February is American Heart Month, which means it’s time to talk about staying healthy and keeping your heart strong. There are a wide variety of lifestyle changes, habits, and fitness strategies you can take to keep your cardiovascular system working well as you age. Home health care and home care agencies can go hand in hand with keeping you healthy.
The Best Heart Health Tips for Seniors
Adopt a Healthy Diet:
Diet is a major part of staying healthy and making sure your heart is strong as you age. First, you should be sure to pick out the most colorful fruits and vegetables when buying your groceries. Colorful fruits and vegetables have plenty of vitamins, minerals, and fiber while keeping your waist trim due to the low amount of calories. Additionally, you will want to avoid eating too much meat and high fat and cholesterol products such as cheese and butter.
Lean cuts of meat are a better idea, so be sure to pick out sirloin or tenderloin cuts of beef. These are low in fat. Pick out low-fat yogurt and milk as well. However, fatty fish is filled with omega-3 fatty acids, which can actually help lower your risk of heart disease. So feel free to eat plenty of salmon and trout!
You should also get plenty of nuts, whole grain breads and cereals, beans, and other vegetables into your diet. High fiber foods are great for your heart health. Meal planning and prepping are a large part of maintaining a healthy diet. Allegiance Home Health’s caregivers can help with meal preparation as well as planning meals and menus. Our caregivers are also trained in helping with special diets, such as diabetic management and assisting with medication.
Incorporate Exercise into Your Daily Life:
To strengthen your heart, you will also want to get at least half an hour of exercise every day. Getting your body moving is a known factor in improving your heart health. For better health, try to get outdoors and walk around for half an hour. If it’s too cold to go outdoors this winter, try taking a stroll in a mall or head to the store instead. Grab a friend or a spouse and work in some exercise while spending some time together.
Stop Bad Habits:
We all understand that bad habits, such as smoking cigarettes, eating unhealthy foods excessively and drinking alcohol in excess can contribute to heart conditions. While quitting these habits can take time and much effort, in the long run the health benefits will far exceed the difficulties in quitting.
Get Help When You Need It:
Sometimes we all need a helping hand. Taking care of yourself sometimes means accepting assistance – and in-home health care can be a wonderful option. In-home health caregivers can help with grocery shopping, transportation to stores, preparing meals, and even taking care of light housekeeping. Allegiance’s caregivers help clients better manage prescriptions, therapy sessions and exercise routines. Keeping your heart healthy is so important at every age – you can do it and we can help.
