Combatting coronary heart disease: 4 essential lifestyle changes

Although advances in medicine have helped in the battle against coronary heart disease, individual lifestyle also goes far in improving the odds of surviving a heart attack due to this disease. So what can you do to give yourself a fighting chance? Here’s some helpful advice.

[Photo Credit: iStock.com/megaflopp]

Did you know that, according to Statistics Canada, the only disease that kills more Canadians each year than coronary heart disease is cancer? And that cerebrovascular diseases (i.e., stroke) are the third leading cause of death in our country? Those numbers are pretty scary, especially given that men and women are neck and neck when it comes to dying from these three diseases.

So what’s the good news? Through the work of such organizations as the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, you're now less likely to succumb to a fatal heart attack thanks to better medicines, surgical innovations, improved training and life-saving techniques.

However, the way you live your life – which includes eating properly, exercising, not smoking, controlling your weight and reducing your stress – could still greatly reduce the odds of a heart disease from taking hold of your health.

Should you be diagnosed with heart disease, perhaps the greatest challenge you’ll face is simply changing your daily habits. This is much harder than it seems and will require commitment and persistence on your part. So where should you begin?

Start off by assessing what you eat, when and how much. Then, by acting on what you know, make some smart dietary changes. If you find this task daunting, seek advice from a professional dietician. The Dieticians of Canada website can help you locate a dietician in your area.

• Your goal is to replace artery-clogging fare (i.e., foods high in saturated fat, total fat and cholesterol) with a variety of healthy fruits, vegetables, grains and low-fat dairy products.
• The likely result of your efforts will be higher levels of the “good” fats – the unsaturated HDL fats – in your system and lower levels of the "bad" fats – saturated and trans-fatty acids – often called LDL fats.

Your next order of business is to get some regular exercise. Whatever you choose to do (e.g., walk, run, cycle or swim) the most important thing of all is to have fun! Otherwise, you’ll quickly lose interest.

• Burning at least 250 calories per day through exercise (the equivalent of about 45 minutes of brisk walking or 25 minutes of jogging) seems to confer the greatest protection against developing heart disease.
• Vigorous exercise not only works your heart muscle by encouraging blood flow through clogged vessels and making them more flexible, but it also helps by raising "good" HDL cholesterol levels in your system.

Don't feel pressured to work up a big sweat while you exercise.

• A recent Harvard study of 40,000 female healthcare professionals found that walking just one hour a week, at any pace, reduces the risk of developing heart disease.
• Exercising will, of course, also lead you to slimming down. Losing excess weight will help to improve cholesterol levels, lower your high blood pressure and reduce your chances of getting heart disease.
• With less weight on your frame, your heart won't have to work so hard to keep blood circulating.

Another vital move is to stop your smoking habit. Although it may take all of your willpower, the results are worth it.

• One out of five deaths due to heart disease can be traced directly to a tobacco habit.
•  Smoking not only lowers "good" HDL cholesterol, it sabotages the elasticity of the aorta and ups your risk of developing a blood clot.

Benefits of being smoke-free
Apart from no longer smelling like smoke, in just three years of cigarette-free living you could potentially wipe out a lifetime of accumulated heart damage.

• Remember that if you can't work stress reduction into the mix, then all your good habits will be in vain.

Stress and work are a bad combination. Why? Chemicals released into your bloodstream by your body during moments of stress can raise your blood pressure and trigger heart rhythm disturbances.

• Feeling stressed may put you off of exercise or prompt you to eat fat-jammed junk foods.

Whatever your stress triggers are, whether job demands, family relationships or commuting issues, now is the time to get your priorities straight and look at things differently.

• Try juggling your schedule to ease work overload.
• Explore meditation, yoga or Tai Chi, all ancient stress-busters that have endured because they work.

Studies suggest that by lowering your stress, clogged arteries may possibly reopen. In turn, this reduces the likelihood of having angina and diminishes your risk for a heart attack.

The diagnosis of heart disease can serve as a positive wake-up call to make some serious lifestyle changes and potentially reverse the effects caused by unhealthy eating and exercise habits. Along with your doctor’s advice, it’s never too late to assess what types of changes will benefit you on the path to enjoying a longer, more energetic and vigorous life.