Four Ways to Take Control of Your Heart Health

February is American Heart Month, and before it ends, we want to take some time to learn how we can keep our hearts healthy and strong.

This knowledge is crucial to share. Heart disease remains the leading cause of death for Americans, both men and women.¹ Yet myths and misunderstandings about heart disease persist, such as who’s at risk and what a heart attack may look or feel like. For example, here are a few surprising facts about heart health:

• Someone can have a heart attack and not even know that they did. About 45% of heart attacks are silent, passing undetected but still causing damage to the body.²
• Pregnancy can increase the risk of developing heart disease or worsening existing heart problems. The stress that pregnancy places on a body can cause heart problems up to one year after childbirth.³
• Symptoms of a heart attack aren’t only felt in the chest. Other symptoms include pain in the jaw, neck, or back. Shortness of breath and nausea are symptoms as well.⁴

Here’s the good news about heart health: 80% of cardiovascular disease can be prevented.5 That means that you hold a great deal of influence over how well your heart functions. Here are four ideas that we hope inspire you to take control of your heart health today.

1. Know Your Risk

It’s important to know if you have an elevated risk for heart disease. A few risk factors for heart disease are⁵:

• High cholesterol
• High blood pressure
• Tobacco use
• Family history of heart disease

Here’s the challenge: Many people who have conditions like high cholesterol and high blood pressure experience no symptoms. That’s why it’s important for you to get regular check-ups with a healthcare provider to monitor your numbers. A conversation with your provider can help you learn how best to manage your health and lower your heart disease risk.

2. Get Moving

Exercise is one of the best ways to show love to your heart. Physical activity strengthens your heart muscle, which improves the flow of blood and oxygen throughout your body. This gives you a boost of energy in your day-to-day life and helps your body fight infection.⁶ Plus, exercise helps lower blood pressure and cholesterol, which alleviates two major contributing factors to heart disease.

If you’re just beginning to exercise, talk with your healthcare provider about which exercises are best for you. In general, you’ll want to exercise until your heart pumps a little harder (but not too much!) to reap the cardiovascular rewards.⁷

3. Eat a Heart-Healthy Diet

A grocery list can be a powerful tool to help build a strong heart. The foods we choose to eat, as well as the foods we choose to resist, have a large effect on the health of our heart. For example, one study has shown that people who eat a lot of nitrate-rich foods, like leafy greens, can lower risk of cardiovascular disease by 12% to 26%.⁸ It's one small change with one big pay-off; just imagine the cumulative effects of several small changes at once.

To adopt a heart-healthy diet, avoid foods that are highly processed and those that are high in added sugars, including alcohol. When choosing foods that strengthen your heart, you have plenty of options, including vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. When choosing protein sources, avoid a reliance on red meat. Instead, choose lean animal proteins, such as lean meats and seafood. Protein isn’t just found in meat; other protein sources include beans, wild rice, quinoa, spinach, and broccoli.

Limiting portion sizes can also help your heart. The heart-healthy foods we recommend have an additional bonus: They’re usually more filling than highly processed foods, which make you feel full faster and stay full longer. It’s nature’s version of portion control.

4. Go to Bed on Time

What if we said that you can strengthen your heart by not doing anything at all? Getting rest—about seven to nine hours of sleep each night—does wonders for heart health.

As you sleep, your body repairs itself. Adequate rest helps regulate your blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and it improves the control of blood sugar.⁹ Plus, when you’re well-rested, you’ll have more energy to stay active, which will help you make even more heart-healthy decisions tomorrow.

More Heart Health Information:

• Listen to Your Heart: In just three minutes, you can complete this questionnaire on PfizerForAll to learn if you may be at risk for atrial fibrillation (AFib)
• Understanding Cardiovascular Conditions: In this section of Health Answers by Pfizer, you can explore heart-related topics, such as lifestyle factors, smoking cessation, and stress reduction techniques.
• Heart Diseases: Learn more about heart conditions including cardiac arrest, myocarditis, and rheumatic heart disease.

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1. Heart Disease Facts. U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. October 24, 2024. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://www.cdc.gov/heart-disease/data-research/facts-stats/index.html
2. “The Danger of ‘Silent’ Heart Attacks.” Harvard Health Publishing: Harvard Medical School. November 3, 2020. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/the-danger-of-silent-heart-attacks
3. Heart Health and Pregnancy. National Institutes of Health: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. June 21, 2024. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/education/heart-truth/listen-to-your-heart/heart-health-and-pregnancy
4. Heart Attack Symptoms. National Institutes of Health: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. March 24, 2022. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/heart-attack/symptoms
5. Numbers to Know for a Healthy Heart. National Institutes of Health: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. February 1, 2023. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/news/2023/numbers-know-healthy-heart
6. Benefits of Physical Activity. U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. April 24, 2024. Accessed February 18, 2025. https://www.cdc.gov/physical-activity-basics/benefits/index.html
7. Being Active When You Have Heart Disease. National Library of Medicine: MedlinePlus. August 5, 2024. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000094.htm
8. Restivo, Jenette. “Heart-healthy Foods: What to Eat and What to Avoid.” Harvard Health Publishing: Harvard Medical School. November 9, 2023. Accessed February 10, 2025.
9. About Sleep and Your Heart. U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. May 15, 2024. Accessed February 18, 2025. https://www.cdc.gov/heart-disease/about/sleep-and-heart-health.htm