February is American Heart Month. February is also considered National Wear Red Day and American Heart Month. This is a month when people are advised to protect themselves against heart disease.
In 1964 President Lyndon B Johnson declared February to be American Heart Month to raise awareness of heart disease. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States causing one in four deaths each year.
Your heart beats 100,000 times a day and pumps 2000 gallons of blood in a single day. The main function is to deliver oxygen and nutrients to all cells and organs of the body. It has a crucial role in maintaining the function and survival of an individual. The main question is how one can prevent cardiac cardiovascular disease. When you speak of cardiovascular diseases it involves all abnormalities observed in the whole vascular system- blood vessels and the main organ- the heart. There are 60,000 miles of blood vessels in your body, which means any damage in any part of the cardiovascular system affects the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to different body parts. This means permanent disability or death.
The main preventative strategies that should be emphasized include dietary precautions, regular exercise, prevention of hyperlipidemia particularly ApoB, control of hypertension, prevention and management of diabetes, Periodic screening for cardiovascular diseases particularly atherosclerosis, and prevention of stress, and having adequate sleep. These are major areas that need to be explored in detail.