•
Obesity.
characterised by having a
body mass index equal to or greater
than 30, it is risk factor causing chro-
nic diseases such as Diabetes Me-
llitus, high blood pressure, strokes,
cardiac diseases. It is important to
stress the importance that an inade-
quate children’s diet could have in fu-
ture obese adults. A “chubby” child is
not necessarily healthier, it is quite the
opposite.
•
Diabetes Mellitus.
A disease charac-
terised by increased levels of gluco-
se in the blood which, over time, can
produce complications in the eyes,
kidneys, blood vessels, peripheral
nerves, etc. Many people who are
sick are not aware of it and, as in the
case of hypertension, it is important
to detect it on time by means of an
analytical control, particularly in the
case of individuals with a family his-
tory of this disease. Preventing obesi-
ty is the most efficient way to prevent
the appearance of type II diabetes (in
adults).
•
A sedentary life.
Inactive people have
a greater risk of suffering from heart
disease. Exercise helps to control
risk factors such as cholesterol and
glucose levels and indirectly reduces
blood pressure. Moderate exercise,
according to our age, is an efficient
tool against heart disease.
•
Stress.
Stress is another important
cardiovascular risk factor, particularly
in certain jobs and social environ-
ments The actual typical executive,
with not enough time for other acti-
vities other than working and always
with nervous tension, is the example
of the type of life that we live in this
current society and forces us to su-
ffer the terrible consequences on our
physical and mental health. Someti-
mes we seem to forget that anxiety
and stress increase our cholesterol
levels, regardless of the direct effect
on our organism. By properly con-
trolling stress and managing our time
correctly and intelligently, we can miti-
gate these undesirable effects.
It is necessary to become aware of the im-
portance of all the risk factors and to adopt
a healthy lifestyle. To do this, we should::
•
Eat healthy food.
Most of the risk
factors can be reduced if we adopt
healthy eating habits. We should eat
a balanced diet, increasing our intake
of fruit, vegetables, cereals, legumes
and fish, and reduce animal fats and
salt.
•
Exercise.
This is essential to maintain
a good quality of life. Walking half an
hour every day, going up the stairs 10
minutes a day can be sufficient. It is
also important to stress that there are
exercises for every age and that when
we over do it because the exercise is
not the most recommended for our
age, we can add more risks and con-
tribute to the onset of a cardiovascu-
lar event.
•
Avoid taking
toxic or addictive subs-
tances, such as tobacco, alcohol,
or any type of drug. We should not
forget that some drugs, such as co-
caine, are potent vasoconstrictors
(shrink the arteries) preventing blood
from efficiently flowing into the peri-
pheral tissues (cardiac, for example)
increasing the possibility of a CVD. By
not playing down the effects of drugs,
especially during our youth, we can
prevent these risks in our adulthood.
•
Monitor your health
by going for re-
gular medical checkups. You should
control your blood pressure and
cholesterol and glucose levels in our
blood.
•
Personal development:
taking care
of our mental health – our minds and
emotions – encouraging healthy per-
sonal relations, trying to limit stress,
and cultivating our optimism.
Cardiovascular disease is a scourge in our
society and the main cause of morbid-mor-
tality in the civilised world. There are many
efforts and resources currently employed
to prevent, treat, and for rehabilitation, the
best example of what can be achieved by
efficient prevention, relatively inexpensive,
to build awareness among the population.
We should not forget that cardiovascu-
lar events, beyond their human and social
costs, are much more expensive from an
economic perspective, than a campaign to
encourage healthy habits among the popu-
lation. Prevention is the best solution and
the use of communication tools, an irrepla-
ceable tool.
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