WELLNESS
Preventing heart disease
Where do you stand when it comes to risk for heart disease? And what can
you do
to lessen your risk?
The major risk factors for heart disease are broken down into two
groups:
inherited and acquired. Inherited, or genetic risk factors, are those you
are
born with. Acquired risk factors are those that occur because of
lifestyle and
habits. Below is a list of known risk factors:
Inherited
* Family history of heart disease before age 55
* Diabetes mellitus
* Inherited hypertension (high blood pressure)
* Inherited low levels of HDL (the "good" cholesterol), or high levels of
LDL
(the "bad" cholesterol)
* Aging
Acquired
*Cigarette smoking or use of other tobacco products
* Obesity
* Dietary-induced low levels of HDL, or high levels of LDL
* Chronic stress
* Sedentary lifestyles
* Excessive alcohol intake
Once you determine that you fall into one of these risk factor
categories, it
is important to realize you can reduce your risk by taking charge of your
life
and your health. This means taking your prescribed medications and
modifying
your lifestyle.
Although it's not as easy as taking a pill, changing your lifestyle can
have
many positive effects on the quality of your life, and may even lengthen
it.
However, you shouldn't expect to change all of your habits at once. Small
changes over time become building blocks for further successes.
Here are several steps you can take to modify your behavior:
Get motivated
Whether your goal is to exercise more, to adopt healthier eating patterns
or to
stop smoking, it takes more than a well-intentioned resolution to achieve
lasting change. To help you stay motivated, make a list of all the
benefits
that can result from improving a particular behavior.
Understand your habits
Before you can change a habit, you have to understand it. Keeping a log
of the
behaviors you want to change can help you identify when they most often
occur
and what factors trigger them.
Set goals and reward yourself
Setting short-term goals that are specific, attainable and a little
forgiving
will help keep you on track. All-or-nothing goals can lead to
backsliding. Be
sure to celebrate the achievement of each goal with a reward.
Get help from those around you
Although you are ultimately responsible for your own behaviors, it helps
to
have encouragement and support from people around you. Sharing your goals
with
a close friend or family member can help you strengthen your resolve and
remind
you that you're not fighting the battle alone.
Get back on the wagon
Expect to slip now and then, but don't let that discourage you from
reaching
your long-term goal. Instead of viewing a relapse as a failure, view it
as a
learning experience, making note of what triggered it, as well as what
additional support you need. Then, pick yourself up and start where you
left
off.
Nancy Anderson is coordinator of Emory's HeartWise Program. This column
has
been adapted from the Emory HeartWise Guide for Healthy Lifestyles. This
comprehensive guide to heart-healthy living will be available in March.
For a
free copy, call the Emory Health Connection at 778-7744. The publication
of the
Wellness column is coordinated through the Seretean Center for Health
Promotion.