February is American Heart Month! The American Heart Association (AHA) encourages everyone to learn more about heart health and build strong habits to prevent heart disease. Continue reading to learn about the AHA’s Essential 8 habits to support your heart.
American Heart Association’s Essential 8 Habits for a Healthy Heart
1. Build Healthy Eating Habits
Eating well-balanced meals throughout the day fuels your heart and brain to work at their very best. It’s important to include a variety of healthy foods in your diet. It can feel difficult to shift your eating habits, but you can start small with actions like reading and understanding food labels, cooking at home more often and looking for the American Heart Association Heart-Check on groceries.
For a heart healthy diet, include a variety of foods:
Fiber-Rich Foods
- Whole grains (oats, barley, quinoa, brown rice)
- Legumes (lentils, chickpeas, black beans)
- Fruits (berries, apples, pears, citrus)
- Vegetables (leafy greens, broccoli, carrots)
- Nuts and seeds (chia seeds, flaxseeds, almonds)
Omega-3-Rich Foods
- Fatty fish (salmon, sardines, mackerel, trout)
- Ground flaxseeds and flaxseed oil
- Chia seeds
- Walnuts
- Algae-based sources (for plant-based diets)
Foods Rich in Monounsaturated Fats
- Olive oil and olives
- Avocados
- Nuts and seeds (almonds, pistachios, peanuts, sesame, sunflower)
2. Be More Active
Exercise carries benefits for both your heart and your brain. Lifting weights, trying a new sport or simply going on a walk can boost your mood and help reduce stress.
Every week, adults should get a total of at least:
- 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity (walking, dancing, gardening) OR
- 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity (running, swimming, jumping rope)
Or a combination of both throughout the week.
3. Quit Tobacco
The use of nicotine and tobacco can raise blood pressure, increase heart rate and damage blood vessels. Additionally, nicotine/tobacco products increase the risk of having a stroke, developing type 2 diabetes, experiencing mood swings and anxiety and aging prematurely in memory and skin damage.
How to make a plan to quit:
- Start by setting a quit date within the next seven days. Try to pick a date that doesn’t seem too stressful.
- Next, choose your method: cold turkey or gradually. When making this choice, consider whether you may need additional help from a health care professional.
- Create a plan to address cravings and urges. At this point, you can also decide if you will need to use nicotine replacement or medicine during your quitting process.
- Finally, quit on your quit day. It’s okay to feel nervous; there are resources to support you: www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-lifestyle/quit-smoking-tobacco.
4. Get Healthy Sleep
A good night’s sleep is essential for your heart and brain health. Regular, restful sleep improves mood and energy, strengthens your immune system, reduces the risk of chronic disease and improves overall brain function.
On average, adults should aim for 7 – 9 hours per night. Here are a few tips for success:
- Dim the lights before you head to sleep. This signals to your brain that it’s time to wind down for the night.
- Try to avoid screens like your phone or computer for at least 30 minutes before sleeping.
- Go to sleep and wake up at the same time each day. A consistent sleep schedule helps to regulate your body’s internal clock, making it easier to fall asleep and wake up naturally.
- Follow a nighttime routine. Before you head to sleep, try winding down with relaxing hobbies like reading, journaling or stretching.
5. Manage a Healthy Weight
Maintaining a weight that is healthy for your body is also important for heart health. Every person’s needs are different, and their ideal weight depends on a wide variety of lifestyle and biological factors. Talk with your health care provider to help you figure out if your weight is healthy for your age and body. You can work towards maintaining a healthy weight by eating food with portion sizes in mind and by spending time being active.
6. Control Your Cholesterol
High cholesterol can negatively impact your heart health by increasing the risk for heart diseases and some types of dementia. Cholesterol is a type of lipid (fat) that helps your body function, but too much of it can be harmful and lead to plaque (hardened deposits) building up in your heart’s arteries.
It is important to know that there are two kinds of cholesterol:
- HDL = good: High-density lipoprotein is known as “good” cholesterol.
- LDL = bad: Low-density lipoprotein is known as “bad” cholesterol.
HDL helps prevent LDL from sticking to artery walls. This reduces plaque buildup in your arteries, which lowers the risk of heart disease and stroke.
Your health care provider can check your cholesterol levels with a simple blood test and help explain the results to you. Keep a record of your cholesterol levels over time and remember that your diet choices have a significant impact on them.
Eating meals with fresh produce, whole grains and lean proteins instead of highly processed foods can help reduce the “bad” cholesterol levels. Additionally, you can replace saturated fats like butter and whole dairy with healthy fats like olive oil, fatty fish, nuts and eggs.
7. Manage Blood Sugar
Blood glucose levels can also indicate if your brain, kidneys and heart are healthy. Glucose is a type of sugar that is produced by our bodies when we eat food. It travels through your blood to the parts of your body that need energy. You can maintain healthy blood glucose by eating smartly, practicing physical activity, managing stressors and getting good sleep.
Your health care provider can take blood sugar readings, which are most accurate when you fast for 8 – 10 hours before testing.
Here are the fasting blood glucose level guidelines:
- Lower than 100 mg/dl: Normal – Healthy range
- 100 to 125 mg/dl: Prediabetes (impaired fasting glucose) – At increased risk of developing diabetes.
- 126 mg/dl or higher: Diabetes Mellitus (Type 2 diabetes) – At increased risk of heart disease or stroke.
8. Manage Blood Pressure
In addition to your blood sugar, blood pressure is another important body measurement to keep a pulse on. High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, can hurt your heart and brain health and often has no symptoms. High blood pressure can cause serious health issues such as heart attacks, stroke, dementia, heart failure, kidney disease or failure and vision loss.
Blood pressure is typically recorded as two numbers, written as a ratio like this: 116/78. This is read as “116 over 76” millimeters of mercury. The systolic (top number) is the higher of the two numbers and measures pressure in the arteries when the heart beats. The diastolic (bottom number) is the lower of the two numbers and measures the pressure in the arteries when the heart is resting between heartbeat pulses.
Blood Pressure Categories:
- Normal: systolic lower than 120 mm Hg (upper number) and diastolic lower than 80 mm Hg (lower number)
- Elevated Blood Pressure: systolic 120 to 129 mm Hg (upper number) and diastolic 80 mm Hg (lower number)
- Stage 1 Hypertension (High Blood Pressure): systolic 130 to 139 mm Hg (upper number) or diastolic 80 to 89 mm Hg (lower number)
- Stage 2 Hypertension (High Blood Pressure): systolic 140 or higher mm Hg (upper number) or diastolic 90 or higher mm Hg (lower number)
- Severe Hypertension (If you don’t have symptoms*, call your health care professional.): systolic higher than 180 mm Hg (upper number) and/or diastolic higher than 120 mm Hg (lower number)
- Hypertensive Emergency (If you have any of these symptoms*, call 911.): systolic higher than 180 mm Hg (upper number) and/or diastolic higher than 120 mm Hg (lower number)
It’s great practice to track your blood pressure either at home with a validated device or at community locations with free monitoring systems, such as pharmacies or some health clinics. If you notice an elevated reading, visit your health care provider for confirmation and an official diagnosis.
To maintain healthy blood pressure, lower your sodium intake and added sugar intake, incorporate more fresh vegetables and fruits and limit sugary foods and drinks. Adding regular exercise to a more mindful diet can help you manage the stress placed on your heart. Additionally, cutting out alcohol and nicotine can help prevent high blood pressure.
Conclusion
Caring for your heart might feel overwhelming, but starting with small changes can help support quality and longevity in your life. Implementing strategies from the AHA’s Essential 8 can help you take proactive action rather than address serious health problems later. If you have further concerns or questions, always reach out to your health care provider for more information. This February and beyond, let’s take action to protect our hearts!
Sources and Resources:
How to Help Prevent Heart Disease At Any Age | American Heart Association
