According to statistics from the CDC, cardiovascular disease has become America’s number one killer-causing an average of one death every 34 seconds.
Health and wellness educator Wayne Elliott joined the WCUB Breakfast Club to discuss cardiovascular health and things that can be done to decrease your chance of heart disease and cardiovascular events like heart attacks and strokes.
He says to limit intake of dairy, added sugar, and refined carbohydrates like soda, white bread/pasta.
Refined carbs are also a major cause of diabetes and obesity. Elliott also stresses that sitting too much is a major factor for heart disease.
Even if you exercise regularly, it’s still smart to decrease your sitting time throughout the day.
And finally, Elliott also says laughter is indeed great medicine.
“Not only do we use a lot more facial muscles and our neck and so forth when we’re laughing, but there’s plenty of things that people are stressed about today,” she explained. “Stress is dangerous. It’s like fear. Even our immune system cells go into hiding. It’s either fight or flight, and they tend to flee when we’re frightened or overly stressed.”
While limiting sugar and refined carb intake, Elliot says some great things to mix into your diet are herbs like aged garlic extract, Hawthorne Fruit, Leaf, & Flower, and white willow bark.
More strategies are available online at heart.gov and cdc.gov.
