| Heart disease has become the number one cause of | | | | amount of adrenaline that your body needs. |
| premature death in the United States and many other | | | | Best of all, exercise makes you feel better. Walking is |
| parts of the world. Heart disease is also a debilitating | | | | one of the best ways to control stress and prevent |
| malady that disables many people. Heart disease | | | | depression - for heart patients and everyone else, too. |
| treatment methods are thus vital for improving the | | | | Lose weight if you're overweight. Your doctor can |
| quality of life of people suffering from these illnesses. | | | | advise you about the best ways to lose weight. |
| The number one killer in America today is a disease | | | | Eat right. Lower or eliminate your intake of red meat |
| that can often be prevented. | | | | and fats in your diet. This includes fatty foods such as |
| According to the American Heart Association, heart | | | | whole milk, dairy products, potato chips, rich gravies, |
| disease is the nation's single leading cause of death for | | | | and the like. These foods can and do raise your bad |
| both men and women. At least 58.8 million people in | | | | cholesterol level. Switch to skim milk, eat lean meats, |
| this country suffer from some form of heart disease. It | | | | and just do without the chips and the other junk foods |
| involves the blocking, either partial or total, of the | | | | that you just do not need for good health. Put more |
| arteries that lead to the human heart. But, you can help | | | | fresh vegetables and fresh fruit into your daily diet. Eat |
| to protect yourself from heart disease by following | | | | plenty of fiber which has been shown to help in |
| these simple health tips: | | | | reducing the bad blood cholesterol level. |
| Maintain a healthy weight | | | | Tobacco Smoke |
| As you put on weight in adulthood, you gain mostly | | | | A smoker's risk of heart attack is more than twice |
| fatty tissue. This excess weight can lead to conditions | | | | that of nonsmokers. The nicotine and carbon |
| that increase your chances of heart disease - high | | | | monoxide in tobacco smoke reduce the amount of |
| blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes. | | | | oxygen in the blood. They also damage blood vessel |
| How do you know if your weight is healthy? One way | | | | walls and may trigger the formation of blood clots. |
| is to calculate your body mass index (BMI), which | | | | Smoking also reduces "good" cholesterol, which |
| considers your height and weight in determining | | | | promotes heart disease. If you do smoke, get help to |
| whether you have a healthy or unhealthy percentage | | | | quit now! There are many effective programs to help |
| of body fat. | | | | you quit. Once you stop smoking your risk of heart |
| BMI numbers 25 and higher are associated with higher | | | | disease starts to drop and over time will be about the |
| blood fats, higher blood pressure, and an increased risk | | | | same as if you'd never smoked. |
| of heart disease and stroke. | | | | Niacin is the closest thing available to a perfect |
| Exercise | | | | treatment that corrects most causes of coronary |
| Exercise has an effect on every other risk factor for | | | | heart disease. Niacin blocks the release of fatty acids |
| heart disease except smoking. When you exercise | | | | from fat cells. Niacin plays a critical role in energy |
| regularly, your heart, which is muscle, gets stronger. | | | | production, gene expression, and hormone synthesis. |
| Stronger hearts require fewer beats to pump blood | | | | You cannot live without it. Niacin also tends to shift LDL |
| and oxygen throughout your body. Your blood | | | | particle distribution to larger particle size and improve |
| pressure can be reduced as you become more | | | | HDL functioning. The intake of 3 grams Niacin for as |
| physically fit. And if you burn more calories than you | | | | little as two weeks can reduce serum cholesterol by |
| eat, you'll lose body fat and weight, too. | | | | 26 percent. |
| Exercise also affects the blood itself, increasing | | | | Pectin limits the amount of cholesterol the body can |
| circulation, producing more HDL (the "good" cholesterol) | | | | absorb. High pectin count in apples may be why "One |
| lowering blood sugar levels, helping prevent the | | | | a day keeps the doctor away". Read out for |
| formation of harmful blood clots and lowering the | | | | Alzheimer's treatment. |