February is well known for being American Heart Health Month, a yearly awareness campaign created to alert people of the risk factors for heart-related illnesses and encourage them to take steps in protecting their heart.

Optalis participates in various ways such as helping to educate adults on the disease and preventative ways to potentially reverse this troubling trend. Take control of your heart health with these helpful tips and tricks.

9 Tips for Improving and Maintaining Heart Health

• Breakfast of champions. Don’t skip breakfast! Many people skip breakfast entirely or consume a sugary pastry or cereal, but a healthy breakfast helps us feel full longer. This lessens the chance of overeating later or reaching for quick, unhealthy comfort foods.
  Try — Starting the day with a bowl of oatmeal, this is a great source of protein and cholesterol-fighting fiber.
• Mind your diet. A healthy diet is one of your best weapons to fight heart disease. Consume a variety of nutritious foods from all food groups; a variety of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy products, skinless poultry and fish, nuts and legumes as well as non-tropical vegetables oils. Limit saturated fats, trans fat, sodium, red meats, sweets and sugar-sweetened beverages. When consuming red meat, compare labels and select the leanest cuts available. Add in a variety of fish at least twice a week, if possible. Lastly, always watch your portion sizes!
  Try — Following Dash (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension), research shows that people have fewer occurrences of heart disease when following this style plan.
• Make sleep a priority. Adults often have bad sleep habits. When you don’t get enough sleep, you are more inclined to make bad food choices.
  Try — Averaging 7-9 hours of quality sleep each night.
• Stay active. Find ways to stay active. Discuss senior-friendly forms of exercise with your physician. They can help explore potential options that might be more enjoyable and increase motivation.
  Try — Chair Yoga, an activity that can be performed in the privacy of your own living room or take a 20 minute walk with a significant other or friend every day.
• Limit sodium. Put down the salt shaker. It isn’t uncommon for older adults to rely on convenience foods at meal times. But fast food, frozen dinners and even canned foods can be extremely high in sodium. Sodium and salt can both contribute to high blood pressure. Learn more about sodium and the unlikely places it might be sneaking into your diet, like ketchup, cereal and deli meats.
  Try — Low-sodium spices and fresh herbs when preparing foods, these are great cooking alternatives for taste and less sodium!
• Schedule a physical. If you haven’t had a physical in the last year, we encourage you to schedule one. Medicare will cover one wellness visit each year. This gives your physician an opportunity to check blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar to spot any potential problems.
  Try — Keeping a scheduled wellness visit every year.
• Kick the habit. Today’s generation of seniors were often smokers growing up. If you haven’t done so already, work on trying to quitting.
  Try — Consulting with your primary care physician, they will likely have suggestions to help.
• Limit alcohol consumption. While some experts say the Resveratrol in a glass of red wine can be good for your heart, don’t overdo it. Consuming too much alcohol can lead to high blood pressure and heart disease.
  Try — Limiting to one drink per day and staying properly hydrated.
• Drink green tea. Some experts believe the antioxidants in green tea help keep your arteries flexible which may help to prevent plaque from building up.
  Try — Consuming one glass of green tea sweetened with honey every day.

Utilize the Nutrition Facts Label to Make Healthier Choices

1. Start with the serving information.
Allows proper calculation of consumption for packages containing more than one serving.
– Size of the serving
– How Many servings are included

2. Check Total Calories.
Know how many calories you are consuming when eating a portion or the whole package. This number is typically based on the daily recommended intake of 2,000.  *Suggested calorie intake varies by age, weight, level of physical activity and other health factors. Check with your Primary Care Physician to confirm your ideal daily caloric intake.

3. Limit Certain Nutrients
Compare labels to choose options with lower:
– Added Sugars
– Sodium
– Saturated Fats
– Trans Fat

4. Get Enough of Beneficial Nutrients
Eat foods with nutrients your body needs:
– Calcium
– Choline
– Dietary Fiber
– Iron
– Magnesium
– Potassium
– Vitamins A, C, D & E

5. Understand % Daily Value
% Daily Value (DV), tells the % of each nutrient in a single serving in relation to the daily recommended amount.
–   In order to consume less of a nutrient (sodium or saturated fat), choose foods with lower % DV, 5% or less.
–  In order to consume more of a nutrient (fiber or potassium), choose foods with a higher % DV, 20% or more.

Additional Tips

Maintaining a daily journal of food consumption throughout the day, as well as any exercise completed may help you stay on track.

Visit the Getting Healthy section of the American Heart Association’s website. They have helpful resources ranging from nutrition to physical activity and smoking cessation.

Dear Tacy:

My parents are both retired and starting to slow down a bit. I’m a little concerned that their more sedentary lifestyle is putting them at risk for heart problems. Do you have any tips you can share on how to keep your heart healthy as you grow older?

Ruth

Dear Ruth:

I do!

The team at Optalis Healthcare created a list of 9 steps adults can take to lower their risk for heart disease. We developed it to share with our friends throughout the Midwest area in honor of National Heart Month.

9 Tips for Improving Heart Health

Cardiac-related diseases continue to be the number one killer of both men and women in this country. We’d like to help educate adults on the disease and help to reverse this troubling trend.

Here are a few tips you can use to keep your heart healthy:

1. Don’t skip breakfast. A healthy breakfast like oatmeal has many benefits. It is a great source of protein so it helps you feel full longer. Oatmeal is also high in fiber which is good for keeping your cholesterol on track.
2. Mind your diet: Commit to following the Dash Diet or the Mediterranean Diet. Both are plant based and linked to lower rates of heart disease. You might want to help your parents plan a few weeks of healthy menus to get started.
3. Make sleep a priority. Seniors often have bad sleep habits. When you don’t get enough sleep, you are more inclined to make bad food choices. Ask your parents to make a promise to you that they will get 7-9 hours of quality sleep each night.
4. Get moving! We’ve all heard it time and again, but exercise is one of the best ways to keep your heart healthy. Chair Yoga is an activity your parents can perform in the privacy of their own living room. Or you can encourage them to take a 20 minute walk together each morning.
5. Schedule a physical. If your parents haven’t had a physical in the last year, encourage them to schedule one. Medicare will cover one wellness visit each year. It gives their physician an opportunity to check their blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar to spot any potential problems.
6. Kick the habit. Today’s generation of seniors were often smokers growing up. If they haven’t done so already, work with them on quitting. Their primary care physician will likely have suggestions to help.
7. Put down the salt shaker. Sodium and salt can both contribute to high blood pressure. Encourage your parents to cook with low-sodium spices and fresh herbs instead of salt.
8. Limit alcohol consumption. While some experts say the Resveratrol in a glass of red wine can be good for your heart, don’t overdo it. Too much alcohol can lead to high blood pressure and heart disease.
9. Drink green tea. Some experts believe the antioxidants in green tea help keep your arteries flexible which may help to prevent plaque from building up.

One last tip for you, Ruth is to visit the Getting Healthy section of the American Heart Association’s website. They have helpful resources ranging from nutrition to physical activity and smoking cessation.

Best Regards,

Tacy Bailey, Rehabilitation Manager

We sat down with a local Heart Specialist about Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) to answer some of your top questions including causes, symptoms, prevention and more. Check out the questions and answers below to learn more about CHF.

What causes Congestive Heart Failure?

CHF represents symptoms caused by injury to the heart. The injury causes the heart muscle to function abnormally, where it either becomes weakened or stiff. In either case, symptoms are similar. There are a large number of medical problems that may produce this heart injury. In the United States, the most common cause is coronary artery disease and injury to the heart muscle from a heart attack. Chronic, poorly controlled high blood pressure is another common cause. CHF may run in families and thus have a genetic component as well as association with certain types of infections (usually viruses) of the heart muscle (called myocarditis). CHF can also be caused by certain drugs, particularly those used to treat certain types of cancer. Excessive alcohol consumption may also injure the heart and cause CHF. In many cases, it is not clear what caused the problem, and in these cases, the CHF is idiopathic. The term cardiomyopathy is used to describe the disease of the heart muscle, and CHF (congestive heart failure) represents the symptoms resulting from the cardiomyopathy. A person can have cardiomyopathy without having symptoms of CHF.

What are the symptoms of CHF?

“CHF” identifies a set of symptoms that include shortness of breath with activities, or sometimes at rest, difficulty breathing while lying down (orthopnea), fluid retention such as ankle swelling or abdominal bloating, increased palpitations, chest pressure or heaviness, progressive fatigue, poor appetite, sudden awakening at night with shortness of breath (PND), palpitations, and syncope (passing out).

How do you recognize the symptoms?

The symptoms may occur suddenly or occur very gradually over months. When sudden onset occurs, the patient will often easily recognize that there is a problem and thus seek medical attention. When symptoms progress very gradually, there may be a delay in seeking medical attention. Sometimes, the symptoms may be confusing and lead to several possible diagnoses. CHF may be confused with other conditions, such as pneumonia or other types of lung disease.

How is CHF diagnosed?

CHF is usually diagnosed in a patient presenting with the typical symptoms and findings on the physical exam. The most common test utilized to identify the underlying heart problem causing CHF is the echocardiogram. There are certain blood tests that may also suggest CHF. A “BNP” test may be used to differentiate shortness of breath caused by lung disease versus heart disease. A significant elevation in BNP (which is a blood test) strongly suggests that a patient’s breathing symptoms are secondary to heart disease / CHF.

How can someone prevent Congestive Heart Failure?

Since CHF is commonly secondary to problems like poorly controlled hypertension, coronary artery disease, and obesity, several preventive measures are encouraged. These include a heart healthy diet, maintenance of optimal cholesterol levels, avoidance of obesity, treatment of high BP, to name a few. Any risk factors for the development of coronary artery disease should be managed, including tobacco usage. Regular exercise is encouraged. However, there are instances where Cardiomyopathy cannot be avoided (genetic cause, chemotherapy, valve problem) and in these situations, early recognition and institution of appropriate treatment, at an early phase of the disease, is important.

What is the outlook for people with CHF?

The outlook for this condition depends on many factors. Most important is the underlying cause of the CHF, and the degree of symptoms. Many patients with CHF are very well managed with medications. Sometimes devices are required to manage arrhythmia. In some cases (the minority of cases), the condition advances to the point where heart transplantation may be warranted. There is a very broad spectrum of treatment possibilities – and outcomes.

What are the different types or degrees of severity for CHF?

CHF is classified as stage A-D, with stage A being those at risk for CHF (i.e., they have coronary artery disease), stage B is evidence of heart muscle problems but no symptoms, stage C is symptomatic CHF, and stage D is symptoms despite optimal medical and device therapy. Patients are also classified according to NYHA class – with class I being asymptomatic and class IV symptoms at rest.

Are there any medications to avoid or diet changes to be made when dealing with CHF?

For most patients, the major medications to avoid are NSAID’s (such as ibuprofen). These medications will worsen kidney function and symptoms of CHF. A low sodium diet is almost always recommended, and sometimes, a fluid restriction is recommended. My recommendation is to discuss any new medication with the physician before taking it.

Older adults in the Midwest are at higher risk for a vitamin D deficiency during the winter than their friends in southern climates. That is because most of us spend less time outdoors during the winter. Less exposure to sunlight means the body has less opportunity to produce vitamin D naturally.

More and more studies are proving just how important vitamin D is for overall well-being. It helps with everything from bone health to preventing depression, cardiac diseases, and some forms of cancer.

Foods High in Vitamin D

One of the challenges for getting enough vitamin D during the dreary days of an Midwest winter is that it doesn’t occur naturally in many foods. Most foods high in vitamin D are enriched during production. A few good foods to work into your daily diet include:

• Milk and dairy products
• Fish and oysters
• Mushrooms
• Eggs
• Pork

Increasing your intake of foods rich in calcium will help your body better absorb vitamin D. Those can include:

• Almonds and sesame seeds
• Kale, okra and spinach

Remember to check the labels on foods such as cereal and orange juice to see if they have been enriched with vitamin D and calcium. Opt for those brands that have been.

Your Daily Dose of Vitamin D

Understanding how much vitamin D you need can be tricky because the experts don’t always agree on a number. Here are the recommendations from two agencies involved in vitamin D research:

The U.S. Food & Nutrition Board sets their standards as:

• 600 IU/day for children and adults
• 800 IU/day for seniors

The Vitamin D Council advises:

• 1,000 IU/day per 25 pounds for children
• 5,000 IU/day for adults and seniors

Our best advice is to talk with your primary care physician or your senior loved one’s geriatrician for their recommendation.

Diagnosing a Vitamin D Deficiency

The symptoms of a vitamin D deficiency can be quite vague. They typically include fatigue and muscle pain. Your physician can order a blood test to make that diagnosis. There are also tests you can take at home. It might be that you or your senior loved one will require prescription doses of vitamin D for a few months to build back up. Your physician will be the one to make that call.

As we move into the colder months, staying active can seem difficult between the brutal cold and fears of falling alone.

Many are looking for ways to stay active indoors out of the cold! We hear that statement often during the late fall and winters, and not just from seniors.

Here we have a few ideas to consider:

Get Moving!

1. First, walking is a great form of exercise! But some may be reluctance to walk outside when it is snowy and icy. The good news is that there are several ways to get a daily walk in that won’t require you to brave the elements. Many shopping malls open early for walkers. Lace up those sneakers and walk before the rush of the crowds begins for the day. Call the nearest  shopping mall to see what they offer.
2. If there isn’t a mall near that offers morning walking or if you prefer to walk later in the day, consider going to a department store or home improvement store. Walking laps around the outside aisles of these larger stores is another easy way to get your walk in. Wear a pedometer or fitness tracker to monitor your progress.
3. Another idea is to check with your health insurance provider to see if they partner with Silver Sneakers. Many Medicare replacement plans offer a membership at no cost to seniors. Silver Sneaker classes take place at YMCA branches, local rehab communities and other fitness centers.
4. For days when the weather is just too bad to leave home, consider investing in a treadmill or stationary bike. If you ask friends and family, you might even be able to find a used one in good condition. Another few snowy day activities might be Wii fitness games or taking a virtual Chair Yoga class on YouTube.

Keep Your Mind Sharp

1. Staying mentally active is also important when cabin fever starts to set in. Playing cards, painting, sketching and listening to music are all good activities. Consider learning how to play an instrument or taking up a new foreign language. Many can be done completely online.
2. Strolling Trivia is one of the most requested events in our communities. Participants answer challenging trivia questions while strolling along. Topics range from current events to American history. Visitors are always welcome to join us!

We hope these new ideas will help you stay active this winter!