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5 ways to liv healthy
Heart-smart lifestyle habits to combat cardiovascular
disease
Couch potatoes beware: Too much TV can actually be deadly. A
newstudyfound that peoplewho spend four or more hours daily in
front of a screen during their leisure timeprimarily
watching the tubehave more than double the risk of heart attack
and other major
cardiovascular events over a four-year period, compared to
people who devoted fewer than twohours a day to screen-based
entertainment. Those who spent the most time watching TV,
surfing
the Web, or playing video games after work were also 50 percent
more likely to die prematurely
of any causeregardless of how much they exercised. Heres a look
at healthy habits that could
extend your life.
*Get more sleep. More than one-third of US adults routinely
sleep fewer than seven hours anight, magnifying their risk for
chronic diseases, injuries and car crashes, the CDCreportedin
March. Dimming the lights and turning off the TV and other
electronics one hour before bedtime
are excellent ways to improve both sleep and health.
http://content.onlinejacc.org/cgi/content/abstract/57/3/292http://content.onlinejacc.org/cgi/content/abstract/57/3/292http://content.onlinejacc.org/cgi/content/abstract/57/3/292http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6008a2.htmhttp://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6008a2.htmhttp://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6008a2.htmhttp://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6008a2.htmhttp://content.onlinejacc.org/cgi/content/abstract/57/3/292
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*Take a brisk walk. Almost 38percent of adults, and about 20 to
30 percent of teens, dont
participate in any vigorous physical activity. All movement
countsand a number of studiesshow that 30 minutes of brisk walking
five or more days a week trims risk for CVD, diabetes and
many other diseases. Wearing a pedometer causes people to take
about 2,000 extra steps a day
(one extra mile),a studyat Stanford University School of
Medicine found.
*Eat more fruits and vegetables. For each additional serving of
fruits and vegetables people eat
per day, the risk of fatal cardiovascular disease drops by 4
percent, a Europeanstudyinvolvingmore than 313,000 men and women
reported in January. Those who ate at least eight servings of
80 grams (2.8 ounces) apiece daily had a 25 percent lower risk
than those who consumed fewer
than three portions a day. A diet rich in fruits and vegetables
also helps people slim down,because these foods are filling.
*Defuse tension. Chronic stress takes a toll on every organ in
the body, including the heart, by
repeatedly activating the well-known fight-or-flight system.
Listening to joyful music is bothrelaxing and beneficial to blood
vessel function, a study at University of Maryland School of
Medicinereports, while an earlier study by the same researchers
also found similar benefits tolaughter. Try laughter yoga, a
popular exercise program that combines self-triggered mirth
withdeep yogic breathing to draw oxygen deep into the body.
*Snuff out the tobacco habit. Smoking even one cigarette a day
increases the threat of heartattack by 63 percent and smoking 20 or
more cigarettes a day more than quadruples it. Need
more motivation to quit? Tobacco use also boosts risk for
diabetes, chronic obstructive
pulmonary disease, and many types of cancer. A 2010studyreports
that using a nicotine patchfor six months makes it easier for
smokers to kick the habit.
http://news.stanford.edu/news/2007/november28/med-pedometer-112807.htmlhttp://news.stanford.edu/news/2007/november28/med-pedometer-112807.htmlhttp://news.stanford.edu/news/2007/november28/med-pedometer-112807.htmlhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21245490?dopt=Abstracthttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21245490?dopt=Abstracthttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21245490?dopt=Abstracthttp://www.umm.edu/news/releases/music-cardiovascular.htmhttp://www.umm.edu/news/releases/music-cardiovascular.htmhttp://www.umm.edu/news/releases/music-cardiovascular.htmhttp://www.umm.edu/news/releases/music-cardiovascular.htmhttp://www.annals.org/content/152/3/144.abstracthttp://www.annals.org/content/152/3/144.abstracthttp://www.annals.org/content/152/3/144.abstracthttp://www.annals.org/content/152/3/144.abstracthttp://www.umm.edu/news/releases/music-cardiovascular.htmhttp://www.umm.edu/news/releases/music-cardiovascular.htmhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21245490?dopt=Abstracthttp://news.stanford.edu/news/2007/november28/med-pedometer-112807.html
