Happy Valentines Day – Preventing Heart Disease Is Self Defense

HeartHappy Valentines Day!  While it is a day possibly for you to think about those that you love, it is also a good day to think about being around to express your love for family and friends for a long time.  Valentines Day is symbolized by the heart.  So here is a self defense note for all of us – old and young.

Heart disease is preventable, yet heart disease is and has been the number one cause of death for a very long time.  In 2010 597,689 people in the United Stated died due to heart disease.  Nearly one fourth of everyone who passed away did so due to a preventable disease.  Every single day of the year 1637 mothers, fathers, grandparents, brothers, sisters, sons and daughters lost a loved one who will no longer be with their family to enjoy each other.

For me this is very personal.  My father died of heart disease 46 years ago.  Maybe they did not know as much as they do today or maybe they did and he did not pay attention.  What I know is that he was not a part of my life when I needed a father more than anything.  What about you?  Do you have children or others depending on you, looking up to you, wanting you to be there for them.  Here are the facts:

HEART DISEASE IS LARGELY PREVENTABLE!

Just a few tips:

  1. Control high blood pressure
  2. Get active
  3. Eat right
  4. Achieve and maintain a healthy weight
  5. Manage stress and anger
  6. Control diabetes

Be mindful of these tips and take action and you reduce the risk factors.

Have you noticed that the self defense that Balanced Life Skills teaches includes anger management, stress reduction, healthy eating and good exercise.  This kind of self defense is just as important as knowing how to escape a physical attack.  In fact, all of us are more likely to be affected by heart disease than to be attacked physically. (there were 16,259 deaths in the same period of time due to homicide)   It is most likely all of us will be affected by stress and anger even if we practice good eating and exercise.

Balanced Life Skills is dedicated to teaching peace.  Peace is self defense.