Did you know your heart pumps 2,000 gallons of blood through 60,000 miles of blood vessels every day? Marvellous isn’t it, given we find even walking 10000 steps daily a chore.  

In spite of the incredible feat, we still do not give due attention to this marathon champion. 

And heart disease continues to remain the leading cause of death worldwide. 

While there is continuous new research coming up on how to prevent cardiovascular disease, there are a few basic steps that each one of us can pledge to take this World Heart Day to keep our hearts healthy and happy.  

1.     Keep moving

Get up and take a walk around your office. Take the stairs. Do your lunges while you watch your latest season of The Crown. But keep moving.

A study in Circulation found that reducing the sedentary time by just one hour each day equated to a 26% lower risk of heart disease and a 12% lower risk of cardiovascular disease overall in women. Even simple add-ins to your daily routine can help ignite healthy habit changes and make a world of difference to your heart health.

2. Reduce inflammation with diet

While inflammation is a part of your body’s immune response to an illness or injury, chronic or systemic inflammation thickens the walls of your blood vessels, triggering blood clots — the primary cause of heart attacks and strokes. An anti-inflammatory diet rich in natural and whole food and herbs like turmeric, garlic, ginger, and cinnamon can help your heart remain strong and fit. Additionally, you can supplement with ORGANIC INDIA Heart Guard. Formulated with the herbs Arjuna, Reetha and Sahijan leaf, this potent combination helps to improve cardiac function, strengthen the heart muscle and, improve circulation. Abundant in antioxidants, Heart Guard also helps protect the heart from inflammation. Also, ORGANIC INDIA Arjuna is a herb acknowledged globally for its astounding cardio-protective and heart muscle-strengthening properties.  

3. Quit smoking

There’s no such thing as a safe limit for smoking or safe type of smoking including vaping. The good news is that within a year of stopping smoking, you cut down your risk of heart disease by about half as that of a smoker. And also avoid secondhand smoke. Secondhand smoke contains over 7,000 chemicals with hundreds being toxic to your body. So if your partner or family member smokes, do let them know its impact on the entire family’s health and wellbeing. 

4.  Watch your weight

A recent study by Washington University showed that losing weight improved the heart’s pumping ability, the thickness of the heart muscle tissue, and the thickness of the carotid artery walls. Hence maintain a healthy weight. Eating fewer calories, and choosing a fibre-rich diet including whole grains can supply more nutrition and keep you feeling full longer, helping you cut down your overall calorie intake. Explore new delicious additions to your diet like Quinoa and Black rice to get an added boost of nutrients and also cut down hunger pangs.

 5. Manage stress better

Long working hours, tiring commutes, endless runs of coffee, last-minute reports; all things can quickly pile up to raise your stress levels. Stress increases inflammation, raising your risk of cardiovascular disease. Integrating simple practices like meditation, learning to set boundaries and timelines, and switching your normal milk tea or coffee to Tulsi green tea like Tulsi Green Tea Honey Lemon can help you to restore your depleted energy levels in a healthy and sustainable manner. For added care, supplement your breakfast with ORGANIC INDIA Ashwagandha.  A powerful anti-stress agent, Ashwagandha can help you relieve mental, physical & emotional stress, build energy as well as boost your immunity. 

6. Maintain healthy blood pressure and cholesterol 

High blood pressure and blood sugar and unhealthy cholesterol levels can increase your risk of heart disease. Hence maintain healthy levels and take your medications as recommended. Research published in the European Heart Journal found that people who took their blood pressure medication at bedtime had a 45% lower risk of heart attack, stroke or other cardiovascular problems.  You can also add Omega 3-rich ORGANIC INDIA Flax seed oil and ORGANIC INDIA Lipidcare Capsules to your daily diet for helping to restore the healthy lipid balance in the body. 

7. Don’t scrimp on sleep

Been up all night watching reruns of Friends? Over time, inadequate sleep can increase your blood pressure. So, switch off the blue screens at least an hour before bedtime. Take a warm bath, dim the lights and snuggle up with your favourite book instead. Still can’t sleep, or jetlag setting you back? Drink a cup of ORGANIC INDIA Tulsi Sleep Tea. The potent combination of stress-relieving herbs, including Tulsi, Brahmi, Ashwagandha and Shankpushpi provide the restorative energy needed for calm, restful sleep. It is also excellent in helping with jet lag.

To summarize, practice healthy conscious living to keep your heart going strong. And keep watching our blog page for healthy tips and suggestions to live your best life!