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What shape is your heart in? Simple lifestyle changes can significantly lower your risk of heart disease.
Whether it’s going for walks on the beach, whipping up a fresh summer salad or stubbing out your smoking habit, it’s time to throw yourself back into life with all your heart.
Cardiovascular disease is this country’s number-one killer, causing more than 40% of all deaths each year. At present rates, about one in three New Zealand men and one in five women will die from a heart attack.
Although we’re all stuck with our genetic make-up (age, gender, family history of heart disease), the way we live and what we eat has a huge part to play, too.
“People need to not just sit back, but stand up and take some individual responsibility for their health,” says Professor Norman Sharpe, medical director of the National Heart Foundation of New Zealand (www.nhf.org.nz).
Raised blood cholesterol, cigarette smoking, high blood pressure, lack of exercise and carrying extra weight have long been identified as major risk factors.
Now what Professor Sharpe describes as a pandemic of obesity and Type 2 diabetes is creating a new wave of cardiovascular disease.
His advice is to sit down as a family and talk about better eating habits and how to fit four or five vigorous walks into the weekly routine.
“Set some realistic and sustainable goals for better energy balance. For example, shop for healthy summer salads and fruit, set an achievable target for weight reduction, if appropriate, and also set a longer distance target for regular and enjoyable walking. Involve your partner or family and go for it!”
A report by the Ministry of Health and the University of Auckland, released in August 2003, found that unhealthy diets and physical inactivity play a role in about two in every five deaths in New Zealand. In 1997, more than 4,500 deaths were attributed to high cholesterol alone – linked to a diet which is high in saturated fat.
According to Diabetes New Zealand, Type 2 diabetes (a lifestyle condition that affects around 210,000 New Zealanders and is set to increase by more than a third in less than 20 years) can be reduced by up to 50% by regular physical activity and by up to 75% by controlling obesity.
Auckland chiropractor Dr Ed Timings believes that building “incidental” exercise into your day is better than cramming in occasional bursts of intense activity.
Most people take between 3,000 and 5,000 steps in a day – less than half the 10,000 steps recommended for optimal health. And most of us overestimate the amount of walking we actually do.
To monitor activity, Dr Timings recommends the use of a pedometer, which clips on to your belt or waistband and measures how many steps you take in a day. He uses the pedometer to set challenges for his children, and family rules include doing some exercise between dinner and bedtime.
“Research is showing that the difference between children of a healthy weight and those overweight lies more in their day-to-day activity than in the amount of formal exercise such as sports.
“Healthy children simply move a lot more, whether it be walking to school, climbing trees or just playing.”
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