Are you a desk jockey who keeps sitting all day, stuck amidst the deadlines?

Do you skip your breakfast every day in order to reach office on time?

Do you keep disposing of your belly with junk food?

Do you go for frequent smoke breaks during office hours?

If yes, you are taking a toll on your heart’s health.

Amidst the din and bustle of modern office jobs and tight deadlines, workers are ruining their physical as well as mental health. With most of us spending nine hours a day slouching on a chair, we have pushed our lifestyle to sedentary beyond irreparable measures.  Prolonged periods of inactivity lead to obesity along with a series of other conditions, with heart problems on the top of the list. Experts are now describing sitting as ‘the new smoking,’ a floodgate which can explode anytime with a flow of multiple issues and ailments.

From unfulfilled desires to unforgettable memories; from aspiring dreams to sweet emotions, your heart reserves countless things. Doesn’t it deserve good health and a little bit of care from you? Of course, yes. But have you ever thought that the over indulgence in small sinful delights and thrills of life are damaging your heart gradually? It is no surprise that heart problems have become the top cause of mortality in the world and affects the happiness of millions, every year across the world. Let’s look at some of the habits that are harming your heart’s health:

Stress – the biggest enemy of your heart

Let us accept the fact that every employee is exposed to challenges at the workplace. However, it often comes with byproducts – anger and anxiety. Work-related stress contributes to high blood pressure and lowers good cholesterol in your body. This damages arteries and restricts blood flow to the heart. Take a second think how much you upset your heart in a single day by your countless problems.

Smoke breaks – silent killers

“Gotta brainstorm a new marketing plan for this quarter? Let us discuss new ideas over a smoke break.” “Why do I need to worry when I have just one cigarette a day?” These are very common scenarios during work hours. First of all, there is no safe level of smoking. That one cigarette which you might think harmless causes risk of stroke.

Junk food – a fuel to heart stroke

“Working late night? Let us order pizza with cold drinks”. Sounds familiar, right? From French fries, sausages, burgers, to pizzas, you never think twice before dumping junk food into your belly. You love extra mayo on your burger and don’t mind munching potato chips while sitting for long hours on your desk. Unfortunately, according to your cardiologists, these delights are the worst food for your heart.  So think twice about your poor heart before falling prey to the pleasures of taste!

Sleep deprivation – another alarm bell for your heart

Do you keep yawning during an office meeting? Or, feel lethargic all the day due to sleep deprivation. 8 hours of sleep is not a luxury nor is it just beauty sleep. It is a necessity. Don’t take this too lightly folks, sleep deprivation can have shocking effects on your heart!

Shift jobs – greater heart risk

Rotating shift disrupts your circadian rhythms – the biological clock of your body that plays a crucial role in keeping the blood sugar, blood pressure and insulin regulation under control. Shift jobs increase heart risks along with Type 2 diabetes. Night-shift workers are more likely to smoke and that contributes to the risks even more.

Your Heart is not as young as you!

Your heart is precious, and this innocent little organ should not pay for your bad habits. If you think that you are young and you can still afford to make such wrong choices because your heart is young, think again.

Interestingly, your biological age has nothing to do with your heart’s age. A heart stroke can come even when you are in your 20s! You might think that you are young at heart, but reality may shock you! Want to know the right age of your heart? Take the test with Aviva heart age calculator which will tell the accurate age of your heart in just a few minutes.

The good news is that the heart disease is preventable in 80% of the cases. You only need to gift your heart a few lifestyle changes, and it can make a big impact!

• Start with half-an-hour morning walk every day.
• Break your sedentary life by infusing chunks of physical activity in between.
• Don’t keep yourself seated for prolonged hours, break your sitting time.
• Maintain a healthy weight to reduce the risk of heart diseases up to a great level.
• If you are genetically predisposed to develop heart disease, you shouldn’t wait for a stroke. It is advisable to insure the health of your heart with Aviva Heart Care, a plan that covers 19 heart conditions for you as well as your spouse if required. This small step can guard you against the expensive cost of treatment for heart diseases in the future.
• Quit smoking – another good step you can take to protect your heart.
• Eat right and healthy; goes without saying for a healthy heart.
• Most importantly, don’t let stress come between your work and your heart. Stress or depression is slow poison that makes your heart obsolete silently.

What we want to say here is that your heart deserves care and attention. Make small but effective changes in your lifestyle, and you will see how your heart will be thankful to you. If you wish to reap health benefits for your heart in the future, the right time to make amendments in your lifestyle is NOW!

Aviva Heart Care is a non linked, non participating health insurance plan.

UIN: 122N113V01

AN Sep 65/18

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