Despite being one of the hardest working organs in our bodies, the heart is often overlooked until a problem arises.
Four cardiologists recently weighed in on some ways to keep your heart healthy and warning signs to watch for before a cardiac event.
“Your heart is a muscle, an engine,” explained Dan Augustine, a cardiologist at Royal United Hospitals Bath, according to The Guardian. “It needs fuelling and resting.”
Making better food choices is crucial in ensuring your heart gets the fuel it needs.
“Swap white bread, rice and pasta out for wholegrain versions because they’ve got more fibre in [them],” said Augustine. “They are more filling and they are digested more slowly.”
This also means avoiding the regular consumption of ultra-processed foods, which has been linked by researchers to everything from obesity to depression, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
“I would recommend a Mediterranean-style diet,” said Graham Stuart, medical director of Sports Cardiology UK. “Fruit, vegetables, nuts and pulses are good for blood vessels and good for the heart.”
Protein is also critical to several critical bodily processes. “Oily fish is really good for reducing bad cholesterol, inflammation, and lowering blood pressure,” said Augustine.
A recent paper looking at the causes behind the worldwide obesity problem suggests that low-protein diets typical of the modern lifestyle could be to blame, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
Insufficient protein intake can lead to increased feelings of hunger and thus overeating, but beware of protein-rich products that could spike cholesterol levels, such as processed meats.
Having high levels of cholesterol, a type of fat in the bloodstream, can lead to artery blockage and heart issues, explains Fizzah Choudry, a consultant cardiologist at St Bartholomew’s in London.
“Having too much [cholesterol] can lead to furring up of the arteries, particularly the heart arteries and the vessels that supply the brain,” said Choudry. “This can lead to problems such as heart disease and stroke.”
While exercise is considered the gold standard for maintaining a healthy heart, an individual should consider their fitness level and health risks before embarking on the recommended 150 minutes of moderate activity or 75 minutes of intense exercise weekly.
According to Augustine, exercise should make you “a bit breathless,” but overexerting yourself can have serious consequences.
“If you’re doing really intense stuff like ultramarathons, there is some evidence that you can cause some heart damage but this probably reverses after three or four days,” he explained.
Regular health checks, especially if you’re over age 40 or have a family history of coronary disease, are also crucial, according to the experts. Also, being mindful of what your heart is doing is important.
“Generally we don’t notice our heartbeat but sometimes people do. This can be because something peculiar is happening, like their heart is racing or beating irregularly,” explained Tharusha Gunawardena, a cardiologist at the Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge. “It can sometimes be a normal phenomenon — often contemplating your heartbeat suddenly makes one aware of it, but palpitations, as a symptom, is the unusual awareness of them, where it feels odd.”
Occasional heart palpitations are normal but should be monitored, especially if accompanied by symptoms like breathlessness and chest pain, advised Gunawardena, as these can be symptoms of a heart attack.
Providing the heart with adequate rest is also essential. So why not hit that snooze button?
“There are a lot of regeneration processes that occur while we sleep and trying to get eight hours of sleep a day is important,” Gunawardena said.
Not getting enough sleep can also increase a person’s stress level, leading to additional health issues further down the line.
“If you’re in a constant high-adrenaline environment, you’re more likely to develop problems,” said Augustine. “How you deal with stress in the modern world is more difficult. I tell the teenagers I see to make sure they get time for rest, whether it’s meditation or a walk.”
