Heart-Healthy Habits for Seniors

Many seniors believe that heart disease risks are inevitable in old age. In truth, there are plenty of ways to keep your heart in great shape — start with these seven.

 

Heart disease is a major threat to senior health — in fact, 84 percent of people age 65 years and older die from heart disease. Though heart disease risks increase with age, it doesn’t have to be an inevitable part of getting older. The right lifestyle habits and a heart-healthy diet can help protect you.

What exactly is heart disease? It’s the term given to a group of different health conditions that affect the heart. In the United States, the most common form of heart disease is called coronary artery disease (CAD). CAD is often responsible for serious cardiovascular events like a heart attack, heart failure, chest pain, and irregular heartbeat, also called arrhythmia.

Know the Symptoms of Heart Disease
 
The warning signs of heart disease often don’t appear until you're having a heart attack. Symptoms of an emergency or impending heart attack may include:

• Feeling faint
• Weakness or a sensation of light-headedness
• Having a hard time catching your breath
• Feeling nauseous or vomiting
• Feeling very full or having indigestion
• Pain in the chest or an uncomfortable pressure in the chest
• Unusual pains in the back, shoulders, or neck
• Sweating
• An irregular heartbeat 

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