Cholesterol and Heart Disease: What Men Need to Know

Heart disease, often called cardiovascular disease, refers to any number of conditions that affect the heart and the vascular system, particularly the veins and arteries that lead to and from the heart. Heart disease is the leading cause of death of men in the United States, making the need to pay attention diet, exercise and other habits increasingly important as they age.

Risk Factors for Heart Disease
You are at a higher risk for developing heart disease if you have three or more of the following risk factors:

• If you smoke
• If you have high cholesterol
• If you have high blood pressure
• If you have diabetes
• If you do not exercise regularly
• If you are overweight
• If you have a family history of heart disease
• If you are over 45

You can decrease your chances of developing heart disease by being aware of the factors that put you risk and making what changes you can. You can't change your family history of course, but you can quit smoking, lose weight, start a regular exercise program and improve your diet.

Eat a Heart Healthy Diet
A key part of any heart disease prevention program is to fill your shopping cart-and your mouth-with heart healthy foods. Look for foods that naturally help to lower total cholesterol, boost HDL (good) cholesterol, lower blood pressure and support weight loss.

Consider adding some or all of the following to your diet:

• Whole grains like brown rice, bulgur wheat, millet, quinoa, amaranth and oatmeal
• Raw or steamed vegetables or vegetables sautéed in heart healthy canola or olive oil
• Fresh fruit, especially blueberries which contain resveratrol, and grapefruit which helps regulate insulin and stabilize blood sugar
• Grilled fish, especially those high in omega-3 fatty acids, like salmon
• Raw or blanched almonds

Limit your consumption of foods high in saturated fat, including red meat and full fat dairy and increase your intake of lean sources of protein like beans, legumes, poultry and tofu.

Exercise and Heart Disease
Your heart is a muscle and like all muscles in the body, it needs to be worked. Aim to get at least 30 minutes of moderate cardiovascular exercise daily and up to an hour or more three to five times a week.

Beginners should start slow and tailor their exercise program to their current level of fitness, so long as it gets your blood pumping and your heart rate up. You want to exert yourself to the point where you're making an effort, but can still comfortably hold a conversation.

If you're avoiding exercise because you think you'll be bored, you're not thinking creatively. Effective forms of cardiovascular exercise include:

• Walking/jogging/running/hiking/skating
• Playing tennis/racquetball/badminton/squash
• Swimming/water aerobics
• Dancing/aerobics classes
• Playing hockey/soccer/baseball/softball

Learn to Spot the Signs of Heart Attack
When the veins and arteries leading to the heart are damaged or blocked, it reduces the flow of oxygen, blood and essential nutrients to the muscle, which can lead to a myocardial infarction, or heart attack. If you don't get regular checkups, you may not even be aware that you're at risk for a heart attack. See your doctor regularly and learn to spot the warning signs:

• Pain, pressure, or squeezing in the center of your chest. This pain may come and go, or it may remain steady.
• Pain that spreads to your shoulders, neck, upper back, or arms. A classic symptom of heart attack is pain that radiates from the chest into the left arm.
• Lightheadedness, nausea and the inability to catch your breath.
• Breaking out in a cold sweat and losing color in your face.

If you suspect you are having a heart attack:

• Call 911 immediately; insist on an EKG and blood enzyme test to confirm or rule out a heart attack.
• Chew an aspirin to help thin your blood and prevent potential clots.

Unlike men, women don't often experience the same crushing chest pain. Instead, their pain may be moderate to mild, extend to the abdominal area and they may also experience swelling in their feet or ankles.