Heart Attack Prevention
Heart attack prevention involves lowering your risk factors for coronary artery disease (CAD) which can help you prevent a heart attack. Even if you already have CAD, you can still take steps to lower your risk of heart attack.
Heart attack prevention usually means making healthy lifestyle choices. You also may need treatment for medical conditions that raise your risk.
Healthy Lifestyle Choices
Healthy lifestyle choices to help in heart attack prevention include:
- Following a low-fat diet rich in fruits and vegetables. Pay careful attention to the amounts and types of fat in your diet. Lower your salt intake. These changes can help lower high blood pressure and high blood cholesterol.
- Losing weight if you´re overweight or obese.
- Quitting smoking.
- Doing physical activity to improve heart fitness. Ask your doctor how much and what kinds of physical activity are safe for you.
Treat Related Conditions
In addition to making lifestyle changes for heart attack prevention, you can help heart attack prevention by treating conditions you have that make a heart attack more likely:
- High blood cholesterol. You may need medicine to lower your cholesterol if diet and exercise aren´t enough.
- High blood pressure. You may need medicine to keep your blood pressure under control.
- Diabetes (high blood sugar). If you have diabetes, control your blood sugar levels through diet and physical activity (as your doctor recommends). If needed, take medicine as prescribed.
Have an Emergency Action Plan
Make sure that you have an emergency action plan in case you or someone else in your family has a heart attack. This is especially important if you´re at high risk or have already had a heart attack.
Talk with your doctor about the signs and symptoms of heart attack, when you should call 9–1–1, and steps you can take while waiting for medical help to arrive.