How Well Do You Know Your Heart?
Is the heart beating too quickly? Is your pace too slow? Irrationally? That’s your heart warning you that something isn’t quite right. “World Heart Rhythm Week takes place from June 3 to June 9, and it is an essential week for spreading awareness. Irregular heart rhythms may lead to various issues, so encouraging everyone to be aware of their heartbeat and keep a healthy heart is a brilliant idea!
Each year, arrhythmias cause between 23,000 and 33,000 fatalities due to abrupt cardiac arrest. Many of these fatalities may be prevented if the public was more aware of the risks and symptoms, which is where Heart Rhythm Week hopes to help.
So, what does your heart do?
The heart is a pump that circulates blood throughout the body. In some respects, thinking of the heart in two halves is simpler for youngsters as young as seven. One half of the heart pumps blood to the lungs, where it picks up oxygen, while the other half pumps blood throughout the body, delivering that oxygen.
You can work on keeping your heart healthy daily.
Five factors can have a significant influence on your heart:
- What you eat.
- How much you walk.
- Whether you smoke.
- How well you regulate your cholesterol and blood pressure.
Heart Healthy Diet
It’s a pattern to eat well for a healthy heart. It doesn’t concentrate on a single item or nutrient but instead on what you consume over days, weeks, and months.
Saturated and trans fats, salt, and added sugar are all naturally low in this way of eating. Whole grains, fibre, antioxidants, and unsaturated fats abound in your meal.
Increase your intake of fruits and vegetables.
A varied fruit and vegetable diet has been linked to healthier hearts and a reduced risk of heart disease.
Make the switch to whole grain.
Wholegrain cereals have a higher percentage of the native grain. This implies they have higher dietary fibre, B vitamins, vitamin E, and healthy fats.
Choose health fat alternatives.
Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated (omega-3 and omega-6) fats are the ideal fats to incorporate into your diet. Avocados, almonds, salmon, and sunflower seeds all include these healthy fats.
Instead of salt, use herbs and spices.
Salt is hazardous for your heart if you overeat it. Salt contains sodium, which can raise your blood pressure, a key risk factor for heart disease.
Active-living recommendations
Regular exercise lowers your chances of having a heart attack or developing heart disease. High blood pressure, high cholesterol, and being overweight are all risk factors for heart disease managed by being active.
Strengthening your bones and muscles can also be achieved by regular physical activity. It can make you feel more energized, happy, and at ease.
Set attainable goals.
Begin with small, achievable goals and gradually increase to 30-60 minutes of moderate-intensity physical exercise (such as brisk walking) on most days of the week. Any form of physical exercise is preferable to none. You’re more inclined to engage in physical activity if you enjoy it.
Get Social
Stay motivated by participating in physical exercise with a group of friends or family, or even your dog.
Sit less
Adults who sit less during the day are less likely to die young, mainly from heart disease.
Understanding the consequences of smoking is the first step in stopping.
Smoking causes damage to the blood arteries that supply your heart, brain, and other organs. This increases your chances of dying from a heart attack or stroke by four times and sudden cardiac death by three times.
- Smoking cessation isn’t always easy. Persistence is required. You can accomplish anything with a bit of forethought, practice, and help.
- Stop smoking inside your house, automobile, and other enclosed spaces to protect the health of your family and friends.
- When you stop smoking, your chances of having a heart attack or stroke drop nearly immediately.
Manage your cholesterol levels.
Cholesterol is a fatty molecule that circulates in your blood. Cholesterol is produced naturally by your body and can also be present in some foods. Cholesterol is necessary for your body’s basic functioning.
Types of fats in your diet.
Saturated and trans-fat consumption can raise blood cholesterol levels. Pizza, cakes, biscuits, pastries, and deep-fried meals all include saturated and trans fats.
Consume a heart-healthy diet.
The foundation of your diet should be fresh foods. Choose a range of fruits and vegetables and fish and shellfish, lean meat, poultry, legumes, nuts, and seeds, as well as a range of healthy protein sources.
Three crucial steps make up a heart health check.
- Consult your doctor
Your doctor will begin your examination by discussing your heart disease risk factors with you.
- Understand your risk
Once your doctor has determined your risk factors, they will input them into a web-based calculator to assess your chances of suffering a heart attack or stroke in the following five years.
- Keep your risk under control.
Your doctor may advise you to keep doing what you’re doing or provide you with advice, information, and support to help you make heart-healthy adjustments, depending on your results.
A heart attack usually lasts more than 15 minutes and produces chest discomfort. Some people experience modest chest pain, while others have more severe distress. Although some people experience no chest pain or pressure, the sensation is often experienced as pressure or heaviness in the chest. Symptoms in women are more nonspecific, such as nausea or back or jaw discomfort.
“Do Your Part, Care for Your Heart”
It’s your time to know more about it and help others in a time of need!
IHNA’s HLTAID011- Provide First Aid course will help you attain all the necessary knowledge one needs about first aid.
This unit covers the skills and information needed to deliver first aid to a casualty in accordance with the Australian Resuscitation Council (ARC) and other Australian national peak clinical organizations’ first aid recommendations.
The curriculum will cover anaphylaxis, asthma, CPR techniques on adults, children, and infant, incident reporting, how to assess an emergency situation properly, DRSABCD, using an Automated External Defibrillator (AED), first aid procedures for bleeding, burns and fractures, managing medical conditions such as epilepsy and asthma, handling medical emergencies such as snake/spider bites, poisons and choking, infection control procedures, managing exposure to extreme temperatures, administering first aid for eye & soft tissue injuries, assessing and moving sick & injured, legal responsibilities of a first aider, basic anatomy, managing shock and much, much more!
IHNA’s Provide First Aid is 18 hours,
Available at our Melbourne
Course Fees: $120
For more details: https://ihna.edu.au/courses/provide-first-aid/
Admissions Open!