“Loving Others Begins With Loving Your Self. Self-Love Begins with Self-Care.”

February is ‘Heart Month’ and Valentine’s Day is a great time to remind everyone to take good care of themselves. This month Dreamtime Wellness™ is focused on ‘Heart Health’ because heart disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S. (http://www.cdc.gov)

YOU CAN Control Some of the Risk Factors, Such as –

• High Blood Pressure; when uncontrolled is the #1 Cause for Heart Disease
  • THE GOOD NEWS- You can better control blood pressure through diet, exercise, healthy weight, relaxation and when needed, medication as prescribed by your doctor.

• Tobacco Use; Smokers are at 2-4 x the Risk for Developing Heart Disease (www.aha.org)
  • THE GOOD NEWS – Within minutes of stopping smoking you experience health benefits! Contact us with advice on how to stop.

• High Cholesterol – levels are affected by affected by age, gender, heredity and diet. Recent news reports remind us that a diet high in saturated and trans fats that raises the unhealthy LDL cholesterol. (Good News for our local fishermen and lobstermen!)
  • THE GOOD NEWS – You can help control your cholesterol levels through exercise, maintaining a healthy weight, and avoiding saturated and trans fats.

• Obesity – People with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher are considered obese. (www.aha.org)
  • THE GOOD NEWS – By losing even 10% from your current weight, you can lower your risk of heart disease.

• Inactivity – Studies show that 2 hours and 30 minutes of moderate physical activity every week will reduce your risk of  heart disease by about 30%. (www.world-heart-federation.org)
  • THE GOOD NEWS – Regular, moderate physical activity helps prevent heart and blood vessel disease.

• Diabetes increases the risk of heart disease and stroke, If you have diabetes, it’s especially important to work with your healthcare provider to manage it and control any other risk factors you can.
  • THE GOOD NEWS – The risks are lessened through healthy diet, healthy weight, exercise, relaxation and when needed, medication as prescribe by your doctor.

Notice, ALL of these risk factors helped through EXERCISE! On Cape Ann there are plenty of places to enjoy indoor and outdoor activity. We’ll be sharing more health tips on GMG in the coming days, weeks, and months. And local CSA’s help provide ‘farm to table’ fresh food. The Farmer’s Markets and http://www.farmfresh.org/food/farm are great resources for local healthy food.

For YOUR HEALTH, you can find more health tips, special promotions, and calendar of events on our Website (www.dreamtimewellness.com) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dreamtime-Wellness-/348619611849199.)

Be Safe and Warm in the Coming Storm. Be Sure to Check on Your Elderly Neighbors!

Happy, Healthy Valentine’s Day Cape Ann!   ~  Karen Pischke, B.S.N., R.N.

Disclaimer: This blog pro­vides gen­eral infor­ma­tion and dis­cus­sion about health and related sub­jects.  The words and other con­tent pro­vided in this blog, and in any linked mate­ri­als, are not intended and should not be con­strued as med­ical advice. If the reader or any other per­son has a med­ical con­cern, he or she should con­sult with an appropriately licensed physi­cian or other health care worker. Never dis­re­gard pro­fes­sional med­ical advice or delay in seek­ing it because of some­thing you have read on this blog or in any linked materials. If you think you may have a med­ical emer­gency, call your doc­tor or 911 immediately. The views expressed on this blog and web­site have no rela­tion to those of any academic, hospital, practice or other insti­tu­tion with which the authors are affiliated.