5 Ways to Keep Your Heart Healthy

In Black homes, holiday meals aren’t always the healthiest for you. Follow these tips to make sure you are protecting your heart.

By Anissa Durham

As we close out the year, prioritizing health during the holiday season is essential. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. And to make matters worse, research shows most heart attacks happen between Christmas and New Year’s.

The holiday season is a time when many families come together to share in gift-giving and home-cooked meals. Tables are plated with slow-roasted ham, mac and cheese, and candied yams. Amid the holiday spirit, the tradition is often to overeat, drink too much, and indulge in sweets we’ve waited for all year.

Unfortunately, the foods Black families love during this time are not the healthiest for their hearts. Holiday-themed foods with lots of salt, fat, and sugar can contribute to high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and heart attacks. This may raise concerns for Black men and women, who had higher rates of heart disease deaths than white people in 2019.

To help keep our community healthy and informed, Word In Black spoke with two physicians about ways you can protect your heart during this holiday season.

Dr. Richard Benson is a vascular neurologist and director of the Office of Global Health and Health Disparities at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Dr. Albert Hicks is the section chief of heart failure and transplant at the University of Maryland.

Here are their top five tips.

1. Monitor your Salt

Doctors recommend we consume no more than two grams of salt per day. Salt is tied very closely to high blood pressure. There are a lot of sneaky processed foods out there. Processed meats in some cases have been labeled carcinogens.

All processed meats, including lunch meat, turkey, sausage, and bacon, are unhealthy. If you’re going to eat meat, make sure it’s freshly cooked and not processed in a can or tube.

2. Know Your Blood Pressure Numbers

Blood pressure is measured using two numbers. The first number, your systolic blood pressure, measures the pressure in your arteries when your heart beats. The second number, your diastolic blood pressure, measures the pressure in your arteries when your heart rests between beats.

If the measurement reads 120 systolic and 80 diastolic, you would say, “120 over 80,” or write, “120/80 mm Hg.” If left unchecked, high blood pressure can damage the cells of your arteries’ inner lining and cause a hardening called arteriosclerosis, blocking blood flow to your heart, brain, and kidneys, as well as to your muscles.

Keep in mind that your blood pressure changes throughout the day based on your activities.

-Normal Blood Pressure for Most Adults
Less than 120/80 mm HG

-High Blood Pressure
130 or higher/80 or higher mm HG

3. Develop Healthy Habits

Preventing heart disease is more effective if started early in life. Quit smoking, adopt a balanced diet rich in fruits and vegetables, and avoid illicit drugs and excessive alcohol. These steps are paramount to reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke.

Reducing your cholesterol will also lower your risk of developing a wide variety of serious health issues, including stroke and heart disease.

Credit: EMS-FORSTER-PRODUCTIONS via Getty Images.

Smoking harms nearly every organ in the body, including the heart. Any amount of smoking, even light or occasional smoking, damages the heart and blood vessels.

4. Exercise

At a minimum, you should be exercising 30 minutes a day, three days a week. Preferably with a combination of aerobic exercises as well as some resistance, like using weights.

It’s not good to binge on anything, including exercise during the holidays; just take things in moderation.

Following a healthy eating plan and keeping physically active on a regular basis will significantly lower your risk for heart disease, high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, and other chronic and debilitating health problems.

Credit: The Good Brigade via Getty Images.

5. See a Doctor

They recommend everyone to see a primary care doctor and to get a checkup. Your physician can test to see if you have the beginning signs of chronic diseases.

Do you have early signs of high blood pressure? Are you presenting with early signs of Type 2 diabetes? Do you have high cholesterol that puts you at risk for developing a stroke? Does kidney disease run in your family?

These conditions can lead to much more deadly conditions, such as strokes, heart failure, heart attacks, and even death.

“If you know what you’re consuming and putting in your body, and what you’re at risk for — you’re empowered to do something about it,” Hicks says. “And you’re less likely to fall victim to mistreatment or biased opinions that affect your health care.”

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