, infections affecting heart muscles and valves
  • Many forms of heart disease are preventable & treatable with healthy lifestyle choices

What are the facts for Women and Cardiovascular Disease (CVD)?

  • Cardiovascular Disease kills over 460,000 women per year – about one woman per minute
  • Cardiovascular disease kills more women than the next seven causes of death combined
  • One woman in three has some form of Cardiovascular Disease
  • 2/3 of women who die suddenly of Cardiovascular Disease have no prior symptoms
  • Myth that heart disease is “man’s disease has been challenged and debunked
  • Public awareness of CVD as leading cause of death among women increased from 30% in 1997 to 54% in 2009
  • 2007 = CVD still caused 1 death per minute with women in USA
  • Statistics – CVD death rate in USA appears to be increasing due to obesity epidemic
  • At all ages, more women die from heart disease than from cancer
  • 50% of women (1 in 2) die from CVD versus 4% of women (1 in 25) who die of breast cancer

(National Center for Health Statistics 1999)

Factors that increase the risks for Cardiovascular Disease

    Uncontrolled risks =

  • Age, Sex, Family history (find out your family history), Race

Controlled risks =

  • High blood pressure (hypertension)
  • High cholesterol (hyperlipidemia)
  • High blood sugar (Diabetes Mellitus)
  • Obesity
  • Physical Inactivity
  • Tobacco use

Love your heart – Lower Your risks!

  • Total Cholesterol less than 200mg/dl
  • HDL “good cholesterol” 50mg/dl or higher
  • LDL “bad cholesterol” Low risk people – <160mg/dl, intermediate risk – <130mg/dl
  • High risk (including those with heart disease/diabetes) – <100mg/dl
  • Triglycerides <150mg/dl

Lifestyle change – Lower Your Risks!

  • First Line Therapy Therapeutic Lifestyle Program
  • Knowledge to make informed decisions that impact your health daily
  • Balanced eating which has a direct influence on excess insulin production, body composition, and disease prevention
  • Regular exercise and activity including aerobic, strength training, and flexibility exercises has been shown to reverse insulin resistance, increase vitality (Yes!), and reduce risk for disease
  • Appropriate nutritional supplementation – helps to prevent and treat specific conditions is essential
  • Plant Sterols – 2gram/day
  • Omega -3 fatty acids in fish (1gram/day)
  • Stress Management for optimum health – keeps insulin and other hormones levels balanced, improving vitality
  • Sleep – critical for the proper functioning of the mind and body – most people should get from 7- 81/2 hrs/night
  • Relax and Enjoy every day!

For questions on how you can become lower your cardiovascular risks, become healthier, lose weight and inches, lower blood pressure, cholesterol, and triglycerides, contact Diane Delf, RN, Director of Wellness and Weight Management, at ddelf@totalhealthsystems.com

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