For more stories like this read Natural Awakenings Dallas-Ft Worth magazine at NADallas.com

For more stories like this read Natural Awakenings Dallas-Ft Worth magazine at NADallas.com

After decades of viewing daily low-dose aspirin as the standard recommendation for preventing cardiovascular disease, it seems the time for change has come. There has been ongoing discussion and study about the value of aspirin for over 30 years in both the treatment and prevention of heart and vascular diseases. For years, doctors prescribed aspirin for all patients needing to lower their risk of these diseases.

But the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association now recommend aspirin not be prescribed in the absence of known coronary or vascular disease. Instead, for most people, treatment should focus on healthy lifestyle habits, including physical activity, diet and control of factors like cholesterol, diabetes risk and blood pressure.

Aspirin therapy comes with a significantly increased risk of bleeding that can potentially offset its value for prevention of cardiovascular events. As a result, it should no longer be routinely used unless the patient has had an evaluation and discussion with their physician about the risk of cardiovascular disease and the risk of bleeding. If currently taking a daily dose of aspirin, talk to a doctor about tailoring treatment for individual needs — and about whether aspirin is still the right choice.

The era of universal aspirin therapy is over. Aspirin therapy is now reserved for select “high-risk” patients that have had open-heart surgery or stents inserted, or experienced a heart attack or stroke. But for those that don’t qualify as high-risk or already have a diagnosis of heart disease, aspirin should not be part of a preventive regime for keeping the heart healthy.

This also means a greater emphasis on starting and maintaining, those healthy habits we already know are good for us. The American College of Cardiology agrees that the most effective way to prevent cardiovascular disease, heart failure and atrial fibrillation is by living a healthy lifestyle.

Preventing Heart Disease Through a Healthy Lifestyle

Eat a heart-healthy diet. A heart-healthy diet should center around vegetables, fruits, nuts, legumes, fish and whole grains. You should limit your consumption of red meats and processed meats, refined carbohydrates, trans fats and foods high in added sugar.

Make physical activity a priority. Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise a week. Beyond dedicated exercise time, simply try to move more and sit less throughout your day. If you’re new to exercise, find an activity you enjoy — walking around the neighborhood, group fitness classes, yoga, even gardening. Start small, but start today.

Quit smoking. If you smoke, talk to your doctor about steps you can take today to quit.

Take control of your numbers. There are many contributing factors that play a role in influencing your heart health and overall well-being. Maintain regular touch points with your primary care physician to help keep track of these key indicators: cholesterol, blood pressure, blood sugar and weight.

Take the heart disease quiz at Tinyurl.com/BaylorHeartQuiz. 

Michael Sills, MD, cardiologist, Baylor Scott & White Heart and Vascular Hospital – Dallas is the co-lead of cardiology for Health Texas Provider Network. For more information, visit BaylorHeartHospital.com.

For more stories like this read Natural Awakenings Dallas-Ft Worth magazine at NADallas.com

This is the last month for K-12 students to submit entries for the DART 2020 Student Art Contest. The deadline is February 28, and high school students have the option of submitting their entry online at dart.org/artcontest. Contestants can compete to earn a spot for their design on DART buses and trains, plus cash and other prizes. DART will notify winners by March 11. 

The contest is open to public school, private school and home-schooled students in kindergarten through the 12th grade. Designs must be original work by the student and should illustrate the theme “Paint The Town ______. Ride DART.” One entry per student. No group entries are allowed. All entries must measure 11 inches high by 17 wide wide and be laid out horizontally.

The student’s name, email, grade level, school name, school address, teacher’s name, email, phone number, parent’s name, email and phone number should be easily visible on the back.

For more information, contact Jessica D. Lennon, education outreach manager, at 214-749-2582 or jlennon@dart.org.

For more stories like this read Natural Awakenings Dallas-Ft Worth magazine at NADallas.com

Dr. Katherine Hayhoe, an atmospheric scientist and professor of political science at Texas Tech University, where she is director of the Climate Science Center, CEO of the consulting firm ATMOS Research and Consulting, an evangelical Christian, author of 125 peer-publications and finalist for Texan of the year, will be Bernice Butler’s guest on Healthy Living Healthy Planet Radio at 3 p.m., February 22 on iHeart KXFR 1190AM. She will explore the clean energy imperative and why our current energy sources are not working.

Hayhoe says, “I don’t accept global warming on faith; I crunch the data, I analyze the models, I help engineers and city managers and ecologists quantify the impacts.” Together with her husband Andrew Farley, a pastor and best-selling author of eight books, she wrote A Climate for Change: Global Warming Facts for Faith-Based Decisions, a book that untangles the complex science and tackles many long-held misconceptions about global warming

She has also led climate impact assessments for a broad cross-section of cities and regions from Chicago to California and the U.S. Northeast. The findings of these studies have been presented before Congress, highlighted in briefings to state and federal agencies and used as input to future planning by communities, states and regions across the country.

Healthy Living Healthy Planet Radio interviews experts and thought leaders on the impacts of environmental issues on health so that people understand we simply can’t have a healthy life without living on a healthy planet.

For more stories like this read Natural Awakenings Dallas-Ft Worth magazine at NADallas.com