Newspaper Page Text
Health
It’s tough to maintain a heart-healthy
diet and exercise regimen during the holiday season.
Alter all, who has die willpower to count far grams or
calories wlien faced with an onslaught of eggnog, cookies
and cheese balls? And who has time to exercise when
there are gifts to wrap and parties to attend?
Despite the temptations and demands of die season, it
is possible to enjoy the holidays while practicing healthy
habits. Here are some suggestions:
Eat right
It isn't necessary to give up jour favorite holiday
treats, but don’t overindulge, says Dr. Vince Bufalino, a
cardiologist and president of Midwest Heart Specialists
in suburban Chicago.
“We don't want to dissuade people from enjoying
these things, but we ask them to just use moderation,”
he says. “Taste, but don’t gorge yourself”
A healthful diet can help control cholesterol levels
and keep your heart healthy. Cut back on foods rich
in saturated fat, such as butter, cheese and meat,
which elevate artery-clogging “bad” cholesterol, and
eat more vegetables, fruits and grains instead. No
more than 30 percent of your daily calories should
come from saturated fat.
Kara Byrd, 35, of Alpharetta, Ga. (pop. 3-4,854),
understands the importance of eating healthfully. A
religion teacher and mother of three, Byrd was bom with
a hole in her heart, later developed a second one, and at
22 suffered a ruptured aneurysm in her heart. She pays
attention to her diet because she wants to avoid more
lie-art trouble. “I don’t want to have to go through a
bypass someday," she says.
Wlien Byrd hosts lier family's Christmas dinner, she'll
serve low-fat foods and will replace butter with a low-fat
spread. For snacks, she'll serve vegetables and hummus.
Byrd is doing the right things. Planning ahead tor
the holidays is the first step toward avoiding weight
gain, a primary risk factor for heart disease, says
Riska Platt, a dietitian in Mount Sinai Hospital’s
cardiac rehabilitation program in New York.
“If people start putting on two or three pounds every
holiday season, before you know it they’re going to have
20 extra pounds,” she say’s.
Here are ways to eat healthfully during the holidays:
• Plan the occasions wlien you’ll allow yourself to
indulge. If you love your aunt’s turkey and your
grandmother’s pies, have turkey at your aunt’s house
and enjoy a dessert at your grandmother’s.
• Walk around the buffet table before filling your
plate so you’ll know what’s available and can make
wise food choices.
Have a
Heart-Health yj
by AMY GREEN Holiday !
• Avoid foods that are high in sodium, such as ham,
pickles and olives. Sodium causes the body to rerain
water, which makes the heart work harder.
• Eat more low-fat fish and skinless chicken, and less red
meat, Bufalino advises.
• Don't overindulge in alcoholic beverages. Beer and
wine are high in calories, and can increase your
appetite.
Exercise
Exercising regularly is one of the best things you can
do for your heart. Exercise boosts “good" cholesterol,
which acts as a vacuum in our arteries, cleaning
up harmful “bad" cholesterol deposits. Exercise also
strengthens the heart, lowers blood pressure, aids in
weight control, and helps reduce stress, anxiety and
depression.
Bufalino recommends 30 minutes of daily exercise
that's rigorous enough to make you “get red in the
cheeks and sweaty.” But even a few minutes is better
than nothing.
Here are some ways to incorporate exercise into your
holiday schedule:
• Make exercise a priority every day. Mike it part of your
regular routine, just like brushing your teeth.
• Park farther away and walk.
• Take the stairs.
• Take a brisk walk around the mail before you begin
shopping.
• Gather the family for an after-dinner stroll to look at
holiday decorations.
Vemita Moigan, 39, weighed 250 pounds and her
cholesterol level was more than 300 when she decided
to improve her health. In March, she began a five-day
a-week routine of cardiovascular exercise on a treadmill
or stair machine, plus weightlifting and yoga, and she
walks with friends during lunch breaks. Within seven
months, her cholesterol level dropped to 209, and she
lost some 50 pounds.
Morgan, a graduate student at the University of lowa
in lowa City, anticipates a challenge when she returns
home to Louisiana tor the holidays. She ll face fried
catfish and other not-so-healthy foods, but site plans to
use moderation, allowing herself to indulge in occasional
treats. When she visits friends and family, she’ll park
farther away and walk to their homes. And wken she
returns to chilly lowa after the holidays, she and lier
friends will continue their exercise routine, working out
to exercise DVDs during lunch breaks.
If you don’t exercise regularly, talk to your doctor about
developing an exercise regimen that's right for you.
Mm y •• wjgj
- mgm m
Jp
Media Baker^m
Be happy
Another way to help keep your heart healthy is to
be happy. Maintaining a positive outlook is good for
your heart.
Unfortunately, for many people, the holidays can
be a stressful or depressing time. It’s important to find
ways to cope and be optimistic. Stress is associated with
premature heart disease, and pessimistic people tend to
be overweight, less active and more likely to have high
blood pressure.
Here are some ways to manage stress and feel more joy
during the holiday season:
• Plan ahead. Avoid leaving everything to the last
minute.
• Get together with loved ones. Connecting with people
close to you can be a good stress-reducer during
the holidays, says Dr. Fred Luskin, a psychologist at
Stanford University. If you’re alone during the holiday
season, volunteer to help someone less fortunate. Help
deliver ttys to needy children, for example.
• Laugh. It makes you feel good.
• Count your blessings. “So even if you have a lot of stress
you remain aware of all the good you have, so you
keep it in balance," Luskin says.
• It you are overwhelmed by stress or sad feelings, talk to
your doctor or a mental health professional.
Eating healthfully, exercising and maintaining a
positive attitude are heart-healthy habits to practice year
round. “If you love your family, then you have no option
but to take care of yourself, because if you don’t, you're
not going to be around for them,” Morgan says. “Taking
care of you, that's probably die best tiling you can give
your family over the holidays.”
Amy Grwi is a uniter in Orlando. Fla.
Page 6
• www.americanprofile.com