By Dr. Joey Shulman D.C., RNCP

When asked what they believe to be the number one killer in North America, most women say breast cancer. To the surprise of most, heart disease kills more women than the next seven causes of death combined. In fact, in the US, heart disease kills more than half a million women annually. Consider some of the following recent statistics:

• Women are 15% more likely than men to die of a heart attack.
• Women are twice as likely as men to have a second heart attack six years following their first heart attack.
• In a recent survey, only 34% of women were able to correctly identify heart disease as the number one cause of death in the US.

Risk factors associated with heart disease are often associated with lifestyle, such as being overweight, smoking, lack of physical activity and stress. Luckily, the body is an incredibly forgiving organism and can bounce back from even the most deleterious of conditions. Learning proper dietary approaches, stress management techniques, the importance of regular physical exercise and adding vitamins to your daily regime can all work to optimize heart health. For more information on heart disease and associated risk factors such as high blood pressure and triglyceride levels, visit Love Your Heart—For Life!

Dietary approaches
The health of your heart is intimately linked to the food on your plate. Unfortunately, with over 63% of adults currently obese or overweight, the number of men and women diagnosed with cardiac conditions has surged dramatically. Maintaining an ideal body weight is the most powerful approach to keeping your heart healthy. Start losing weight today with a safe and fast program from the Truestar Weight Loss section.

In addition to weight loss, the following nutritional steps are critical in maintaining heart health or in reversing heart disease:

1. Minimize the amount of red meat in your diet. Red meat is high in artery-clogging saturated fat. It is best to stick to a red meat free diet that includes healthier protein options such as chicken, fish, egg whites, tofu and beans.

2. Avoid all trans fatty acid products, found in certain margarines, salad dressings and processed floury goods such as crackers and cookies. Read the label and avoid products that contain the words “partially hydrogenated fat”—it is the equivalent to trans fatty acids.

3. Make your plate as colorful as possible by including a variety of fruits and vegetables in your diet. Fruits and vegetables contain elements called phytochemicals which help to prevent and even reverse disease processes such as heart disease and cancer.

4. Ensure your diet is filled with plenty of high fiber foods, such as slow-cooking oats, bran, beans, fruits and vegetables. For more information, visit A Fiber Rich Diet May Protect Against Cancer.

5. Avoid refined flours and sugars that rank high on the glycemic index. Stick to lower glycemic, more natural foods such as whole grains, vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds.

6. Include heart healthy fats called omega-3 fatty acids in your daily diet. In addition to supplementing with fish oils, omega-3 fats can be found in oily cold-water fish, nuts, seeds, flaxseed oil and omega-3 eggs.

In addition to dietary approaches, physical fitness is critical to maintaining heart health and a normal body weight. Not sure where to start? Visit the Truestar Exercise section to have our leading experts design a personalized program just for you! Truestar Health also offers personalized supplement plans and stress management techniques, such as meditation CDs, to keep you feeling and looking healthy from the inside out!

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