The most common cause of death in the West is a heart attack. You can protect yourself from this with simple lifestyle changes. Most heart diseases are associated with a narrowing of arteries supplying blood to the heart due to the slow deposition of fatty plaque. At some point, this hidden problem goes critical and blockage on a vital artery ensues, causing the heart attack. We now know what are the main causes of a heart attack. Risk factors include the following: High cholesterol level in the blood, Stress, High blood pressure, Smoking, Lack of physical exercise, Chronic hidden hyperventilation, and Overweight or obesity. Of all these factors the most reliable predictor of heart disease is elevated cholesterol levels in the blood.

High Cholesterol Level in the blood

The recommended level of cholesterol in our diets is nil. All meat, fish, and dairy products contain between 50 to 150mg of cholesterol per 500 calories but all whole plant-based foods contain nil.

Stress

Stress raises blood pressure, increases breathing rate that in turn causes loss of carbon dioxide CO2 and constriction of arteries and impaired release of oxygen from the circulating blood. Chronic long-term stress leads to chronic hidden hyperventilation but by retraining our breathing the effects of stress are minimized. Everyone can re-learn how to breathe normally in a matter of weeks with the Buteyko Method, the Papworth Method, or other proven systems. Asa side-effect it is found it is rare to be stressed if our breathing is normal and calm.

High Blood Pressure

As mentioned above, hyperventilation or over-breathing leads to hypertension. Likewise, the diet has a significant impact on blood pressure; a study of almost 90,000 Californians found those who ate no meat except fish had a 38% lower risk of high blood pressure, those who cut out all meat had a 55% lower risk and those who cut out all meat, fish, eggs, and dairy did the best with a 75% reduced risk of high blood pressure. One possible explanation for this is the beneficial effect of nitrates in our vegetables& fruit. The natural nitrates convert to nitric oxide NO that dilates blood vessels and offers protection against damaging free radicals. Top sources of nitrate include; Rocket, Rhubarb, Coriander, Basil, Swiss chard, and Beetroot.

 

Smoking

The evidence of the damaging effects of smoking on the heart and lungs is now unquestionable. There is no safe level of smoking in this aspect of health.

 

Lack of physical exercise

A sedentary lifestyle is not conducive to a healthy heart, but neither is excessive over-strenuous work-outs. Moderate regular physical exercise; walking, gardening, playing tennis, swimming, etc. all are beneficial.

 

Chronic Hidden Hyperventilation

Our breathing and heart function are intimately connected. These two functions work together to ensure our bodies are well oxygenated, well-nourished, and well protected from infections or damage. Anyone can, therefore, understand why dysfunctional breathing may be contributing to a wide range of circulatory or cardiac problems. It would therefore reasonably follow that improved breathing patterns will be of benefit to any of these conditions.

Better breathing will complement any other treatment that is being given and may even safely reduce the need for medication, with the approval of their doctor. The benefits after training are long-lasting and breathing exercises are not continued once normal breathing patterns are established. Breath training is a safe adjunctive aid to better cardiac management

 

Overweight/Obesity

The stress on the heart of bearing excessive weight is just one reason for the heart damage but perhaps more important is the fact that being overweight or obese has many other adverse health effects that all combine to lower our general health.

 

Most of the above factors are covered in the Skype Lifestyle Course, check it HERE,   For the duration of the Pandemic, this course is £95 only. Contact me for details.