Walking to our car after my son's high school
graduation, I noticed a couple of people
complaining about the difficult walk and how
their hearts were pounding. Mind you, the
quarter mile walk from the football stadium to
the parking lot would not give many of us a
second thought, but I was struck by
limitations of life brought on by poor health.
We enjoy many freedoms here in America, but
when we exercise our freedom to make poor
choices, it does not absolve us of the
consequences of those choices.
I recall reading in the Bible when I was
young (probably in the 1960's) the verse in
Luke in relation to events of the "last days"
of "men's hearts failing them for fear". At
the time I remember thinking that events would
become so intense, that people would be scared
to death. Almost 50 years later, understand
that heart disease is the #1 killer of men and
women in America. Prior to this past century,
heart disease and death from heart attacks was
hardly a blip on the mortality radar.
Certainly we live in stressful times, but
they are no more stressful than times
previous. Let me briefly share with you some
of the current information regarding heart
health and what you can do to reduce your
risk. Following these recommendations will not
only reduce your risk for heart disease, but
can also reduce the risk of cancer, diabetes,
obesity, high cholesterol and high blood
pressure.
Diet - Simple, but not easy.
Simple, in that you should be eating "whole,
natural foods". Not easy, in that you will
have to prepare food yourself rather than
relying on fast food, processed foods out of
cans, boxes and bags. Here are some keys:
- Eggs are heart healthy.
- Sugar and a diet with a lot of
carbohydrates such as breads, cereals and
grains can lead to heart disease.
- Healthy animal fats from poultry, beef
and lamb, it turns out, are also heart
healthy. Coconut oil - a medium-chain
saturated fat, can actually help you to lose
weight, lower cholesterol, improve diabetic
conditions and reduce your risk of heart
disease. Avoid processed oils such as canola
while emphasizing oils such as olive oil,
coconut oil and natural animal fats.
- Use sea salt, which provides you with the
full array the mineral and avoid table salt.
- Eat a diet with plenty of fresh
vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds.
- Animal products from healthy sources such
as raw milk, and organic beef and poultry.
Exercise should be of a
nature that is non-competitive, relaxing and
inspiring that incorporates movement with
breathing such as walking. Exercise does in
fact reduce the risk for heart disease, but go
into it easy because for the sedentary and
those really out of shape, too much exercise
too quick can actually increase the risk of
heart attack. It is suggested by many that
exercise, especially combined with a health
diet, is the most important thing you can do
for a healthy heart.
Sunshine - Vitamin D3 - For
many years, the medical community has been
preaching the dangers of sunshine for fear of
skin cancer. We slather ourselves and our
children with sunscreen trying to avoid the
deadly solar rays. It has only been in recent
years that we've discovered that sunshine is
good and actually very healthy. Sunshine
converts an oil (a cholesterol) on your skin
into vitamin D3 which contributes in a
positive way to almost every aspect of your
health and for the purposes of this article
sunshine and vitamin D3 are very heart
healthy. So now the message is to get plenty
of sunshine, but absolutely avoid getting
burned. Getting burned by the sun is not
healthy and can lead to problems.
Fish
Oils, high in Omega-3 Fatty
Acids, are also very healthy not only for your
heart but for every other aspect of your
health. Omega-3's are shown to assist in
vascular health and normalize high blood
pressure.
Aspirin it turns out is
not so beneficial for your heart and the
prevailing medical recommendation is to no
longer take aspirin daily for your heart. And
while daily preventative aspirin is not
necessarily harmful, studies now show that it
is not necessarily helpful in preventing heart
disease. Some authors suggest that aspirin may
be giving people who take it a false sense of
security resulting in the patient not
following other recommendations.
Hormone Replacement Therapy
(taking estrogen) was thought for a time to
benefit the heart and reduce the risk of heart
disease. More detailed follow up clearly shows
taking hormones does not help the heart.
Stress has a direct impact
on heart disease - particularly stress at work
and stress in marriage and relationships.
While much of the stress we experience cannot
be avoided, there is much that can be done in
how we manage our stress. Daily exercise is
important in dealing with and managing stress.
There are also many self-help techniques that
haven proven effective in dealing with
unresolved emotional stress such as EFT
(Emotional Freedom Technique) and The Emotion
Code.
Alcohol is simply not good
for you, in any quantity, in the long run.
There have been studies through the years
suggesting that drinking alcohol can be
healthy for the heart. With further
investigation these studies have shown to be
seriously flawed. Simply put, the risks of
drinking alcohol outweigh any benefit or
perceived benefit of drinking.
Herbal Supplements - herbs
have a long history of benefiting the heart
and circulatory system. Hawthorn
Berry Syrup - supports,
builds and strengthens a weak or damaged heart
by allowing oxygen to be better utilized by
the heart muscles.*
Heart
Formula - provides the
nutrients and support to build a health
circulatory system. The herbs in this formula
have been shown to reduce high cholesterol and
triglycerides.*
Anti-Inflammation
Formula - fights free radical
damage by improving the natural
anti-inflammatory function of the body. Look
for true repair not just a cover up or
band-aid.*
Cardio
Plus - the herbs in this
formula have been traditionally used to
decrease high blood pressure and reduce plaque
formation in the arteries.*
Cayenne- The great
circulation herb, prized for its ability to
strengthen and tone the entire vascular
system.*
Earth's
Nutrition - Nature's answer to the
multiple vitamin and mineral supplement. This
whole food supplement is free from man-made or
laboratory manipulated chemicals.*
Garlic - eat it daily if you
can. Lowers the bad cholesterol, reduces high
blood pressure, keeps the blood thin reducing
the risk of stroke or blood clots. The king of
herbs.*
Turmeric - a great natural
pain reliever which also promotes
cardiovascular health.*
Vascular
Support - Improves vascular
tone of blood vessels assisting with the
normalization of blood pressure.*
Some of the classic causes of heart disease
still hold true as it relates to heart health.
Smoking is a primary risk
factor for heart disease. The good news is
that those who quit and haven't smoked for
over a year have pretty much reduced this as a
risk factor for them as it pertains to heart
disease.
High Cholesterol, Diabetes and High
Blood Pressure are all
well-established risk factors. The good news
is these conditions are reversible and by
following the recommendations for a healthy
heart, you can also bring these conditions
under control.
We invite each of you to take charge of your
health. Change can be difficult, but it can
also be adventurous. As you make changes
toward greater health and activity, your
rewards will be those of more energy, less
pain and less stress.
Blessings in Health, |