There are plenty of ways to prevent and deal with diseases—from having your proverbial apple a day to securing a health insurance plan. But when it comes to matters of the heart, which we will be covering in this article, we want to zero in on lifestyle changes to help ensure healthy hearts.
This vital organ, after all, pumps blood through your entire body, which provides the oxygen and nutrients it needs to function. In an average lifetime, the heart beats about 2.5 billion times and pushes millions of gallons of blood. It carries a steady flow of oxygen, hormones, essential cells, and other important compounds to every single part of the body. With this essential function, the heart ensures that your body performs well.
In return, how do you keep your heart health in check? By eating greens? By getting a life and health insurance plans? A combination of both? We have the answers below.
Lifestyle changes to help keep your heart healthy
Coronary heart disease remains the top cause of death in the Philippines according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). Making the following lifestyle changes can help you get started and keep your heart health in check all year round:
- Get up and get active. If you live a sedentary lifestyle or spend most of your time sitting down, consider starting to pick up a form of exercise or physical activity you like. Doctors recommend a total of 2 hours and 30 minutes of exercise a week, but it’s best to check with your doctor if this is something you can meet, especially if you already have an existing heart condition or just beginning to get active from a sedentary lifestyle. Remember that regular exercise has a plethora of benefits not just for your heart, but for your overall health.
- Stressed? Seek ways to calm down. Chronic stress can be a contributor to heart disease. If you’re feeling frequently overwhelmed, anxious, or are currently coping with stressful life events, it’s important to speak with your doctor about it. You can also try some mindfulness exercises, such as yoga, meditation, mindful breathing, and even creating a gratitude journal.
- Start investing in your health. You can start by ditching fast food for salads—you might think that the latter is more expensive but getting sick because of high-cholesterol and processed foods will cost you more. This may also be a good time to start exploring health and life insurance plans, like those offered by AXA Philippines. While the improvement you want from adopting such habits does not happen overnight, what’s important is you take the first step to get there.
It typically takes two months for people to form a habit, so keep at it until it feels second nature to you. If you feel like you are already doing them, you might consider giving your heart that extra layer of security through Health Start. Health Start offers you and your family protection from future health-related financial emergencies including heart attack and stroke. It has joint life coverage so you can extend the same protection to your loved ones and a built-in child coverage that secures your child against critical conditions.
Know you can game plan your way to a healthier heart today. Contact an AXA financial advisor to learn more about our health insurance products.
