Keeping a heart healthy lifestyle

For some people, Valentine’s Day was a time to shower loved ones with tokens of affection – chocolates, flowers, nice dinners out on the town. For others, it’s simply a \”greeting card\” holiday with little meaning. No matter what camp you fall into, Valentine’s Day should be a day you take a minute to think about your heart.

Your heart isn’t just a symbolic meaning of romantic love – it’s the very center of your well-being. Without the heart’s pumping action, blood can’t circulate within your body to get oxygen and nutrients to your organs. For many, our heart health is at risk: About every 26 seconds, an American will have a coronary event, and about one every minute will die from it, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

In the African American community cardiovascular disease, which includes heart attack and stroke, is the leading cause of death for men and women. According to the American Heart Association (AHA), each year it takes more than 100,000 people from their loved ones and families far too soon. Nearly 50 percent of all African-American adults have cardiovascular disease, according to the AHA.

When you think of someone having a heart attack, you might think of a middle-aged man. The truth is cardiovascular health isn’t just a \”man’s issue.\” Did you know that women account for more than half of the total heart disease deaths? Surprised? You’re not alone. Many women believe that cancer is more of a threat to their well-being, but they’re wrong. The AHA reports that nearly twice as many women in the United States die of heart disease and stroke as from all forms of cancer, including breast cancer.

Much of the burden of heart disease and stroke could be eliminated by reducing its major risk factors, according to the CDC. Those risk factors include high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, smoking, diabetes, lack of exercise and poor nutrition. You’ve heard it before, but I’m going to say it again – lifestyle choices, like what you eat and how much you exercise, play such a critical role in preventing all kinds of potentially devastating diseases, not the least of which is heart disease. Even the ways you respond to stress may play a role in your cardiovascular health because unhealthy responses to stress may lead to other risk behaviors like smoking and overeating.

The average age of first heart attack is 66, according to the CDC. But it’s not just those with gray hair that need to know how to keep their hearts healthy. In a recent survey published by the American Journal of Epidemiology, researchers were surprised to find that most young adults did not know the major risk factors for heart disease. Many bad habits that are risk factors for developing heart disease later in life, like diet and exercise patterns and tobacco use, begin when we’re young. It takes years, and in some cases decades, for those bad habits to catch up with us. Young people need to know their future heart health is shaped by the choices they make today.

But, there are things that contribute to your risk for developing heart disease that you can’t control – like age and family history. In addition to lifestyle changes, your doctor may choose to prescribe pre scri ption medicines. Here’s the good news: A recent survey by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) revealed 277 medicines in development for heart disease and stroke, keeping up the momentum of drug discovery that has helped cut deaths from these diseases by more than half since the 1950s.

Patients who need help accessing their pre scri ption medicines can turn to the Partnership for Pre scri ption Assistance, a national clearinghouse of patient assistance programs sponsored by America ’s pharmaceutical companies. In just two years the Partnership for Pre scri ption Assistance has helped connect more than 3.5 million patients in need to programs that provide either free or nearly free medicines. For more information, patients can call 1-888-4PPA-NOW or visit www.pparx.org.

Give your heart a little love. Visit your physician regularly so any irregularities are caught early. Just because you look great on the outside doesn’t mean your insides are keeping up. Awareness is the first step in combating heart attacks and stroke, and its precursors such as hypertension.