1,15,000! Are you curious about this huge figure? It is the number of times our heart beats in a day. Interesting, huh? After all, shouldn’t we be taking care of it? Wondering how? We’ll get to that in a bit. Before that, did you know that cardiovascular diseases (CVD) account for the majority of deaths worldwide, comprising 33% of all deaths? Of these, heart attacks and strokes account for 85% of the cases. An estimated 17.9 million people are said to have died from CVD in 2019.
Now that you have read these figures, what thoughts pop up? Surprised? Scared? Perhaps you feel bad about not taking better care of your heart and are not sure where to begin? Take it easy! You can easily overcome these numbers if you take a little care and have a lot of knowledge. Just remember every little bit counts. This September 29th is “World Heart Day,” a chance to pause and reflect on the state of your heart. Dive in, learn, and use this knowledge to help your heart.
World Heart Day is an annual event observed on 29th September to raise awareness about cardiovascular diseases. Being the leading cause of death globally, taking care of your heart health and well-being should be of utmost importance. It is also a platform to accelerate actions to prevent, detect, and manage cardiovascular diseases. The main causes of CVD are lifestyle modifications, which includes tobacco use, alcohol consumption, an unhealthy diet, especially high sodium intake, and a lack of physical activities.
World Heart Day was established by the World Heart Federation (WHF) in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) between 1997-99. The idea of this annual event was conceived by Antoni Bayés de Luna, and the first Word Heart Day celebration was held in September 2000.
As mentioned earlier, heart disease has the highest rate of death worldwide. So, WHF organizes awareness events globally to raise awareness about heart disease and its preventive measures to manage cardiovascular diseases. They encourage people to follow heart-healthy practices. They also encourage regular check-ups and screenings to identify heart conditions at an early stage. World Heart Day serves as a reminder to everyone around the world to take care of their hearts.
This year’s campaign focuses on the essential step of knowing our hearts first. The theme is “Use Heart for Action,” supporting individuals to care for their hearts and empowering them to urge leaders to take cardiovascular health seriously by providing a global platform for action.
Every year, the World Heart Federation inspires and guides global action to promote heart-healthy living through these campaigns, which unify individuals from all nations and backgrounds in the battle against the burden of CVD. Through worldwide events, the day offers health and fitness tips so people can lead a life free of cardiovascular ailments. By increasing awareness of uncommon and neglected conditions, we can help ensure better diagnosis rates and heart health equity because every heartbeat matters.
Seeing the increasing number of CVD cases, living a heart-healthy life is something everyone should incorporate. Here are some of the key steps to a healthier heart.
Get regular health screening tests: Scheduling routine checkups for heart health and monitoring any underlying issues early are essential for heart health.
Don’t smoke or use tobacco: Quitting smoking or using smokeless tobacco reduces heart health risks. No matter how long or how much you smoked, you’ll start reaping rewards as soon as you quit.
Exercise regularly: Regular physical exercise helps in controlling weight and also reduces factors like high blood pressure and diabetes, which helps prevent heart diseases.
Eat a healthy diet: Limiting the intake of sodium, sugar, and unhealthy food and having a proper diet with fruits, vegetables, and lean protein can lower blood pressure, diabetes, and cholesterol levels.
Maintain a healthy weight: Being a heavier person can cause high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes. This is one of the major factors in having CVD.
Get quality sleep: Getting enough sleep is important, but sleep quality is equally crucial. Having quality sleep for 8 hours per night helps in maintaining good health.
Manage stress: Due to unhealthy coping mechanisms and mental health issues, stress can be a major risk factor for heart diseases.
For maintaining a healthy heart, physical exercise is quite essential. Regularly exercising and staying fit simply helps you live a heart-healthy life. So, if you are exercising, why not play sports? They offer a fun, exciting, and effective way to build a routine.
Swimming is considered a popular, physically demanding sport that provides an excellent cardio workout. However, a new study by experts found that the impact on health was not as great as expected. Tennis, squash, and badminton were the winning racket sports. It was discovered that these athletes had a 56% lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease. Swimming accounts for 41%, and aerobics for 36%.
So, remember that there is no age limit on picking up a racket and playing!
Cardiovascular disease is a silent killer that causes a huge number of deaths across the globe. World Heart Day serves as a reminder of the importance of the heart and raises awareness to prioritize living a heart-healthy life. By understanding the risks and making conscious lifestyle choices, we can reduce the burden of cardiovascular diseases.
Maintaining a healthy diet, managing stress, and having physical exercise in our routine can help reduce the risk of CVD. Engaging in racket sports can offer additional benefits. By giving our hearts a voice and to “Use Heart for Action”, we can increase awareness and decrease the numbers of CVD patients, globally.
To jump into action, you can level up and embark upon your sports journey right away. Download the Playo app and find the nearest court, turf, or ground. Playo assists you in getting better at your favorite sport. Your one-stop platform for court booking, training, or finding players. Playing sports helps your heart stay healthy. So start playing today!
Happy World Heart Day to you!
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