If you need to lose weight, you and your doctor or registered nutrition- ist can design a healthy diet plan, which will involve determining a level of calorie intake that is appropriate for you—but one that contains at least 1,200 calories per day. Your exercise plan should ensure that you burn more calories than you […]
To promote cardiovascular benefit for most people, about 30 minutes a day of moderate to vigorous aerobic activity most days of the week is a good start; the latest recommendations, however, suggest that you work your way up to 1 hour of exercise per day if you are overweight. You can accumulate the total in […]
Americans know exercise is good for them. A proliferation of health clubs and ?tness centers, joggers in every park and walkers in every shopping mall, and constantly changing fashion trends in exercise gear are all evidence that we’ve gotten the message. Ironically, at the same time, advances in technology and labor-saving devices (along with other […]
Nicotine replacement products, including patches, gum, nasal sprays, and inhalers, can be a valuable part of your overall strategy to stop smoking. They do not work perfectly, but they are a valuable aid in reducing the symptoms of nicotine withdrawal while you learn to adjust to living without cigarettes. These products are closely regulated by […]
Making a decision to quit smoking may be the smartest thing you ever do, but it is the beginning of a dif?cult process. You will ?nd reams of materials to help you quit, backed by extensive scienti?c knowledge about how nicotine works in your body, why it’s so hard to stop smok- ing, and what […]
The reasons to quit smoking are legion. In terms of your cardiovas- cular health, quitting smoking is a major way you can take control of your risk of coronary artery disease and other heart and blood vessel diseases. Brie?y, these are the ways in which tobacco smoke endangers your cardiovascular system: • Atherosclerosis. Smoking damages […]
Although high blood pressure is a common disease among all Americans, some groups are at higher risk, for reasons that are not fully understood. People in some racial or ethnic groups are more likely to develop high blood pressure. Some people are at higher risk because of other dis- eases, such as diabetes. Often these […]
In addition to lifestyle changes, many people with high blood pressure must take at least one medication or a combination of drugs to keep their blood pressure at a healthy level. These drugs, called antihyper- tensives, are highly effective and are an extremely important factor in reducing your risk of stroke, heart disease, and other […]
Your doctor may ask you to start taking your blood pressure at home and recording it. Doing so will give both you and your doctor a more complete understanding of how much your blood pressure varies during the day, and how well your medication is working to control your con- dition. It also eliminates the […]
One of the most important things you can do to control your blood pressure—and prevent heart disease—is to keep your weight at a healthy level. If you are overweight, you are more than twice as likely to develop high blood pressure than if you maintain a healthy weight. Even if you are only 10 pounds […]
