Preventing Cardiovascular Diseases

Choosing a healthy lifestyle can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease or minimize its damage. Healthy choices that are important in preventing cardiovascular disease include:

- Exercising regularly

- Maintaining a healthy weight

- Eating a heart-healthy diet

- Quitting (or not starting) smoking.

Exercising Regularly

Exercise provides numerous benefits. For example, it improves heart and blood vessel function , lowers blood pressure and "bad" cholesterol (LDL), raises "good" cholesterol (HDL), boosts energy.

Many people think this means they will have to do a lot of strenuous exercise every day. This is a myth. A moderate exercise program will promote a lower blood pressure and help keep your heart and blood vessels in shape. The American Heart Association even classifies walking at a brisk pace for 30 to 60 minutes, three days a week, as "regular physical activity."

Also, you don't have to fit all your physical activity into one exercise session. You can break it up into 10-minute sessions or whatever works best for you. Your healthcare provider can help you come up with a good exercise plan to help in with heart disease prevention.

Quitting Smoking

For those who smoke, quitting is extremely important for preventing cardiovascular disease. Smokers have more than twice the risk of having a heart attack or stroke as non-smokers. According to the American Heart Association, smoking is the biggest risk factor for sudden cardiac death, and smokers who have a heart attack or stroke are more likely to die than non-smokers who have a heart attack.

Preventing Cardiovascular Disease through Medications

As part of a cardiovascular disease prevention plan, medications may be needed in addition to lifestyle changes. Some medications decrease the workload on your heart and relieve your heart disease symptoms. Others decrease your chance of having a heart attack, stroke, or sudden death.

By controlling your risk factors with lifestyle changes and medications, you may prevent or slow down the development of cardiovascular disease.

Preventing cardiovascular disease involves knowing your risk factors and controlling them. In many situations, this can be done naturally, without the need for medications. However, it is important to keep in mind that there is no magic pill for dealing with this condition. It is about understanding cardiovascular disease and making good, healthy decisions.

	to maintain healthy weight	підтримувати здорову вагу
	to quit smoking	кинути палити
	to lower blood pressure	знижувати артеріальний тиск
	strenuous exercises	виснажливі вправи
	disease prevention	запобігання хворобі
	heart attack	серцевий напад
	to decrease the chances	знижувати шанси
	sudden death	раптова смерть
	risk factors	фактори ризику
	cardiovascular disease	серцево-судинна хвороба