Responding to the situation, Aster Medcity, on World Heart Day, launched a dedicated Aster Heartline – adults and children with heart ailments can now call 8111998111 for emergency assistance as well as advice.
With the right kind of medical care and attention, fatalities can be avoided and cardiac patients can be assured of a good quality of life – especially through early detection and individualised treatment. The Aster Heartline will help patients understand the disease and its treatment modalities, in addition to helping them handle emergency situations.
Here are a few tips for a healthy heart:
Exercise, everyday
Eat healthy food
Quit smoking
Control risk factors like Blood Pressure, Blood Sugar & Cholesterol
Keep away from stress inducing factors
Reduce intake of salt
Do regular health check-ups
Try to stay happy and tension-free
A healthy diet is what keeps the heart healthy
Indulge in
- Pulses (gram, dhal, sprouted pulses)
- Food rich in fibre like green leafy vegetables
- Raw-vegetable salads
- Fruits, mainly those with edible skin
- Clear vegetable soups, plain soda water, lime juice
- White meat, without fat
- Fish rich in Omega 3
- Green tea
- Ground nuts, almonds and walnuts
Avoid
- Oily food
- Ghee, butter, vegetable fat
- Red meat – beef, mutton, ham
- Shellfish- prawn, crab, mussels
- Organ meat such as liver, brain
- Food containing Maida
- Egg yolk
- Fast food
- Chocolates/ snacks with trans fats
- Pickles
- Carbonated drinks
Make sure you always have food that’s low on oil, especially fried food, food made with thick coconut milk and ghee
Ideal cooking
Use very limited quantity of oil for cooking
Use cooking oils that are high in PUFA, and also high smoking point
Use combinations of different cooking oils instead of using only one type of oil – e.g. corn/rice bran/ canola/ sunflower
Remove the skin before cooking chicken to reduce the fat content further
Opt for healthier methods of cooking like roasting, steaming, baking and boiling instead of frying.
To keep your heart healthy, you need to maintain your
Blood Pressure at 120/80
Cholesterol below 200 mg%
Fasting Sugar below100 mg%
Postprandial below160 mg%
And yes, make sure you exercise for at least thirty minutes everyday.
Remember, a healthy heart means a healthy you.
