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February is American Heart Month — a great time to take stock of your heart health habits. Unfortunately, heart disease remains a top killer of adults in the U.S., but it’s not the inevitable result of old age. The biggest culprit: Americans’ increasingly sedentary lifestyles. Fast food, smoking, diabetes, stress, and lack of medical care are also contributors. However, seniors who take advantage of the amenities and activities offered in a senior living community can boost their heart health and enjoy longer, happier, and healthier lives.

Here’s how:

• Eat heart-healthy foods. Avoiding saturated fats has long been key to heart health, but today there’s plenty more that seniors need to know about diet and its heart benefits. Incorporating more green leafy vegetables, whole grains, berries, avocados, fatty fish (salmon & tuna are great), walnuts & almonds, beans, dark chocolate, tomatoes, and garlic can improve your heart health.

• Get moving. Active Seniors are heart-healthier in the long run. But you don’t have to become a marathoner to make gains. A 30-minute moderate-intensity exercise program at least five days a week, plus some daily activities like stair climbing and stretching will keep your heart healthy. Always check with your doctor before starting an exercise program.

• Manage stress levels. One of the biggest heart disease risks is stress — both physiological and emotional. Try meditation, yoga, or simple stretches to keep heart issues at bay.

• Keep your medical appointments. It’s important to treat heart-related conditions as they arise so they don’t get out of control and become a more serious problem.

• Maintain a healthy blood pressure. As many as 80 percent of heart disease patients are diagnosed with high cholesterol and hypertension simultaneously. The latter increases the likelihood that heart disease will develop into a heart attack or stroke. Work with your doctor on ways to lower your cholesterol and manage your hypertension.

• Maintain healthy cholesterol levels. The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute reports that heart problems in older people (65+) result from atherosclerosis — a condition in which plaque builds up inside arteries due to high cholesterol levels. Eating healthy foods like fruits, beans, vegetables, and whole grains helps keep cholesterol numbers low; taking medications, if necessary, also helps. Work with your doctor on keeping your cholesterol numbers down.

• Quit smoking. If you have heart disease, quitting is one of the best things you can do for your health. Talk with your doctor about support programs designed especially for seniors trying to stop smoking.

• Don’t ignore diabetes symptoms. Those who develop diabetes after age 65 face heart disease risks four times higher than those who don’t have the condition. Diabetes can affect heart health in other ways, too, including high cholesterol levels and heart rhythm disorders.

Further, take steps with your doctor to monitor your heart health if you have heart problems. Regular checkups and follow-up sessions can help identify potential heart issues early on when they are more easily treated.

A heart-healthy lifestyle is good for seniors at any age — but it’s especially important as you get older.

Schedule a tour today for more information on how you can take advantage of the all-inclusive amenities and activities of retirement living at a GenCare Lifestyle community.

Written by Kathy Hunt,

RNGenCare Lifestyle Corporate Director of Wellness

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