5 Important Tests for Your Heart Health

Introduction

The heart is one of the most vital organs of the body. The heart is a muscular pump that circulates blood throughout the body. However, cardiac diseases, such as heart failures, are common causes of death in India. To protect oneself against various cardiovascular diseases and also keep the heart health in check, various blood tests can be taken. These blood markers reflect the overall state of heart health and can be indicators of the need for making lifestyle changes. In this article, discover the strategies you can take to protect your heart health and important blood tests for monitoring the state of your heart.

Strategies to Protect Heart Health

A number of strategies can be taken to protect one’s heart health. Through these strategies, one can shield oneself from cardiac diseases, such as hypertension, heart failure, heart attack, etc. While risk factors, such as family history and age, cannot be changed, these tips can help protect your heart. Live a long life by following these strategies –

• Avoid Smoking and Using Tobacco – The chemicals found in these substances impact the oxygen in the blood, thereby also raising one’s blood pressure. This means the heart has to work harder to supply oxygen throughout the body. This increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases. However, quitting these substances can significantly reduce the risk of cardiovascular problems.

• Daily Exercises – Even 30 minutes of daily activity, such as brisk walking or strength training, can significantly reduce the risk of cardiac diseases. Aim for at least 60 minutes of daily exercise. These activities help heart health by strengthening the heart muscle and improving its efficiency, leading to better blood circulation and lower blood pressure. Furthermore, risk factors such as high cholesterol, excess body fat, and type 2 diabetes can also be efficiently managed.

• Maintaining Healthy Weight - Maintaining a healthy weight can greatly help heart health. Risk factors for heart diseases can be reduced through the maintenance of a healthy weight, such lowering of blood pressure, improvement of cholesterol levels, and decreased inflammation. Excess weight, especially around the abdomen, can lead to insulin resistance, fatty liver, and clogged arteries. However, weight loss can greatly help protect heart health.

• Dietary Changes – Having a diet rich with nutritionally dense foods, such as fruits, vegetables, and lean proteins, can help heart health. Furthermore, foods should have limited trans fats, sodium and added sugars. With these dietary changes, one can help their heart health as blood circulation improves, blood pressure and cholesterol levels lower, and weight is managed.

• Sleep – Poor sleep can increase the risk of an individual for cardiac problems. However, 7-8 hours of quality and consistent sleep can help improve one’s heart health. Good quality sleep can help regulate blood pressure, reduce inflammation, and control stress levels. In turn, risks for cardiovascular disease, heart attacks, and strokes are greatly reduced.

Important Blood Tests for Heart Health

Regular blood tests can help monitor one’s heart health. By monitoring these blood markers, particularly if one is at-risk for cardiovascular diseases, necessary lifestyle adjustments can also be made. The following routine blood tests can help in understanding the state of one’s heart –

1)     Lipid Profile: The lipid profile helps measure the total cholesterol, "bad" cholesterol, "good"  cholesterol, and triglycerides in the blood. These are important for assessing one’s risk for various cardiac diseases, such as heart attack, stroke, etc.  

2)     High-sensitivity C-reactive Protein (hs-CRP): This can help detect vascular inflammation, which is a risk factor for heart attacks and strokes.

3)     Homocysteine: High levels of this amino acid are linked to an increased risk of heart disease.

4)     Plasma Ceramides: High levels can indicate atherosclerosis and a higher risk of heart disease in the near future.

5)     Complete Blood Count (CBC): Provides information on red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets, which can indicate underlying issues.  The CBC helps with heart health by detecting conditions like anaemia, which can worsen heart failure, and by providing markers of inflammation and clotting risk, such as high white blood cell (WBC) and platelet counts. 

Heart Health Packages with MedCab

MedCab Pathology services offer rapid sample collection at a time and place of your convenience. MedCab offers fast sample collection services while helping you avoid visits to the pathology labs. MedCab will provide you with timely digital reports that can be accessed easily through email or via the MedCab mobile app. For heart health, MedCab offers the following cost-effective packages –

• MedCab Healthy Heart – Basic:  includes a variety of tests such as Glucose Fasting (BSF), CBC Profile, ESR, HbA1C (Glycosylated Haemoglobin), High Sensitivity CRP, KFT (Max), Lipid Profile, LFT (Max), Urine Profile test and covers 73 parameters.

• MedCab Cardiac Basic Package: includes a variety of tests such as Complete Blood Counts (CBC), Lipid Profile, Creatine Kinase (CK), Glucose (Fasting), HsCRP, Glycosylated Hemoglobin (HbA1C), Urine Profile test and covers 52 parameters

• MedCab Cardioplus – Comprehensive:  includes 19 important tests such as Apolipoprotein A1 , B, CBC, ESR, BSF, HbA1C, CRP, KFT, Lipid Profile, Homocysteine, LFT, Thyroid test, Vitamin tests, APTT, PT/INR.

Conclusion

In conclusion, monitoring the heart health and taking other necessary steps to protect one’s heart health is important. While genetic factors and other risk factors can not always be eliminated, various other steps can be taken to protect the heart from dangerous and life-threatening conditions, such as heart failure. Make important lifestyle changes and get your heart’s parameters tested with MedCab’s pathology services today!

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Learn More About MedCab’s Pathology Services: https://medcab.in/blog-detail/medcabs-pathology-services-home-sample-collection-made-easy