Did you know that the slower your heart beats, the better your chances for a long life? Moreover, you have an influence on the rate at which your heart beats. On the occasion of the "Week for the Heart" that is being celebrated, check what best affects his condition.
Preventionof heart disease , promoting a he althy lifestyle and an appropriate diet are the goals of the Week for the Heart (April 17-24). How to take care of them so that they beat us hard and as long as possible? In moments of emotional and physical exertion, yourheartwill speed up significantly. And it should be so. When nothing happens, it calms down and beats evenly, although it works slower for some people and faster for others. What it depends on? From a tiny piece of our heart that has been called the sinus node. This is where the orders for how often the heart muscle should contract and relax, pumping blood to all the cells in the body, come from here. It is the work of the sinus node that determines ourpulse , technically speaking - the resting heart rate HR (heart rate).
Pulse - heart he alth information source
Pulse is the number of heartbeats per minute. Its frequency as a source of information about the condition of the heart has been underestimated by medicine for many years. Particular attention was paid to the level of arterial pressure. It was believed that hypertension and atherosclerosis determine the efficiency of the heart muscle. After years of research, it turned out that the pulse is of great importance not only for the quality and length of our life, but also determines how we will - if it happens - suffer from heart disease. The average human heart beats 60-70 times or more per minute. It is believed to be programmed for approximately 3 billion beats in a lifetime. People with an accelerated heart rate, i.e. more than 80 beats per minute, have a much harder time, for example, a heart attack and unfortunately more often die of it compared to people whose heart is working slower.
You must do itMeasure your pulse
The best frequency for our heart is 60-70 beats per minute. To check the heart rate, just put your fingers on the artery, for example on the neck, count the heart's "beats" and measure (with a watch or a stopwatch) 60 seconds.
Daily amount of physical activity important for heart he alth
Most effective inshaping the heart rhythm is… physical exertion. If we periodically provoke our heart to work harder, it beats slower when we rest. What effort is so powerful? Intensive, grown for half an hour but every day. If we go to the gym once a week and spend even a few hours there - we do not do much for our heart, because it needs exercise every day! Even a two-day break between workouts means that we lose the chance to lower the pressure, and thus slow down the heart rate, i.e. the pulse. Every day, half an hour of fast walking is enough and the success is ready. - Slowing down the pulse is of great importance for our condition not only when we are okay, but also when we have heart disease - emphasizes prof. Rynkiewicz. - In he althy people, slowing the heart rate from 70 to 60 beats per minute allows you to extend life by up to several years, e.g. from 80 to 93 years. In patients with coronary artery disease, slowing the pulse to 60 beats per minute reduces the risk of dying from heart disease by 34%. and as much as 46 percent. risk of a heart attack. So there is something to strive for!
Factors determining the condition of the heart
The five most important factors (5xC) determining the condition of the circulatory system have been identified. They are closely related to each other. Each of the following points must be taken care of to protect the heart. The good news: positive changes in one area also pay off in others. Diabetes is a great threat to the entire circulatory system. Especially the latter type is provoked by obesity and an unhe althy lifestyle. Excess glucose in the blood damages the inside of the blood vessels, which causes many serious complications, such as kidney failure and venous failure. Therefore, you should check your blood sugar level once a year. It should not exceed 100 mg / dl on an empty stomach. Lowering the blood sugar level helps to lose excess kilograms, lower blood pressure, and lower the pulse by a few (3-4) beats per minute. To keep your diabetes in check, observe insulin dosages and timing, and limit carbohydrates and sugar. If you do not have diabetes, you can use over-the-counter preparations. Cholesterol must be normal. Total cholesterol, safe for the heart, must not exceed 190 mg / dl. The higher one is the cause of atherosclerosis, i.e. the overgrowth of the inside of the vessels with atherosclerotic plaque. Blood is difficult to squeeze through the narrowed vessels, which raises blood pressure. In order to pump the blood needed by the heart and other organs, the heart has to contract more often, so the pulse becomes faster. Excess cholesterol in the blood is the first step to atherosclerosisobstructs blood flow through the vessels. The more force the blood stream needs to push through the vessels, the more pressure increases, the heart has to contract more often, and then the pulse increases. There are many methods of successfully lowering blood cholesterol levels. When nothing is wrong, it is usually enough to change the diet - replace animal fat with olive oil, pork - with sea fish, and add as many vegetables and fruits as possible to each meal. Exercise also helps to lower cholesterol. Blood pressure - the ideal value is 120/80 mm Hg, but blood pressure below 139/89 mm Hg is also considered safe. The higher one is already a condition called hypertension. He is favored by overweight, alcohol abuse, strong coffee and tea, and an excess of s alt. Everything that leads to a reduction in blood pressure, i.e. regular (daily) exercise and a diet (low in animal fats and highly processed products), helps to keep sugar and cholesterol within the normal range. It also slows down the heart rate and … extends life. The heart rate is of particular importance in people who are at risk of or already suffer from coronary heart disease. In patients, beta-blockers (so-called beta-blockers) are commonly used to reduce the pulse frequency. He althy people can achieve the same by increasing their daily physical activity. Clean air, meaning no cigarettes. Quitting smoking lowers your blood pressure and slows down your heart rate almost immediately. It has been proven that the so-called lipid profile, i.e. the level of cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood is reduced. The average life expectancy difference between non-smokers and smokers is around 10 years. Each cigarette raises the pressure by 10-15 mm Hg and speeds up the pulse by about 8-10 beats. What's more - it shortens the life by 11 minutes. While smoking, the arteries that supply blood to the heart contract. Even with small atherosclerotic lesions, we can treat ourselves to a heart attack.
According to an expertProf. dr hab.med. Krzysztof J. FilipiakIt is worth fighting for 5xC
It is best to put an equal sign between all factors included in the 5xC rule. Because when we lower the blood pressure, the heart rate will decrease. When diabetes is treated properly, blood pressure can be controlled and therefore the heart rate is slower. When we lower the level of lipids (fats) in the blood, we also lower the pressure. When we are not overweight, we lower the risk of type 2 diabetes. If we give up cigarettes, the heart is better oxygenated and nourished, thanks to which it works slower. The secret of a beautiful figure is also hidden in the 5xC rule. It contains as many as four elements to prevent overweight. It's easy to befaithful to this rule when we exercise and follow a proper diet. What can I recommend? The one we commonly call Mediterranean, rich in vegetables, fruits, olive oil and other vegetable fats, sea fish and "sprinkled" with a small amount of regularly consumed red wine. Although, here too, we are not sure if it is red wine or the overall beneficial effect of small doses of alcohol. Nuts, almonds, garlic, green tea, dark chocolate - these are the next products that we know more and more about protecting the heart and vessels.
"Zdrowie" monthly