Heart Healthy

I'm 32.  I'm stating this because I have felt like this number means I don't really have to worry about things like heart disease and blood pressure yet.  That's for older people right?  50? 60?  The fact is, if we don't take preventative measures in our 30's and 40's, it will not just be something for us to worry about later, it will be a reality, a problem, and possibly our outcome.  Yesterday, a dear friend of mine died of a heart attack.  A healthy, active man in his early 60's.  This is not an eye-opener, this is American reality.  Cancer or heart disease, and it happens younger and younger.  So I thought I would post some heart healthy alternatives just to help us make better choices, no matter what our age is.

Most of these are from Good Housekeeping February 2011 (I'm not sure what they mean by some of these percentages so I'm just writing them as is)

• A little Dark Chocolate (up to three 1-oz servings a week) can lessen the odds of heart failure 32%--Holla!
• Fill your plate with veggies and fruits to lower your heart disease risk and drop blood pressure
• Substituting seafood for beef cuts chances of heart disease (24 % for each day you make the substitution)
• Sweet Potatoes, oatmeal, dried apricots, and spinach are all rich in potassium and magnesium-two minerals that help promote healthy blood pressure levels (Family Circle June 2010)
• Try to stick to a DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension developed by the National Institute of Health and proven to lower blood pressure): Each day-3 servings of whole grains, 2 servings of low-fat dairy, 7 servings of fruits and vegetables. Each week-3 servings of nuts, seeds, and legumes. (Family Circle June 2010)

For more in depth info on DASH go to http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/dash/dash_what.html.

And don't forget to exercise.  Even 20-30 minutes a day of walking can help lower your risk of heart disease.  Also be mindful of your family history.  Some forms of heart disease can be genetic meaning you have to start working on it earlier. Thanks for listening to me babble about this.  It's therapeutic in a way to try and keep this from happening to other people I love.