Tuesday 1 October 2013

Matters of the heart


Anu’s Chatter....
Matters of the heart

In the healthy heart month ...... I am inspired to share some facts about this beautiful organ ----
Apart from occupying the most profound space in our body( being in the centre of it)this little organ  occupies the centre of our emotions, feelings , the very energy reason for our existence ,the  nucleus of human relations and of Love! If I ponder, there are a hundred other  smaller things like our little heart , in this universe , that  perform  biggest  of tasks.
For Example----
A banyan,tree that gives shade to thousands, has  the smallest of fruits .Obviously nature has seen to it that , whoever respites for shade under it , is saved of accidents.
A small creeper can dish out huge pumpkins that we relish so much.(By the way pumpkins are one of the heart friendly vegetables!) and nobody sleeps under the creeper so we are saved! 
On the other hand a huge elephant is thankfully a harmless vegetarian. Thank God!
If we sum up nature ,we will undoubtedly find hundreds of such examples,teaching us life lessons with paradoxical  existence.But we forget them , either because we do not have time or think of them as less significant and small. But dear friends, if the little heart is forgotten, we wont be alive to enjoy these very  small pleasures!
 Comming back to the heart of the topic, you will be surprised that the organ that is capable of churning the softest of the  feelings is the hardest-working muscle  of our body . ‘The Heart’ pumps out 2 ounces of blood at every heartbeat, adding up to at least 2,500 gallons daily. The heart has the ability to beat over 3 billion times in a person's life.
Thats why-in the month of the heart I wanted to give a small tribute to it by sharing my heart healthy secrets, with my readers. A few years back,I made these small changes and I am sure they will work for your heart’s health  too .
My Baby Small Steps --

  1. Exercise---A basic exercise like brisk walking for ten to twenty minutes to begin with daily, makes blood rush into different parts of our bodies, spurting the pumping skills of the  heart a little more and removing the blockages if any. The simple reason is ---we were used to playing a lot as children and in its absence; we need to make space for some other activity in our adulthood! Besides exercise releases feel good hormones ! Feel good hormones in return , create a ‘Feel good healthy heart!’An old lady in my neighborhood was diagnosed with a severe heart condition, she went through a bypass. Considering her age, doctors gave her six months.She is 75 now and kicking. I asked this grandmother the secret to health.She said--’Happiness!’ The bottom line was, she started with Yoga after the operation , starting with very simple breathing exercises then progressing to other postures and  there was no looking back!Today she teaches Yoga and is an  inspiration for many!
  2. Sleep-- stress free life and more sleep can make this little pumping muscle stronger because we all know that our heart never stops working! The cardinal rule of going to bed early and waking up early can also work but given the modern lifestyle or work pressures,  if you are  a late sleeper and do not hit sleep fast, you could try  meditation .  I learnt creative visualization from a friend who teaches meditation in her sunday counseling sessions at a local church . When  worry bogs me down at bed time,I meditate with my head on the pillow! It works like anesthesia for me !
  3.    Eat healthy-- Very little changes in your eating habits like----consuming low cholesterol foods, or fried foods , less of sweets and  more of heart friendly  nuts , fruits , fibre, greens  can improve heart health  in less than a year.A teenager in my neighborhood suffering from obesity was prescribed with the above.(As she had kidney and lever problems because of weight,the doctor asked her to make a few  amends in her lifestyle or they could  creep to her heart. It is also a wrong notion that only elderly suffer from a ailing heart) After an year, after loosing  35 kgs this teenager went on to win the college beauty pageants. The truth is loosing huge amounts of weight needed very small changes in her eating habits. She cut short on a few dairy products and incorporated greens , fruits and nuts in place of road side fast foods she so much cherished earlier.She is  now an inspiration for the other youngsters around.


SO LET US PLEDGE TO KEEPING  A HEALTHY HEART BY  WHAT EVER IT TAKES TO MAKE IT THAT WAY?


PS--Did you make any small lifestyle changes that changed the way you look or feel? Share here!

1 comment:

  1. Nice blog....useful for those who want to work on themselves...keep it up

    ReplyDelete