Prevention & Management of Heart Disease
Helping keep your heart as healthy as possible.
Partner with the best for a healthier you.
Overview
St. Luke’s offers comprehensive, high-quality heart care services to diagnose and treat your heart condition. However, studies show that treatment alone is not the most effective way to improve heart health. You can greatly improve your odds of living a longer, higher-quality life if you also take steps to improve your overall health by practicing a healthy lifestyle. Be sure to ask your doctor to refer you to one or more of St. Luke’s programs to help you reduce the progression of heart disease and manage your condition.
What can you do?
Quit smoking
At the top of the Center for Disease Control’s primary risk factors for all chronic diseases, including heart disease, is smoking. Eliminating all tobacco products will reduce your risk for heart disease. A variety of nicotine replacement treatments and cessation support groups are available to help you successfully quit. Consult your physician to determine which method best fits your lifestyle and smoking pattern.
Adhere to a heart-healthy diet
The American Heart Association recommends eating a diet that emphasizes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy products, poultry, fish and nuts, while limiting red meat and sugary foods and beverages. Choose lean meats and poultry without skin and prepare them without added saturated and trans fat. Eat fish at least twice a week – recent research shows that eating oily fish containing omega-3 fatty acids may help lower your risk of death from coronary artery disease.
- Select fat-free, 1% fat and low-fat dairy products.
- Cut back on foods containing partially hydrogenated vegetable oils to reduce trans-fat in your diet.
- Cut back on beverages and foods with added sugars.
- Choose and prepare foods with little or no salt.
- If you drink alcohol, drink in moderation.
- Keep an eye on your portion sizes.
Exercise
Physical activity helps reduce your chances of having a heart attack, so make exercise a priority. Choose an activity that you enjoy doing and talk with your health care provider about an exercise plan that meets your lifestyle, capabilities and needs. Regular physical activity can help relieve anxiety and depression, improve mental acuity and memory, enhance the immune system and reduce risk factors. Physical activity prolongs your optimal health.
Always consult your health care provider regarding your healthy diet and exercise requirements.
MyZone Heart Rate Belt
MyZone, a wearable fitness tracker offered at a discounted rate with your St. Luke's membership, motivates you by tracking your effort and rewarding progress. It shows real-time data like MyZonePoints (MEPs), heart rate and calorie burn during workouts. This data is then displayed on the app for individual or group review.
St. Luke’s Fitness Centers
St. Luke's Fitness & Sports Performance offers a supportive environment with personalized programs designed to help you achieve your fitness goals. Our complimentary fitness assessment and individualized workout program are unique in the region. Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned athlete, St. Luke's can help you reach your full potential.
Manage stress
Stress is a part of life but how you manage it makes a difference. Over time, high levels of stress can lead to emotional, psychological and physical problems, including heart disease, high blood pressure, chest pains or irregular heartbeats. Although doctors don’t know exactly how stress raises the risk of heart disease, it is thought that poor habits – lack of exercise, smoking, drinking too much, poor diet – result from not managing stress.
We probably can’t eliminate all the stress from our lives, but these tips will help you better respond to it:
- Change what you can, but recognize that some things will remain out of your control.
- Exercise (with your physician’s approval).
- Relax every day. Meditation is a simple way to do this — even a few minutes can help. To meditate, head to a quiet spot, get in a comfortable position and pick something to focus on — whether it's your breath or a word or phrase that is calming.
- Connect with positive people.
- Get enough rest. You can't manage stress effectively without it. Establish a regular sleep schedule. Go to bed and get up at the same time every day.
- Find meaning. Whether you do so through volunteering, your faith or your work, look for opportunities to get beyond your own experience and help someone else. It may provide a different perspective for your own situation.
- Consider taking a stress management class or talking with a therapist for more ideas about how to curb your stress.
