Cardiovascular Risk Factors: How to prevent them and Take Care of the Heart

Taking care of our cardiovascular health is synonym to improving our quality of life. According to the Spanish Heart Foundation, cardiovascular disorders are still one of the main causes of mortality in Spain.

But good news is that many cardiovascular risk factors can be prevented or controlled with healthy habits and an adequate follow-up.

Doing exercise regularly, keeping a healthy weight, following a balanced diet, resting well and avoiding tobacco are the basic pillars that help us protect our cardiovascular health. And let’s not forget about taking care of our emotional health and doing periodical check-ups.

BLOOD PRESSURE

High blood pressure makes the heart work harder and, as time passes, arteries and other organs can become damaged. Furthermore, it does not show symptoms in many cases, so checking up our blood pressure periodically is important.

Reducing, or even removing, salt from our diets one of the main habits we can incorporate to our daily life to help controlling our blood pressure. Usually, salt consumption is higher than we think, specially in ultaprocessed foods, charcuterie, canned food, snacks or ready-to-eat food.

Cooking more at home to control the quantity of salt, change it for some spices and aromatic herbs or read the nutritional labels of product are little changes that help reduce the intake of salt. In addition, making your palate used to less salty flavours favours keeping this habit in the long-term and caring for cardiovascular health.

CHOLESTEROL

High cholesterol can favour fat accumulation in the arteries and increase cardiovascular risk. That’s why one of the most important changes is reducing the consumption of saturated fats and ultraprocessed foods.

Charcuterie, industrial baked goods, fried foods, fast food and many industrial products contain more unhealthy fats that can increase LDL cholesterol, which is known as “bad cholesterol”.

At the same time, introducing new foods that help protect the heart is also an important step.

• Don’t forget to prioritise fruits, vegetables, legumes and wholegrain cereals.
• Eat healthy fats like olive oil, nuts ands oily fish.
• Plan your weekly menus to prevent turning to fast food.
• Using healthy cooking techniques like the oven, steaming or grilling.

SEDENTARINESS

Lack of physical activity directly affects cardiovascular health and boosts other risk factors like obesity of high blood pressure.

There’s no need of big targets at the beginning. The most important factor is including movement to your daily life and find activities you like and can do in the long-term.

• Walk at least 30 minutes a day.
• Choose the stairs over the lift.
• Sing up for scheduled classes or activities to create a routine.
• Do activities that motivate: dancing, swimming, pilates, riding the bike or trekking.
• Try doing those activities with other people.

ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO

Everybody knows the risk of tobacco and the excessive consumption of alcohol, but quitting some habits is not always easy. That’s the reason why seeking professional help or a support network can become key.

Smoking damages the arteries, reduces the oxygen in blood and notably increases cardiovascular risk. Alcohol, especially in excess, can also affect the heart and blood pressure.

Some tips to help you quit smoking and drinking alcohol:

• Fix a date in the calendar to start.
• Identify the moments or situations linked to smoking or drinking.
• Substitute that habit for another one that’s healthy, like drinking water.
• Celebrate little advances and do not abandon the process in case of relapse.

FOOD AND OBESITY

Food and overweight are tightly linked to cardiovascular health. Beyond fast or restrictive diets, the most important is building healthy habits maintained in the long term.

Organising can make the difference and help taking better decisions, fro instance: planning the week’s meals, having healthy options available at home or keeping regular mealtimes.

EMOTIONAL HEALTH

Although at the end, it is not less important that the others. In fact, emotional health can directly influence all other risk factors mentioned above.

When we live stressful situations continuously, the body releases hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. This can increase blood pressure, heart rate and favour inflammatory processes affecting the arteries and heart.

Furthermore, emotional malaise can also be related to less healthy habits: sleep worse, doing less physical activity, smoking more, disorganised eating or increase the consumption of alcohol. All of that increases even more cardiovascular risk.

That’s why caring for our emotional well-being is also a par of cardiovascular prevention.