In the United States, heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women. Heart disease refers to a lot of different heart conditions that ultimately threatens how your heart works. Fortunately, like other muscles in your body, there are things you can do to protect your heart and improve the chances of not developing heart disease.

Make Radical Changes to Your Diet

One of the biggest contributing factors that affects our overall health is what we eat. Diets high in saturated and trans fats increase the risk of you developing high cholesterol. The World Heart Federation conducted research on the effects of diet on people’s hearts. In the study, the organization observed the effects of diets low in saturated fats along with large amounts of fruit and vegetables. In the end, participants who changed their diets, experienced a 73 percent reduction in cardiac risks.

Additionally, their research showed that individuals who have a low consumption of fruit and vegetables account for 20 percent of the people who have a heart condition. There are nutrients in fruits and vegetables that help protect your heart. If you want to improve your heart and protect it from heart disease, start by increasing your consumption of fresh produce.

Reduce Your Blood Pressure

Another contributing factor that increases your chances of developing heart diseases is high blood pressure. Many people develop high blood pressure as a result of their food intake. High levels of sodium in your diet leads to water in your blood vessels, which causes your heart to work harder. If you continue to eat foods that have high sodium content, you make the situation worse and increase the chances of having a cardiac event. Fortunately, decreasing your sodium content can help minimize the strain on your heart.

Exercise More

Most people know that exercise can reduce your risk of having heart problems, but many people don’t know that exercise can protect your heart if you ever have a cardiac event. When you exercise, you produce nitric oxide, which can be used to provide your heart with oxygen and blood to your heart during a cardiac event. Although nitric oxide doesn’t remain in your system long after you exercise, your body can use other chemicals to create nitric oxide. To release these gases that convert to nitric oxide, you have to exercise to build them up.

Protecting your heart isn't difficult. With a commitment to heart health, you can live longer and save money on the cost of your health insurance as well.

What are you doing to care for your heart health? Call Merritt Hall Insurance at 800-677-9180 for more information on health insurance.