Your cardiologist in West Monroe, LA, can help you protect your heart

Heart disease is a complicated condition, but preventing it is simple. Eating a healthy diet and getting regular exercise can go a long way toward preventing heart disease, and your cardiologist can help.

Dr. Virginia Gonzalez at Cardiovascular Diagnostic Center in West Monroe, LA, provides a wide range of cardiovascular services, including diagnosis and treatment of heart disease.

A high fat diet, elevated stress levels, smoking, and lack of exercise can all put you at greater risk of developing heart disease. Protecting the health of your mouth is another great way to protect your heart, because there is a direct link between an unhealthy mouth and an unhealthy heart.

Let’s look at a few ways you can protect your heart:

Eat a healthy diet, which means:

• Limiting whole fat dairy; choose low fat or skim dairy products instead
• Limiting red meat or eliminating it completely; choose lean meats like poultry and fish instead
• Eat a lot of green vegetables, which supply a substantial amount of necessary nutrients
• Eat a lot of fruits, which supply vitamins like A and C

Quit smoking because smoking dramatically increases your risk of heart disease, COPD, cancer, and many other diseases

Build regular exercise into your life, which means:

• Getting at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise most days of the week
• Include aerobic exercise like brisk walking, jogging, or swimming to keep your heart strong

Take steps to manage your stress, which means:

• Practicing daily meditation
• Doing deep breathing exercises every day
• Trying out yoga and gentle stretching

Take care of your mouth, which means:

• Brushing after meals and before bed
• Flossing your teeth every day

Visit your cardiologist regularly to check for:

• High blood pressure, which can damage your heart
• High cholesterol, which can clog your arteries
• Heart damage, using imaging studies including an echocardiogram and electrocardiogram

To learn more about the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of heart disease, call Dr. Virginia Gonzalez at Cardiovascular Diagnostic Center in West Monroe, LA. You can reach her in the office by calling (318) 338-3540, so call now.