February is American Heart Month. It’s a time to bring awareness to heart disease and stroke, the number one killer in the United States, so you and the people you love don’t become a statistic. This month is particularly personal for me, as my mom has heart disease. She had quadruple bypass surgery one year ago this month. If you know someone who would benefit from this information on preventing heart disease, please share it. I’m posting five articles on simple things everyone can do to keep their heart healthy and strong.

Lose Weight, Gain a Healthy Heart

You might wonder why weight loss is important in preventing heart disease.  Controlling your weight helps you control heart disease risk factors: blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes. Even if you don’t have these heart disease risk factors now, you could develop them at any time.

February is American Heart Month. It’s a time to bring awareness to heart disease and stroke, the number one killer in the United States, so you and the people you love don’t become a statistic. This month is particularly personal for me, as my mom has heart disease. She had quadruple bypass surgery one year ago this month. If you know someone who would benefit from this information on preventing heart disease, please share it.

Five Foods That Will Save Your Heart

One way to prevent heart disease is to eat healthy. In this post, I’ll highlight five different foods that can save your heart – literally. These are not the only five foods that protect your heart, but they stand out as star performers in my book.

1. Garlic: Known as “the stinking rose,” this herb does not stink when it comes to heart health. Numerous studies have demonstrated potential benefits of regular garlic consumption on blood pressure, platelet aggregation, serum triglyceride level, and cholesterol levels – all of which keep your ticker ticking. The other thing I like about garlic is that it can be used to season food so you can cut back (way back) on the salt.

While both omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids belong to what’s called polyunsaturated fats, they have distinct differences. They are both referred to as “essential” because they are a necessary part of sustaining a healthy body. The importance is underlined by the fact that our bodies cannot make them, so we must get them through dietary means.

Omega-3s get most of the press, particularly for their anti-inflammatory and heart disease prevention benefits. Additional benefits include improving arthritis, preventing cancer, and improving your skin’s condition.

Like an infomercial… but wait, there’s more! Omega-3s improve eye health, and benefit brain function, improving mood and memory.

There are many foods that are bad for your heart health. But your emotional health can play a role as well. In a new Swedish study, men who tend to bottle up their anger about being unfairly treated in their place of employment have double the risk of a heart attack.

Researchers from Stockholm looked at 2,755 male employees who had not had a heart attack before the study began.

The men were asked which coping methods they used. They were asked if they dealt with problems head-on, or if they didn’t say anything and just walked away from conflict. Also, the researchers asked if they developed symptoms such as headache or stomach ache or got into arguments at home.

If you had to think of the single best example of what the epitome is of exercise as a way to longevity, it would have to be Jack LaLanne. I can’t recall why, but his name came up in a conversation not too long ago, and I was taken aback by the fact that the man is still alive and kicking… at 95!

And Jack isn’t just surviving, he looks as vital as when he was a young whipper snapper in his 70s.

So what’s the secret? There may not be one simple answer. To most people in the last few decades of his life, they know him for his juicer infomercials. But, LaLanne originally gained recognition as a successful bodybuilder. He owes his vitality to the power of strength training.