K-State Research and Extension

National news of a prominent football player suffering from a heart condition has brought to light the need for heart disease education and information. What do you do to protect your heart?

February is designated as American Heart Month. As a leading cause of death in the U.S., it is important to make your heart a priority. Many steps in self-care can greatly improve your heart health. Learning CPR can save a life.

Here are seven self-care steps you can take to heart health.

1. Start with a self-care checklist for the week. Choose from these ideas to get started.
2. Check your blood pressure and know what the numbers mean for you.
3. Make healthy eating goals and simple changes to your diet for big benefits. You too can eat a heart-healthy diet!
4. What is your wellness routine? Part of that is getting quality sleep and reducing stress.
5. Treat yourself! You deserve some fun to break up your normal responsibilities.
6. Who inspires you? Those “feel good” people can improve your heart too!
7. What is your favorite way to take care of your heart? Get outside and take a walk to benefit your heart and mind.

Learn more at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute website.

American Heart Month is during the month of February to remind everyone to focus on their heart and cardiovascular health. For 2022, the focus is on hypertension, or high blood pressure. This is the leading cause of heart disease and stroke.

For tools to help educate about controlling hypertension, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has put together a toolkit of resources for clinical providers, public health professionals, and patients.

Educational resources can be found at www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/american_heart_month.htm.

The American Heart Association designates February as American Heart Month!

Protect your heart, you can protect your brain. Making lifestyle behavior changes can improve overall cardiovascular health, but it also benefits cognitive health. This is due to good blood flow from the heart to the brain. Failing brain function leads to problems with thinking, memory, concentration, energy level and overall body health.

Exercise is so important and a simple 30-minute walk can help. Just get up and move! Plan now to join Walk Kansas 2020 to help get you and your team motivated, and improve overall health.

Be proactive about your health. Know your numbers, such as blood pressure and cholesterol. Make simple lifestyle changes, they really don’t take a lot of effort. Know your risk, heart disease kills one in three women. Talk to your family and include them in making lifestyle changes.

Learn more at www.heart.org.