February is American Heart Month.What better time to talk about heart disease prevention?Avoiding bad habits such as smoking, inactivity, being overweight, eating a poor diet, and drinking too much alcohol will reduce your risk of developing heart disease. One risk factor that isn't a habit at all but something we've become habituated to is stress.Stress is literally "heartfelt" and significantly contributes to the risk of developing heart disease.

Here are some ways to reduce your risk of developing heart disease:

1. Avoid tobacco. Both firstand and secondhand smoke are bad for your heart.

2. Exercise regularly. Physical activity 30 minutes on most days of the week reduces the risk of heart disease as well as decreases stress, anxiety and depression.

3. Maintain a healthy weight. Being overweight stresses the heart and increases your chance of developing diabetes.

4. Follow a Mediterranean Diet. This way of eating from the Mediterranean Sea area is rich in fruits and vegetables, whole grains, olive oil, beans, nuts and fish.

5. Drink alcohol in moderation (if at all).

6. Reduce your stress.  

Learn and practice relaxation techniques. Try meditation, Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (our next class begins on February 13th), progressive muscle relaxation, visualization, deep breathing, an emWave® and/or yoga. Develop a supportive social network. Get enough sleep to lower the "hyper-arousal" of stress and improve mood, alertness and energy. Nurture yourself; treat yourself to a massage or facial in our Medi-Spa. Listen to relaxing music. Spend time in nature.

Age Defy's new HealthStyle division, launching this Spring, will offer strategies to help you achieve your heart-healthy goals. 

In Good Health,