Take Care of Your Heart This Valentine’s Day

With Valentine’s Day in February it seems appropriate that this month is also National Heart Month. This Valentine’s Day take a moment to think of your ticker and ways to stay heart healthy.

Our hearts beat about 100,000 times a day and pump 2,000 gallons of blood through arteries, veins, and capillaries.

Heart disease is the number one killer of women in the US,yet many still think it’s a man’s disease. In fact, according to the American Heart Association, heart disease is the leading cause of death for men and women in the US with one out of four deaths each year caused by heart disease. And women experience classic symptoms of heart attacks,like chest pain or radiating arm pain,differently than men and are often not as quick to pick up on the symptoms. The more common symptoms for women include dizziness, fatigue, shortness of breath, pain in one or both arms or neck, stomach pain, upper back pressure, cold sweats and nausea.

But there is good news! Heart disease can be prevented with healthy lifestyle choices like losing weight, reducing blood pressure, not smoking or quitting smoking, and reducing your salt intake. Take a look at the recipes on my website, all of which contain no or little salt. Instead of salt, use seasonings and herbs to flavor your food, as you’ll see with my recipes.

Here are some other heart facts:

The heart has the ability to beat more than 3 billion times in a person’s life.
Every year about 735,000 Americans have a heart attack. That’s someone in the US with a heart attack every 43 seconds.
Dog owners have a lower risk of heart disease because of the extra walking they do.
Laughing can send 20% more blood flowing through your body so laugh, it’s good for you!
Heart attacks are more common on Monday morning than any other day of the week.
Some of the most heart-healthy foods, according to the American Heart Association include fish, nuts, red wine, tomatoes, and dark chocolate.