ScienceDaily quoted study author and cardiologist Dr. Jesús Peteiro as saying: “The stairs test is an easy way to check your heart health. If it takes you more than one-and-a-half minutes to ascend four flights of stairs, your health is suboptimal, and it would be a good idea to consult a doctor.”
Cleveland Clinic’s website, for its part, offers the following tips that can help keep our hearts healthy:
- Eat healthy fats, not trans fats. Trans fats are “industry-produced fats often used in packaged baked goods, snack foods, margarines and fried fast foods to add flavor and texture.” So read the labels on all foods. “Trans fat appears on the ingredients list as partially hydrogenated oils. Look for 0 percent trans fat. Make it a point to avoid eating foods with trans fat.”
- Practice good dental hygiene, especially flossing your teeth daily. “Dental health is a good indication of overall health, including your heart, because those who have periodontal (gum) disease often have the same risk factors for heart disease.”
- Get enough sleep. “Sleep is an essential part of keeping your heart healthy. If you don’t sleep enough, you may be at a higher risk for cardiovascular disease no matter your age or other health habits.”
- Don’t sit for too long at one time. “Experts say it’s important to move throughout the day. Park farther away from the office, take a few shorter walks throughout the day and/or use a standing work station so you can move up and down. And remember to exercise on most days.”
- Avoid secondhand smoke like the plague. “Be firm with smokers that you do not want to be around environmental smoke — and keep children away from secondhand smoke.”
Follow these five tips, Cleveland Clinic said, and you’ll be doing your heart a favor.
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