Heart Health

Written by rebeccah

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Health

Our hearts beat over 2 billion times throughout the average lifetime.

The muscles in our hearts are the most important muscles of our bodies as they keep our blood flowing throughout our bodies, allowing oxygen to travel to our tissues and carbon dioxide to be removed.

Our heart health is influenced by what we eat, how active we are and our other lifestyle factors such as smoking.

Circular picture with a light red background. Image in the centre of the heart organ.

How can we maintain our heart health?

Eat a healthy, balanced diet
- Add a variety of fruits and vegetables.
- Choosing wholegrain instead of refined grain means having more fibre, vitamins B and E and healthy fats in your meals.
- Choose monounsaturated or polyunsaturated fats in foods like avocados, fish and nuts.
- Reduce your salt intake by replacing it with herbs and spices for seasoning.
Avoid smoking
- Quitting smoking reduces your risk of heart attacks and stroke.
Stay active with regular exercise
- Any form of exercise is better than nothing at all. You don’t have to go to the gym every day, it can be as simple as choosing the stairs over the escalator or going for a walk most days.
- The more you enjoy it, the more likely you are to stay active.
Manage your cholesterol levels by:
- Eating a healthy diet focused on foods that increase high-density lipoproteins (also known as “good cholesterol”), such as avocado, fish, olive oil etc. HDL cholesterol helps to remove other forms of cholesterol (such as low-density lipoproteins) from the blood stream and therefore, reduces your risk of heart attacks.
- Avoiding saturated and trans fats (such as in pizza or deep-fried foods) that elevate cholesterol levels in the blood and increase your risk of plaque blocking your arteries and reducing blood flow.
Manage your blood pressure through reducing salt intake and staying active.
Book a heart health check with your GP to learn about your risk factors and how to manage them.