Life After a Heart Attack
Life after a heart attack can be unsettling. You may have several questions. Was the hospital stay long enough? Is it okay to go home and not have regular medical oversight? You’ve undergone tests that indicate to your doctor that it’s safe for you to return home. But now what? How can you reduce your risk of another heart attack? Here are some doctor recommendations from WebMD:
- Quit smoking.
- Take an aspirin every day or some other clot-preventing medicine.
- Lower your cholesterol.
- Control your blood pressure.
- Keep your blood sugar under control if you have diabetes.
- Follow the Mediterranean diet and eat more fish.
- Reduce stress.
- Participate in a cardiac rehabilitation program.
- Drink wine moderately (1 to 2 glasses per day)
- Confide in loved ones.
You can read more about these recommendations at Life After a Heart Attack on WebMD.
Exercise is key to protecting your cardiovascular health and reducing your risk of heart disease or a heart attack. Dr. David Siegel, assistant director of Health Care Operations & Programs at General Motors Corporation, recommends 30 minutes of some type of aerobic exercise a day ─ on most days of the week. He believes that’s a realistic goal. “I think 30 minutes a day is the kind of threshold expectation that most of us can weave into our lives. It might mean parking a little farther from the office building. It might mean walking to the drugstore, instead of driving your vehicle there. It might mean riding a bike or swimming twice a week at a community pool,” Dr. Siegel explains.
GM offers a variety of programs and activities to encourage its employees, retirees and their dependents to improve their cardiovascular health through exercise and healthy eating. Since 1996, the automaker has offered a program called LifeSteps that provides health care assessments, screenings and counseling. Many GM facilities have fitness centers, and a 12,000-square-foot health and fitness center managed by the YMCA recently opened at GM’s Renaissance Center World Headquarters in Detroit. Health-related messages are disseminated through a regular newsletter called “Feelin’ Good” and an internal company news broadcast called “GM DriveTime.” In addition, GM has teamed up with GlobalFit to offer discounted fitness club memberships to more than 1 million employees, retirees and their dependents.
It’s never to late to begin a fitness program, but Dr. Siegel cautions that if you have coronary artery disease or any other chronic medical condition or if you’re over age 50, check with your doctor before beginning a moderate exercise program. You can learn more about preventing heart attacks at Heart Attack and Unstable Angina – Ongoing Concerns.
