A busy schedule is never an excuse to ignore your health– but more often than not, we all fall victim to putting our work, social, and family life, ahead of our well-being. Especially when it comes to our heart health. While we don’t always want to assume the worst, if you are feeling symptomatic or inhibited in your day-to-day schedule or have just never been checked out–see a doctor. Heart health is something largely over looked, and if you don’t advocate for yourself– well, who else will?

We are lucky enough to live in a day in age where medical professionals, technology, and medicine are available to treat a wide range of health conditions. In order to utilize these solutions available, we need to advocate for ourselves and recognize when we are having a problem. Here’s some tips for taking care and control of your heart health.

Family history

Even if you are not particularly symptomatic, if your family has a history of heart related conditions, see a doctor to gain peace of mind or even catch a problem before it seriously impacts your life.

Get opinions

Every doctor has different approaches and ideas on how to find or address a problem. Getting a second opinion, or even a third, can help you weigh out your options or even find something someone else didn’t.

Trust your gut

If something is wrong, speak up. Tell your doctor what you are experiencing, and never undermine your own pain. While your doctors are there to help you find the problem, you have to lay out the clues that will help them discover it.

Good feedback

So, you get checked out and everything is golden, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re free and clear for the rest for your life. Your heart health should still always be taken in to account especially as you get older . You might not need to pay the doctor a visit as often. From Start Healthy 

Cannabis use  — whether smoked, eaten or vaporized — is associated with a higher number of adverse cardiovascular outcomes, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association on February 28th.

Researchers found that risk of coronary heart disease, heart attack and stroke increased with any kind of cannabis use, with heavier use associated with higher odds of negative outcomes.

Using cannabis – either by smoking, eating, or vaping it – may raise the risk for heart attacks and strokes, according research published by the American Heart Association. This risk is observed even when respondents use cannabis without tobacco products or other underlying cardiovascular risk factors.

The study analyzed survey data from over 434,000 U.S. adults between 2016 and 2020. Here are the key findings:

Recent events underscore the importance of knowing how to do lifesaving CPR.

From Harvard Health Blog

The collapse on the football field of Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin following a hard hit to his chest brought emergency responders running to do cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to help restart his heart, which had stopped beating.

When a heart stops beating (cardiac arrest), receiving even a simplified, hands-only version of CPR can at least double a person's odds of surviving. Yet fewer than half of people who have cardiac arrest outside of a hospital receive CPR from someone nearby. And since four out of five cardiac arrests happen at home, the life you may save with CPR is more likely to be a loved one or someone you know than a stranger. Here are the CPR basics to know for adults.

Know two key features of cardiac arrest

How can you recognize whether a person is suffering cardiac arrest? Two key features are:

Not responding. No reaction if you loudly say, "Are you okay?" and firmly shake a person's shoulders.

Not breathing normally. Check if their chest is rising and falling or put your face close to their nose and mouth to listen for the sounds of normal breathing. Labored, irregular breaths that sound like snorting or gasping aren't normal breathing, and can't provide the brain with adequate oxygen.

Know how to do hands-only CPR

First, call 911 — or better still, tell someone nearby to make that call. Put the phone on speaker so you can start CPR and receive instructions from the emergency operator.

Next, place the heel of one hand on the center of the person's chest, right over the breastbone and between the nipples. Put the heel of your other hand directly on top. Lace the fingers of your top hand through the fingers of the bottom hand.

Position your shoulders directly above your hands and push down, keeping your arms straight. Push hard: use your body weight to compress the chest at least two inches.

Do the compressions repeatedly, aiming for a target of 100 to 120 pushes per minute.

Watch a video to help understand the steps

Knowing what to do in an emergency is invaluable. These one-minute hands-only CPR videos from the American Heart Association can help you learn the steps and the right speed for compressions.

CPR classes are offered through community education, hospitals, workplaces, and the American Heart Association. The hands-on practice of a CPR class can give you a better sense of the correct pressure and timing for compressions.

Worried about the time involved? Even a single, 20-minute training session — face-to-face or using virtual reality — offers skills and confidence, according to a 2022 JAMA Network Open study done in the Netherlands. When asked if they'd be willing to perform CPR on a stranger, just over 75% of young adults who had done the short training session six months earlier said yes.

CPR Resources:

Red Cross® CPR Class | CPR Certification Class

The 10 Best CPR Training Lessons Near Me

Online CPR & First Aid Classes | CPR, AED And First Aid Classes

According to the authors of the study published in JAMA Neurology, managing five lifestyle factors — diet, physical activity, cognitive engagement, smoking and alcohol consumption — may help a person keep their cognitive abilities strong even if they’re prone to dementia. 

“These interesting results add strength to the concept that health and lifestyle factors are important strategies for prevention and suggest that several mechanisms may be at work,” Yue Leng, PhD, and Kristine Yaffe, MD, both epidemiologists at University of California, San Francisco, wrote in an accompanying editorial. 

As part of the study, the researchers examined autopsy data from 586 deceased individuals. Those with healthier lifestyles such as getting at least 150 minutes of physical activity per week and having a Mediterranean (MIND) diet, not smoking and drinking in moderation had better global cognitive functioning near the time they died. When the researchers brought in data on dementia-related brain pathologies, it did not significantly affect the strength or significance of the lifestyle association. Meaning, even if a person had some of the pathologies tied to neurodegenerative disease, it didn’t impair their cognitive function as much so long as they had higher lifestyle scores.

As a parent, it’s always fun to share stories of how you entertained yourself while growing up. The slow, beige clunky computers and boxy walkie-talkie-shaped mobile phones of the 1990s. The cable boxes (sitting on tube TVs) of the 1980s. The pinball machines and Atari systems of the 1970s. Such cutting-edge devices of their day elicit amazed reactions from a generation accustomed to the instantaneous speed of twenty-first-century technology.

Some slower-paced activities pass the test of time, though—and board games appear to be at the top of that list. Playing these games has been one of my favorite activities since I was a child: I played with my friends, my family, and my neighbors—and I still do today.

 Chess and checkers, for example, can be traced back to ancient times, and they are still two of the most popular board games in the world. In recent years, dozens of board game cafés—where you can play for hours with like-minded enthusiasts—have popped up across America. And, overall, these games still bring in the bucks, with the board game market expected to amass over $12 billion by 2023.

So, for countless people, there’s certainly something eminently fun about this activity on an intrinsic level. But the positives go beyond that—board games also provide educational and even health benefits to those who play. Here are just a few ways they improve our lives.

HEALTH BENEFITS