Tips For A Healthy Heart
As you age, your chances of developing a heart condition begin to rise. These are some great, free resources to help with heart health that you can start using now.
Analyze Your Risk
CardioSmart offers a BMI calculator, a Heart Disease Risk Assesment, and a Cholesterol Calculator online (as well as a “Med Reminder” app to remind you to take your medication). The more you age, the more important it is for you to track your weight, your cholesterol levels, and your overall diet. Additionally, you should look at your family medical history. Heart disease is hereditary. Find out what kind of genetic risk you have for developing heart disease.
Adjust Your Diet
It’s difficult to track what you eat, but there are hundreds of tools out there that can help you. If you are at risk for heart disease, you’ll want to cut down on fats and sodium while increasing your fiber intake (vegetables, fruits, whole grains). You can create your own tracking system by writing down what you eat every day, or you can try using an app that will store your information and help you figure out your caloric intake.
MyFitnessPal is one example of a free app that is easy to use. All you have to do is enter the foods you eat and any exercise you complete throughout the day. It’ll track your nutrition and your calories and tell you if you’re eating too much or not eating enough of any specific food group.
Get Insured
Take a look at your health insurance policy and be sure that you have coverage for potential heart health problems. If you need extra coverage, you can purchase a separate policy for heart attacks. A heart attack policy can cover things like transplants and other heart surgeries, physical therapy, replacement of lost income, and more.
See Your Doctor
Your doctor may be your best resource for keeping your heart healthy. Check your policy. Your yearly well-visits may be covered!
For help selecting a health care plan that works with your favorite doctors and falls within your budget, contact us at 615-541-4257.
