How To Improve Heart Health: 12 Steps
How To Improve Heart Health: 12 Steps
Knowing how to improve heart health can add years to your life and life to your years. For women over 65, prioritizing heart health isn’t just about avoiding illness—it’s about staying active, independent, and full of energy.
The choices you make each day—from the food you eat to the way you manage stress—can strengthen your heart and improve your overall well-being. Let’s explore simple ways to nurture your heart and how to use heart care services to enhance your quality of life.
The Importance of Heart Health as You Age
As you age, your heart’s efficiency can decline, increasing the risk of heart disease, especially for women after menopause.
Maintaining heart health through exercise, a nutritious diet, and regular checkups is vital for preventing issues like high blood pressure, cholesterol, and heart disease. Healthy habits help all of us stay active and independent and improve our quality of life.
1. Stop Smoking
Smoking damages your blood vessels, reduces oxygen in your blood, and increases the risk of heart disease and stroke.
Quitting smoking improves circulation, lowers blood pressure, and reduces your risk of heart attack. The benefits begin within hours of quitting, making it one of the most impactful steps toward heart health.
2. Increase Physical Activity
Regular exercise strengthens the heart, improves circulation, and helps control weight. Aerobic exercises like walking and swimming improve cardiovascular endurance, while strength training and flexibility exercises support muscle health, mobility, and balance
Physical activity also lowers blood pressure and cholesterol, which significantly reduces heart disease risk in seniors.
3. Maintain a Healthy Weight
Excess weight strains the heart and increases the risk of high blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes.
Maintaining a healthy weight through diet and exercise reduces these risks, improves circulation, and helps your heart work more efficiently. Even losing just a little weight can yield significant improvements in heart health.
4. Monitor Cholesterol, Blood Sugar, and Blood Pressure Levels
High cholesterol, blood sugar, and blood pressure are major risk factors for heart disease. Regular monitoring helps detect issues early, allowing you to make necessary lifestyle changes or take medications as needed.
Managing these levels prevents artery damage, reduces heart attack risk, and supports overall heart health.
5. Lower Stress
Chronic stress increases cortisol levels, leading to inflammation, high blood pressure, and heart strain. Managing stress through relaxation techniques such as deep breathing, meditation, and yoga helps protect your heart.
Reducing stress also supports better sleep, healthier habits, and overall well-being, especially as you age.
6. Get Plenty of Sleep Each Night
Quality sleep is essential for heart health. Poor sleep can increase blood pressure, inflammation, and stress hormones, all of which harm the heart.
Seniors should strive for 7–8 hours of sleep nightly to allow the body to recover, maintain healthy blood pressure levels, and support overall cardiovascular function.
7. Maintain a Heart-Healthy Diet
A heart-healthy diet includes fresh fruits, an array of colorful vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, low-fat dairy, and healthy fats like olive oil. These foods provide essential nutrients and reduce inflammation.
Seniors should avoid excess salt, saturated fats, and other foods that cause high blood pressure since they contribute to high cholesterol and heart disease.
8. Avoid Processed Foods
Processed foods are often high in unhealthy fats, sodium, and added sugars, which increase cholesterol, blood pressure, and weight gain. These factors put significant strain on the heart.
Replacing processed foods with whole, nutrient-dense options helps reduce heart disease risk and improves overall health.
9. Avoid Excess Sugar and Empty Calories
Excess sugar and empty calories lead to weight gain, insulin resistance, and inflammation, all of which increase heart disease risk
Seniors seeking to improve heart health should minimize sugary drinks, desserts, candies, and refined carbohydrates. Choosing whole, nutrient-rich foods helps maintain a healthy weight, stable blood sugar, and better heart function.
10. Stay Hydrated
Proper hydration supports blood circulation, helps regulate blood pressure, and reduces the strain on the heart. Dehydration can thicken blood, which makes the heart work harder.
Coffee, tea, and sugary drinks can promote dehydration, so avoid these as much as possible. Seniors should consume 8–10 glasses of water daily to maintain optimal heart function and energy levels.
11. Limit Alcohol Consumption
Excessive alcohol can raise blood pressure, increase weight gain, and weaken heart muscles, leading to heart failure.
Seniors should limit alcohol to one drink per day or less. Reducing alcohol intake lowers heart disease risk and supports better overall health and balance.
12. Be Grateful
Practicing gratitude can lower stress, improve mood, and support heart health. Positive emotions help reduce inflammation and blood pressure to ease the strain on the heart.
Try keeping a gratitude journal, expressing appreciation to others, or focusing on life’s blessings daily. These simple habits boost mental well-being and can strengthen heart health over time.
How Herself Health Can Help
At Herself Health, we are committed to helping Minnesota women 65+ live the healthiest life possible.
Our heart care services are tailored to your unique needs and focus on preventative actions to reduce the likelihood of future issues.
Our whole-person approach not only focuses on heart care but also takes into account your physical, mental, and emotional well-being for a comprehensive healthcare experience.
We have five convenient locations to serve you:
Rosedale Women’s Health Clinic: Our Rosedale clinic is located in the Rosedale Marketplace near the Rosedale Shopping center on the intersection of County Road B2 and Fairview Ave N.
Lyndale Women’s Health Clinic: Our Lyndale clinic is on the corner of West 55th St and Lyndale Avenue S beside a Walgreens.
Crystal Women’s Health Clinic: Our Crystal location is found beside Tower Auto Mart near the intersection of Douglas Drive N and W Broadway.
Highland Park Women’s Clinic: Highland Park is on the corner of Ford Parkway and S Kenneth St within the Highland Center neighboring Hillcrest Park.
Eagan Women’s Health Clinic: Eagan is found tucked on the corner of Rahncliff Rd and Cliff Rd neighboring a Nothing Bundt Cakes store.
Start Improving Heart Health Today!
Your heart works hard every day—now it’s your turn to give back. Women over 65, in particular, benefit from prioritizing heart health and embracing a healthier lifestyle.
By making positive, heart-healthy choices such as staying active, eating better, and managing stress, you can protect this vital organ to reduce the risk of heart disease and enjoy a stronger heart, improved energy, and fuller life.
Learning how to improve heart health is an investment in your future—a golden opportunity you can’t afford to pass up—and it’s never too late to make a difference.
Choose Herself Health for all your heart care needs, and discover the difference personalized healthcare makes! Call 1-888-290-1209 today to schedule your appointment.