Improving Cardiovascular Health with Lifestyle Changes
Healthy lifestyle behaviours are an essential part of reducing risk of developing cardiovascular disease and are the recommended first-line treatment for all patients at any level of risk. Adequate physical activity and eating a healthy diet can reduce your risk of getting heart disease by 30-35%, which is similar to the benefit from statin therapy (medication). Maintaining this lifestyle long-term is key to reducing your overall cardiovascular risk.
The following resources provide general information on how lifestyle changes can help to reduce your risk of developing cardiovascular disease. They are intended to provide general information that can be used to help get you started. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions. While we have taken care selecting this list, we cannot accept any responsibility for the content published by the authors. Please consult websites for up to date information.
We are currently running a virtual group session called "Healthy Living with Cholesterol" for our patients to learn more about lifestyle management for heart health. This group is currently running every other month and is hosted by our Registered Dietitian. Check out our webpage about the group sessions for more information and sign up.
NUTRITION
Mediterranean Diet Screener: A validated tool designed to assess how well your current eating matches the Mediterranean eating pattern. Complete this questionnaire to get started on making dietary changes.
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY The Canadian Cardiovascular Society recommends adults accumulate 150 mins of moderate to vigorous intensity aerobic activity per week and at least 2 days of strength-based resistance training per week.
Use the FITT acronym: F: Frequency, try to exercise for at least 5 days a week doing aerobic activities and 2-3 days of strength and range of motion types activities. I: Intensity, try to exercise at moderate intensity. Use the talk test, you should be able to talk at moderate intensity but not sing. T: Time, the goal is 30 mins of continuous exercise at a time and try to achieve 150 minutes a week. You can start with just 10 mins and slowly build up. T: Type, the type of exercise should be fun, feasible, familiar and forever. In other words, do something that you enjoy, that you are familiar with and that you can do for a long time.
BODY WEIGHT Either maintaining or achieving a healthy body weight can help to lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease. BMI (body mass index) between 18.5 – 24.9, waist circumference of < 88cm Caucasian North American women (<80 cm for non-caucasian) and <102 cm for men (<94 cm in non-caucasian).
Improving your diet and exercise will improve your heart health whether or not your weight changes.
SMOKING CESSATION To explore resources that can help you quit smoking, click here or ask about resources at your next appointment.
SUBSTANCE USE HEALTH (ALCOHOL ADDICTION) To explore resources that can help you quit drinking, click here.
