Commemorating the World Heart Day today Patiala Heart Institute organized a free heart check up camp at the hospital with an aim to create awareness about the rapidly increasing heart disease and encouraging people to make heart-healthy choices.Patiala Heart Institute also launched an educative campaign “Healthy Heart” to educate the general public about the Dos and Don’ts of heart health. Celebrating World Heart Day, Dr. Gurpreet Singh Sidhu, Chairman& Chief Consultant Cardiologist, Patiala Heart Institute highlighted the importance of Heart Healthy habits and talked about the major Dos and Don’ts for that perfect thumping.
The complete team of the Department of Cardiac Sciences at Patiala Heart Institute comprising of cardiologists, cardiac surgeons and cardiac intensivist examined over 300 patients during the heart camp. The patients had come from Patiala and surrounding cities of Samana, Nabha, Rajpura and Cheeka. Hospital’s Department of Dietetics and Nutrition provided diet counseling to the patients and laid emphasis on importance of diet in maintaining good heart health.Dr. Gurpreet Singh Sidhu, Chairman, Patiala Heart Institute, said that the key to a healthy heart is a good diet and an active lifestyle. Every Indian above the age of 40 should get a heart evaluation done as it helps in detecting risk factors and preventing onset of coronary artery disease at an early stage. He also said that as North Indians, our love for ghee and fatty foods needs to be checked.
Transitioning to the modern times does not mean that one consistently enjoys the comfort of automobiles, TVs, A/Cs, etc. as all these promote inactive lifestyle and invite early onset of heart disease. “At the end of the day, it is an individual who thinks and then acts to promote healthy heart. The primary motive of this camp is public awareness about the prevention of heart disease,” he said.Dilshad Singh Sidhu, Director, Patiala Heart institute, said that the hospital is seeing an increase in the number of patients getting examined during the heart camps, which is a good sign, signaling the increased awareness on heart disease. He also informed that various tests including ECG, Blood Sugar, Lipid Profile and Echocardiography were done free of cost.
Do’s:
• Safe and moderate exercise can keep your heart healthy
• Doing household work is an easy way to burn calories and make heart healthy
• Eat high fiber diet
• Eat many times a day with small portions
• Take control of your weight and manage it accordingly
• Last but not the least, learn to manage stress as it significantly decreases the risk of heart disease
Don’ts:
• Avoid smoking and alcohol
• Using lifts and vehicles when they can be avoided
• Reduce watching TV for long
• Consumption of food that is high in fat, sugar and salt
• Having sedentary lifestyle