This article will tell you what you need to know about coronary heart disease, and will give you 7 key steps you can take, starting now, to reduce your risk of coronary heart disease.
What is Coronary Heart Disease? Coronary heart disease, which is also known as atherosclerosis, is a condition in which the arteries responsible for carrying oxygen to your heart muscle are blocked by accumulations of plaque.
If you are in an early stage of the disease, you probably have no symptoms, and your doctor may not even be able to tell that you have the disease.
But later, when the disease has progressed over the course of many years, it can cause sudden death because the arteries can't get enough blood to the heart muscle to keep it functioning.
Coronary heart disease ranks among the top causes of death for men and women.
What Causes Coronary Heart Disease? There is no single cause of coronary heart disease.
However, doctors and researchers have identified certain risk factors that can heighten the risk that you may have this deadly disease.
The important risk factors include family history, high cholesterol, obesity, smoking, and high blood pressure.
While you can't change your family history, you may be able to reduce your risk of coronary heart disease by controlling some of the other risk factors.
7 Key Steps to Reduce Your Risk 1.
See your doctor for a cholesterol test and angiogram If you are concerned about the risk of coronary heart disease, start by seeing your doctor.
The doctor should take an angiogram, which measures your heart's activity, and order a blood test that will measure your cholesterol levels.
2.
Lower your total cholesterol level If your total cholesterol is over 200 mg/dl, you should take steps to reduce it.
Exercise and diet are the best means to reduce total cholesterol.
3.
Exercise regularly Most doctors now recommend 30 minutes of aerobic exercise -- like walking, jogging, swimming, or bicycling -- 5 days a week.
4.
Quit smoking If you smoke, quit now.
Smoking is a significant risk factor for coronary heart disease as well as for lung cancer.
5.
Take a low-dose aspirin every day Some evidence indicates that a low-dose aspirin every day can reduce the risk of death from coronary heart disease.
6.
Reduce your dietary consumption of animal fats, especially from red meat.
Reducing your consumption of animal fat will reduce your dietary cholesterol, which in turn should reduce your blood cholesterol.
7.
Increase your dietary consumption of fresh fruits and whole grains.
Increasing your consumption of fruits and whole grains will also help to reduce your blood cholesterol.
Other Steps You Can Take In addition to the seven key steps above, some doctors now think that drinking alcohol in moderation can reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.
You may want to have a drink or a glass of red wine each evening.
Doctors now measure two different kinds of cholesterol - HDL or "good" cholesterol, and LDL or "bad" cholesterol.
Depending on the results of your blood cholesterol test, your doctor may recommend that you increase your HDL cholesterol level and decrease your LDL cholesterol level.
This article has outlined 7 key steps for reducing your risk of coronary heart disease.
By following the steps in this article, together with your doctor's advice, it's very likely that you can reduce your risk of succumbing to this killer disease.
Plus, you will enjoy life more and feel better if you make the recommended lifestyle changes.