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Do you believe that heart health is important? But do you think you are helping the heart to be healthy enough? May or may not. Certain common habits may be the reasons for heart disease causes and effects too. You are most commonly sitting long hours at the office or sleeping late in the nights or eating much and at odd timings. These habits are harmful to your health especially your heart health.
Healthy diet and exercise can contribute to heart health. But the common habits must be considered in addition. When these habits are ignored, it can encourage many heart disease causes and effects. They differ from lifestyle to eating or sleeping habits.
Some common habits that may be risky with your heart health
Heart Disease Causes And Effects
1Sitting all day
Lifestyle changes have become bad habits. Sitting all day can pose you with the risk of heart failure. Compared to the ones that have an active lifestyle, you have twice the risk, sitting all day.
If your job requires siting the whole day, take a five – minute break to walk around once in every hour. This can make your heart pump blood well and protect you from bad effects of heart health.
2Consuming too much alcohol
Drinking high may result in obesity, blood pressure and stroke. These are the signs of a heart disease. Drinking excessively can be a worse habit.
Consuming two or more drinks for men and one drink for women can interfere with your heart rhythm and lead to a failure of the heart. Although you can enjoy occasional drinking.
3High stress levels
You may have stress due to overtime work,social or economic issues. This can be a bad habit of developing stress whenever you have these problems.
Try to relieve your stress by talking to a close friend and sharing all your feelings or play your favorite sport outdoors with them.
Engage in physical activity that is a must. Try exercising in the gym or outdoors at least for 4 – 5 times a week for half an hour to one hour.
Plan ahead what you have to do to prevent yourself being in a hurry during the day’s routine.
4Excess sodium content in the foods taken
Excessive use of sodium can increase the blood sugar levels that can increase the risk of a heart disease. The salt present in chips,processed foods frozen foods can have high sodium content. These foods may have to be avoided to keep heart health.
5Eating processed, sugary or starchy foods
Processed foods often do not contain the shell or husk they are harvested with. They include white breads,white pasta, polished rice. They only have starch in them and no fiber to digest them. This can deposit as fat. The cholesterol level increases alarmingly. This can be direct cause to heart diseases like coronary heart disease.
Similarly, sugary foods should be avoided. Or they can be high in unwanted calories. These calories especially when unused can deposit fat that is a direct cause to a heart disease.
Do always check for labels and the nutrition chart for help with the amount of calories.
6Sleep deprivation
Remember your heart works throughout the day and so you must be careful not to neglect your cardiovascular health. Your heart, no doubt, needs rest. Your heart rate and blood pressue lower during the first phase of your sleep. They then rise and fall with your dreams. Throughout the night, these alterations promote good heart health.
Too much of sleep deprivation may result in high cortisol and adrenaline levels. This is similar to what you experience in a stressful situation. You need at least 7 – 8 hours of sleep each night. Teens and young adults might have to sleep for 9 – 10 hours.
7Physical inactivity
Not having enough activity in our body can slow down your metabolism and increase fat deposits in our body. This in turn can cause bad cholesterol to form in the body. This can be a cause for heart disease called coronary heart disease.
It is always good to incorporate physical activity into the day. It can burn the additional calories that are not required by the body. This can help your heart health from becoming worse.
8Tobacco intake
Tobacco in cigarettes may be for fun or to relieve tension. But it can be harmful to your heart health adversely. It can increase the risk of developing atherosclerosis, a disease of the arteries.
Carbon – monoxide present in tobacco blocks the lungs from supply of oxygen to the heart. This affects heart health in a bad way. It can damage the heart, blood vessels and lungs.
It can be risky for non smokers who inhale the smoke of the tobacco.
9Snoring
This habit can disrupt breathing during sleep. It can cause blood pressure to increase terribly. Millions of Americans have the habit of snoring during sleep. This is called sleep apnea and increases the risk of heart disease. Obese people can be at risk with apnea, but the ones that are slim have a risk too. Talk to your doctor if you have this as your habit.
Lifestyle changes are not easy to change immediately. They need time for changing gradually. List down those common habits to be safe from the heart disease causes and effects.
By Pradeepa Polineni
