As we all begin to think about the holiday season, I thought it would be a good idea to speak about facing the holidays with health in mind. And this is not to say that you won’t or can’t indulge, but if you didn’t know, heart attacks are more common during the holiday season due to factors like overindulgence in food and alcohol, increased stress, and cold weather. In fact, on December 24th, the incidence of heart attacks increases by over 30%. I reached out to our favorite cardiologist, Dr. Jayne Morgan, to get the information that we’ll all need to end the holiday season happy, healthy, and ready to face the new year.
I asked Morgan if there was a “healthy” way to enjoy the holidays and she shared that to avoid Holiday Heart Syndrome that we have to avoid overindulging. She speaks about holiday meals having more sodium, fat, and sugar. Alcohol is usually in the mix as we go from maybe one drink a week to multiple events with alcoholic beverages every evening of the week. She speaks about other stressors and reminds us to take our medications, stay hydrated, and to also reduce caffeine and energy drink intake.
When I mentioned indulging one day and only eating veggies the next day, she reminded us that often holiday vegetables aren’t prepared in ways that are not the healthiest, and to keep that in mind when making exchanges. Morgan also shares that we should try to get exercise, take a walk. She speaks about how many of us working from home are not moving as much as we should. Taking breaks for walks during the holidays is one way to counter overindulgence.
Morgan recently reported on a cardiology conference she attended in Spain, where they noted the use of beta blockers to support heart health in women wasn’t the same as for men. She speaks about how medical research has mainly focused on men. And mostly men who weigh approximately 154 pounds. Unfortunately, most research didn’t include a diversity of ethnic groups, genders, or races.
We speak about heart disease being the number one killer in the US of men and women. She goes on to explain that we shouldn’t accept that obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure are a normal part of aging. Morgan asks that we model healthy behaviour: move, eat healthy, and take care of ourselves.