The kind of life one leads has a great impact on their heart health. In the race to become the next major success story, people often disregard their heart and the stress it is put through. The risk of cardiovascular diseases especially increases with age, and more so when coupled with a sedentary lifestyle, stress, and poor eating habits. So, if you have elderly parents, extra focus on their heart condition is essential. And if there is a family history of diseases of the heart running through your family, they should start taking care at the earliest. Apart from getting health insurance for heart diseases, your parents need to exercise as well, get the blood flowing, and shift to a more active and conscious lifestyle.
Here are some exercises your elderly parents can do to ward off heart diseases:
With age, it becomes important to exercise regularly to protect the heart against high cholesterol levels, high blood pressure and high blood sugar. Staying active is like
health insurance and will help your parents counter these problems. They can start with these:
Aerobic ExercisesCommonly referred to as cardio, these are exercises that are designed to make you sweat a little and raise your heart rate. Aerobic exercises will improve the blood circulation in your parent’s body and lower their blood pressure. It would also help to control their blood sugar levels. Ideally, every adult should exercise for a minimum of 30 minutes every day of the week. Moderate intensity cardio exercises like a brisk walk, leisurely swim or dancing are preferable.
StretchingAlthough stretching is not something that directly affects your heart health, but it does strengthen your muscles. When your parents are exercising every day, it is rather important to pay attention to strengthening of muscles. Cramps or joint pains due to weak muscles can often lead to other issues. Otherwise, during exercising, joint aches or cramps can cause them to lose balance and face injuries that will limit their ability to exercise.
Strength TrainingStrength training is important if your parents are looking to reduce body fat and cut down on the bad cholesterol and raise good cholesterol levels. Pushups, sit-ups, squats, etc. are some of the strength training exercises that work for all core muscle groups.
YogaYoga will help to strengthen and tone the muscles of your parents, and with certain yoga exercises, your parents can better their heart rate and lower the blood pressure. You can get your parents to take up a yoga class taught by a certified trainer.
Cycling
Cycling is always great for elderly people. It will reduce the risk of heart problems and will also improve their mental health. Just make sure they do it on well-paved and smooth roads or tracks.
Precautions to take
Adopting a healthy lifestyle doesn't end with exercising, but your parents need to eat well too. Apart from incorporating more fruits, vegetables, lean proteins and healthy fats in their diet, reducing alcohol consumption and quitting smoking is also necessary. Make sure they stay away from saturated fats, especially if they are overweight. Also, reduce the amount of salt in your parents’ diet, which will keep the blood pressure in check.
Apart from following the above tips, your parents need
senior citizen health insurance too, so that they can stay covered in case of an unforeseen event or sudden hospitalisation. Coverage of medical expenses, coverage against critical illnesses, and tax benefits are some of the many
benefits of health insurance. No matter how careful your parents are, no one can predict the future. Risks and uncertainty are a part and parcel of life and cannot be avoided completely. However, having health insurance will give them and you peace of mind.