Stress is everywhere in our lives these days. Stress isn’t just an inconvenience when it comes to heart disease; it can be a major health problem. Stressful situations can increase your heart rate and blood pressure. This can damage the lining of the blood vessels and lead to plaque formation. Stress can also increase your total blood cholesterol levels. It can also narrow your arteries, which will reduce blood flow in the coronary arteries of your heart and cause chest pain or a heart attack.

So how do you know when stress is getting the better of you? While some stress can be beneficial, you may need to learn how to reduce or deal with your stress more effectively if one or more of the following symptoms persist:

Ideally, we should try to reduce the sources of negative stress in our lives. However, the reality is that this can’t always be done. What we can do, is decide how to deal with stress in our lives. Consider the following tips to reduce and deal with your stress:

•  Problem solve with your health care provider, family, friends, or co-workers.
•  Get active with at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity most days of the week.
•  Eat a healthy diet - low in fat and sodium, and high in whole grains, vegetables and fruit.
•  Get enough sleep. Make good use of your time off.

Key References:

Canadian Health Network. (2007). How can I reduce my stress level? Retrieved December 21, 2007 from www.canadian-health-network.ca.

Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. (2007). Reduce your stress. Retrieved December 21, 2007 from http://www.heartandstroke.com/site/c.ikIQLcMWJtE/b.3484039/k.D422/Reduce_your_stress.htm