What is preventive cardiology?
Preventive cardiology is the practice of assessing your cardiac risk factors and taking steps to lower your chances of developing cardiovascular disease before it becomes an issue.
ECCA provides highly personalized preventive cardiology services to address your specific risk factors. By taking action to improve and protect your health now, you can avoid heart attacks, surgery, and other disruptive health complications.
What are the early warning signs of cardiovascular disease?
Cardiovascular disease, like many other health conditions, doesn’t always cause symptoms in its early stages.
Additionally, conditions like high blood pressure and high cholesterol, which contribute to your risk of cardiovascular disease, don’t cause warning signs either.
However, as your condition progresses, you might notice symptoms such as:
- Chest pain
- Shortness of breath
- Headaches
- Fatigue
- Weakness
- Blue-ish skin on your fingers, toes, and feet
- Changes to skin texture and color on your legs
The best way to keep an eye on your cardiovascular health is to have routine health screenings like blood pressure tests and blood work that includes lipid panels.
If you know that you have a family history of heart disease, you can make healthy choices and lifestyle adjustments to protect your cardiovascular health.
What does preventive cardiology include?
ECCA offers comprehensive preventive cardiology programs. They begin with a detailed consultation, physical exam, and health screenings to determine your risk level.
Your physician asks about your lifestyle, including your diet and exercise habits, tobacco use, and alcohol consumption. Then, based on your risk profile, your doctor works with you to implement a plan to improve and protect your health.
Some of the most basic steps that you can take to protect your cardiovascular health include lifestyle modifications. For example, you should follow a heart-healthy diet that’s rich in vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins, with limited saturated fats, salt, and sugar.
You should also get at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity every day. This could be as simple as taking a brisk walk around your neighborhood after dinner.
If you’re overweight, you should take steps to lose weight. Losing weight often has a positive effect on your blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar levels. If you consume alcohol, you should stay within the recommended limits.
Additionally, if you smoke or use other tobacco products, you should give it up. ECCA can help with smoking cessation programs.
If you already have elevated blood pressure, high cholesterol, or another health condition that contributes to heart disease, ECCA can help you manage your condition to protect your health.
Call ECCA today or make an appointment online for personalized preventive cardiology services.
