Central Carolina HEALTH - Summer 2014 - (Page 14)

Heart Smart Garde Exerc ning ise + H Two for One 14| SUMMER 2014 ON R E Food Factors that increase a person's heart disease risk include high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels, smoking, being overweight, not exercising, diabetes and a family history of heart disease. "Diabetes is the most important [factor]," says Cynthia Thaik, MD, a cardiologist and the author of Your Vibrant Heart: Restoring Health, Strength & Spirit from the Body's Core. "Having diabetes is almost always synonymous with having heart disease." People with diabetes have two to four times the risk for heart disease compared with people who don't have diabetes. But here's a deal you can't pass up: Maximize your health and reduce your risk for both conditions by following these three steps. PHOTOGRAPH BY GETTY Prevent both heart diseaseanddi abetes with these easy, healthy activities A two-for-one deal is hard to pass up. Buy one lipstick, get a second one free. So what if you could apply that irresistible bit of marketing to your health? Well, you can: When you take steps to avoid diabetes, you also reduce your risk for heart disease. That's because the two conditions are linked. Diabetes, which is marked by excess sugar (also called glucose) in the blood, has a direct effect on heart health. "It taxes every major organ to get rid of excess sugar," explains health educator Tanya Abreu, the author of The Feeling Factor: Lesser Known Risk Factors for Cardiovascular Disease. "When there's too much sugar in your body, every organ in your body-including your heart-gets tired. And tired organs fail." ealthy TW FO O

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Central Carolina HEALTH - Summer 2014

Central Carolina HEALTH - Summer 2014
Direct fron David
Contents
Health Beat
Tiny Miracle
No Stone Left Unturned
A Confident Choice
Heart Smart

Central Carolina HEALTH - Summer 2014