To start with, your nutrition and your meals should be balanced and regular to prevent energy and calorie depletion, which is stressful to your body, heart, and brain. All three meals with a small snack or two in between are very important. Many people overlook breakfast; while omitting it can incur tremendous damage to health, the heart in particular. According to integrative Dr. Pamela McDonald, ideally breakfast should start at around 7 am, containing carbohydrates from fruits or their juices and whole grains (cereal, oats), proteins from eggs and very low-fat dairy, and fats from nuts. A light snack of fruit, nuts, or cereal should be taken between breakfast and lunch. The midday meal should contain protein, preferably fish, chicken, or legumes (lentils, beans), vegetables, whole grains (whole rice, quinoa, oats, wheat), and a combination of omega-3-6 and-9 fatty acids. The afternoon snack should be similar to the morning one. Dinner should be early, but a little lighter than lunch. Plenty of water and fresh fruit juices should come in between meals and snacks. Next week, I shall delve into the details of certain nutrients, phytochemicals, and whole foods that benefit the vascular system to prevent arterial damage and heart disease.
Because balanced nutrition alone does not provide holistic health, physical activity becomes an important lifestyle component to maintain cardiovascular and brain health. Aerobic exercises like brisk walking, jogging, running, cycling, and swimming are paramount activities for heart health. They revive energy; promote blood, oxygen, and nutrient circulation; promote the secretion of endorphins, the feel-good hormones, and other neurotransmitters; burn calories and body fat; enhance mental acuity, cognitive skills, learning abilities, and memory; lower the risk of depression; and contribute to physical, mental, and emotional wellness. In a recent study, walking has been found to maintain as well as sharpen memory. Without physical activity, all the above-benefits can be compromised. As little as 45 minutes five times weekly are sufficient to keep your heart and cardiovascular system in good shape.
A recent research from the University of California, Los Angeles, found that moderate physical activities lower the risk of arterial plaque buildup, artery blockage, and hypertension and enhance the secretion of nitric oxide, a protective chemical to blood vessel. Along with exercise, the combination of amino acid L-arginine and the antioxidants vitamins C and E appeared to lower the risk of hardened arteries, even in mice genetically disposed to heart disease.
Stress is the biggest enemy to blood vessels and heath. When an individual is under physical, mental, or emotional pressure, the adrenaline glands flood the body with cortisol, which in turn provokes the dumping of fat and sugar for the short period of fight-or-flight situation. If the hormone remains in the system for too long, it devastates the body. Unfortunately with the modern ways of life of extended hours of work, competitive jobs, financial and emotional demands, and environmental stress caused by ingesting and breathing in chemicals, pollutants, and contaminants, the body becomes overwhelmed with cortisol and depleted of important nutrients, thus provoking inflammation of the arteries, disrupting body functions, and exhausting the immune system.
To successfully manage stress, you need to counteract it with moderate exercise, deep breathing, therapeutic exercises (yoga, tai chi), meditation, deep sleep, shorts naps, laughter, social interaction, and prayer. Each practice alone provides limited tension relief, but all of them or some combined produce feel-good chemicals and wellness as well as boost immunity, reduce depression, and enhance energy. In a Greek study, a power nap of around thirty minutes was found to considerably lower the risk of morbid heart attacks.
Water is the essence of life. Your body is made up of 70 percent water, requiring a minimum of eight to ten glasses of pure water daily. It minimizes platelet clumping and blood clotting. It reduces blood thickness, thus the pressure on heart muscles when pumping blood to the brain and the rest of the body. This results in improved blood circulation and better nutrient distribution to different organs, hence satisfying cell needs; assisting the kidneys and lymph systems in detoxifying the body systems; enhancing the digestive elimination process; relieving acid reflux; lubricating the eyes; and dissolving thickened mucus that obstructs deep breathing.
Remember your body’s biggest enemy is excesses in all lifestyle practices and obesity that contribute to cardiovascular disease, diabetes, mental decline, cancer, and premature death. A wholesome nutrition is key to health. It is not only what you eat that damages your health; it is also what you neglect to include in your diet like healthy essential fatty acids (omega-3-6-9 fats), whole fruit, vegetables, legumes, and grains, which are not emphasized enough in a low-fat diet. This will be the subject of our discussion in next week’s article, which will display important whole organic foods, the most influential nutrients, and phytochemicals required for vascular health.
N.B. Individuals with medical conditions or on medication should consult their physicians when they decide to introduce anything new in their diet even if it is natural!
