You can take steps to prevent heart disease. About 47% of Americans have at least one controllable risk factor for heart disease, such as high blood pressure (hypertension), high cholesterol, diabetes, smoking, obesity, and low activity levels.Risk factors for heart disease that are out of your control include family history, ethnicity, sex, and age.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death for people of any sex and all racial and ethnic groups.Untreated heart disease can lead to heart attack, stroke, heart failure, and death. While it tends to be more common in older adults, heart disease can affect anyone at any age. The average age for people who die of coronary heart disease or aheart attackis 65 or older.
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1. Avoid Smoking, Vaping, or Using Tobacco
A smoker’s risk forcoronary heart diseaseis 2 to 4 times that of a nonsmoker’s risk.People who smoke at least one pack of cigarettes a day have twice the risk of heart attack compared to those who have never smoked.
Vapingmight be less harmful than smoking, but it is still not safe for your heart and lungs.Nicotine is used in both regular cigarettes and vaping products and is highly addictive.
Nicotineis a toxic substance that raises blood pressure and heart rate, which increases the possibility of a heart attack.
Quitting smoking, vaping, and tobacco products isn’t easy. Talk to a healthcare provider about quitting.Treatments and resourcesare available.
2. Limit Alcohol
Alcohol can raise your heart disease risk in various ways.This includes:
Raising Blood Pressure
Alcohol can cause your blood pressure to go up temporarily, and the more you drink, the higher it will increase. If you have a history of high blood pressure, you might consider avoiding alcohol entirely or only drinking occasionally.
Increasing Heart Rate
Drinking alcohol can cause yourheart rateto increase in speed, and if it goes over 100 beats per minute, you may experiencetachycardia. If you have frequent episodes of tachycardia, your risk forheart failure, heart attack, orstrokeis higher.
Causing an Irregular Heart Rhythm
If you overdo or overindulge in alcohol, you could have a condition calledatrial fibrillation(A-fib), which is anirregular heart rhythm. A-fib can increase your risk for heart failure, heart attack, and stroke.
Promoting Alcoholic Cardiomyopathy
Alcoholic cardiomyopathyis a consequence of long-term alcohol use. It causes the heart’s pumping function to get weak and the heart to become enlarged.
If you are an occasional drinker, it may not increase your heart disease risk, provided you do not have other heart disease risk factors. But you will need to avoid consistently overindulging in alcohol.
3. Get Regular, Daily Exercise
Exercise is an excellent way to prevent heart disease.It can also help you to manage your weight.
The American Heart Association recommends at least 150 minutes of heart-pumping physical activity per week.It also recommends spending less time sitting. If you are unable to participate in more intense exercises, engage in light activity to keep moving.
Aheart-healthy dietpromotes eating minimally processed foods, including fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and beans.It also involves avoidingultra-processed foods, sugars, and unhealthy fats.
Examples of heart-healthy foods are:
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5. Manage Your Weight
Being overweight, especially in the middle part of the body, can increase your risk for heart disease and conditions that add to your heart disease risk (high blood pressure,high cholesterol, andtype 2 diabetes).
Obesityis considered a medical disease, and many in the medical community have changed their practices for managing it.That means your healthcare provider has many tools at their disposal to help you lose weight and keep it off.
6. Get Quality Sleep
Getting enoughgood quality sleepis vital to your heart and brain health.People who do not sleep well have a higher risk for high blood pressure, diabetes, depression, and obesity.
You need at least seven hours of sleep every night.Set a sleep schedule and stick to it. Practicegood sleep hygiene, which includes both daytime habits and bedtime routines to make it easier for you to fall asleep at night and stay asleep until morning.
Talk to your healthcare provider if you wake up not feeling rested or if you struggle withdaytime fatigue. They will evaluate you to determine the cause of your sleep troubles.
7. Manage Stress
It is unknownhow stress contributes to heart disease, but negativemental healthis linked to heart disease and stroke.On the other hand, positive mental health is associated with a lower risk for both conditions.
Keep your stress levels down with exercise,meditation, yoga, hobbies, or listening to music. Even simplebreathing exercisescan help you better respond to stress.
If stress becomes too much, let a healthcare provider know. Ongoing stress can lead toanxietyanddepression, so it is important to get treatment.
8. Avoid Infections
Researchers have linked certain infections likepneumoniaandgum infectionsto coronary events, such as heart attack or stroke.If you already have heart problems, getting an infection can make it worse.
To reduce your risk for infections that may affect your heart health, take precautions. For example:
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9. Lower Your Blood Pressure
High blood pressure is known as asilent killerbecause it does not always cause symptoms.Left untreated, it may damage the blood vessels.
Hypertension has no cure. It can lead to heart disease, heart attack, and stroke. Fortunately, there are things you can do to keep your blood pressure at healthy levels.
Check with your healthcare provider where your blood pressure should bebased on your ageand medical history. In general, you will want to aim for a blood pressure that is at or below 120/80 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg).
To manage your blood pressure:
10. Lower Your Bad Cholesterol (LDL)
There are two main types of cholesterol:low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol(“bad cholesterol”) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (“good cholesterol”). LDL can lead toartery-clogging plaque, while HDL works to clear bad cholesterol from the blood.
Lifestyle modifications, such as a heart-healthy diet, quitting smoking, regular exercise, and weight loss, can lower LDL cholesterol. If your healthcare provider prescribescholesterol-lowering medications, make sure you are taking them as prescribed.
11. Raise Your Good Cholesterol
HDL cholesterol is known as good cholesterol because it works to pick up excess cholesterol in the blood.It then takes it to the liver, where it is broken down and removed from the body.
12. Manage Diabetes
People with diabetes have an increased risk for heart disease.This is because diabetes increases your risk for other heart disease risk factors—high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and high triglycerides. High blood sugar also damages blood vessels.
Talk to your healthcare provider about idealblood sugarandhemoglobin A1cnumbers. They may suggest exercise, medications, and adiabetes nutrition planto help you meet your goals.
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13. Take Any Medications as Prescribed
If your medical provider prescribes medications to treat diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or another risk factor condition, make sure you take them. You will also need to follow any guidance they provide on how to take the medications.
14. Have Regular Health Screening Tests
Keeping up with appointments allows your healthcare provider to catch signs of heart disease early. Regular screenings for blood pressure, cholesterol, and type 2 diabetes can tell them whether you need to take any action.
As with any health condition, early diagnosis increases your chances for success and reduces your risk for complications.
Your provider can monitor your heart health with some simple tests. These include:
If your provider suspects a heart condition, they will request additional testing that checks the heart.
Tests that check the heartinclude:
Discuss your heart disease risk factors with your healthcare provider. They can help you develop a plan to improve your health outcomes.
Summary
Risk factors for heart disease include things like smoking and an unhealthy diet, which are preventable. They also include risk factors like age, sex, and family history, which are out of your control.
Making lifestyle changes can reduce your risk for heart disease. These changes include eating a heart-healthy diet, being active, maintaining a healthy weight, quitting smoking, and managing blood pressure, cholesterol levels, and diabetes.
Discuss your individual risk factors with a healthcare provider. They can advise you on the best ways to reduce your risk of heart disease.
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Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Heart disease risk factors.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Heart disease facts.American Heart Association.2024 heart disease and stroke statistics update fact sheet.SUNY Upstate Medical University.Heart attack risk factors.Johns Hopkins Medicine.5 vaping facts you need to know.Piano MR.Alcohol’s effects on the cardiovascular system.Alcohol Res. 2017;38(2):219-241.American Heart Association.American Heart Association recommendations for physical activity in adults and kids.American Heart Association.The American Heart Association diet and lifestyle recommendations.Zhang B, Xiong K, Cai J, Ma A.Fish consumption and coronary heart disease: A meta-analysis.Nutrients. 2020;12(8):2278. doi:10.3390/nu12082278Sawicki CM, Jacques PF, Lichtenstein AH, et al.Whole- and refined-grain consumption and longitudinal changes in cardiometabolic risk factors in the Framingham Offspring Cohort.J Nutr. 2021;151(9):2790-2799. doi:10.1093/jn/nxab177American Diabetes Association.Extra weight, extra risk.Mount Sinai.Heart-healthy diet.Rosen H.Is obesity a disease or a behavior abnormality? Did the AMA get it right?.Mo Med. 2014;111(2):104-108.American Heart Association.Sleep disorders and heart health.American Heart Association.Stress and heart health.American Heart Association.Infections may be a ‘trigger’ for heart attack, stroke.Harvard Health.Gum disease and heart disease: The common thread.Harvard Health.How to prevent infections.American Heart Association.How to manage high blood pressure,Harvard Health Publishing.Lowering cholesterol protects your heart and brain, regardless of your age.Harvard Health Publishing.HDL: the good, but complex, cholesterol.American Heart Association.Heart-health screenings.University of Michigan.10 heart tests your doctor might order, and what they mean.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Heart disease risk factors.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Heart disease facts.American Heart Association.2024 heart disease and stroke statistics update fact sheet.SUNY Upstate Medical University.Heart attack risk factors.Johns Hopkins Medicine.5 vaping facts you need to know.Piano MR.Alcohol’s effects on the cardiovascular system.Alcohol Res. 2017;38(2):219-241.American Heart Association.American Heart Association recommendations for physical activity in adults and kids.American Heart Association.The American Heart Association diet and lifestyle recommendations.Zhang B, Xiong K, Cai J, Ma A.Fish consumption and coronary heart disease: A meta-analysis.Nutrients. 2020;12(8):2278. doi:10.3390/nu12082278Sawicki CM, Jacques PF, Lichtenstein AH, et al.Whole- and refined-grain consumption and longitudinal changes in cardiometabolic risk factors in the Framingham Offspring Cohort.J Nutr. 2021;151(9):2790-2799. doi:10.1093/jn/nxab177American Diabetes Association.Extra weight, extra risk.Mount Sinai.Heart-healthy diet.Rosen H.Is obesity a disease or a behavior abnormality? Did the AMA get it right?.Mo Med. 2014;111(2):104-108.American Heart Association.Sleep disorders and heart health.American Heart Association.Stress and heart health.American Heart Association.Infections may be a ‘trigger’ for heart attack, stroke.Harvard Health.Gum disease and heart disease: The common thread.Harvard Health.How to prevent infections.American Heart Association.How to manage high blood pressure,Harvard Health Publishing.Lowering cholesterol protects your heart and brain, regardless of your age.Harvard Health Publishing.HDL: the good, but complex, cholesterol.American Heart Association.Heart-health screenings.University of Michigan.10 heart tests your doctor might order, and what they mean.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Heart disease risk factors.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Heart disease facts.
American Heart Association.2024 heart disease and stroke statistics update fact sheet.
SUNY Upstate Medical University.Heart attack risk factors.
Johns Hopkins Medicine.5 vaping facts you need to know.
Piano MR.Alcohol’s effects on the cardiovascular system.Alcohol Res. 2017;38(2):219-241.
American Heart Association.American Heart Association recommendations for physical activity in adults and kids.
American Heart Association.The American Heart Association diet and lifestyle recommendations.
Zhang B, Xiong K, Cai J, Ma A.Fish consumption and coronary heart disease: A meta-analysis.Nutrients. 2020;12(8):2278. doi:10.3390/nu12082278
Sawicki CM, Jacques PF, Lichtenstein AH, et al.Whole- and refined-grain consumption and longitudinal changes in cardiometabolic risk factors in the Framingham Offspring Cohort.J Nutr. 2021;151(9):2790-2799. doi:10.1093/jn/nxab177
American Diabetes Association.Extra weight, extra risk.
Mount Sinai.Heart-healthy diet.
Rosen H.Is obesity a disease or a behavior abnormality? Did the AMA get it right?.Mo Med. 2014;111(2):104-108.
American Heart Association.Sleep disorders and heart health.
American Heart Association.Stress and heart health.
American Heart Association.Infections may be a ‘trigger’ for heart attack, stroke.
Harvard Health.Gum disease and heart disease: The common thread.
Harvard Health.How to prevent infections.
American Heart Association.How to manage high blood pressure,
Harvard Health Publishing.Lowering cholesterol protects your heart and brain, regardless of your age.
Harvard Health Publishing.HDL: the good, but complex, cholesterol.
American Heart Association.Heart-health screenings.
University of Michigan.10 heart tests your doctor might order, and what they mean.
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