Take heart health into your own hands. The No. 1 prevention factor for heart disease is weight loss. Aim to reduce your weight by a realistic amount, such as 5 to 10 percent vs. 30 percent. This will increase your chance of success.
The American Heart Association has found that even if you have no other related health conditions, obesity itself increases risk of heart disease. Being 20% overweight or more significantly increases your risk of developing heart disease, especially if you have a lot of abdominal fat.
If you are overweight or have health problems and want to begin a new exercise program, consult your doctor and ask if you should have a stress test. For more information, go to www.heart.org (American Heart Association).
Riverwood offers a team of cardiology practitioners from Minneapolis Heart Institute at its Specialty clinic in Aitkin. They include cardiologists—Dr. TimDirks, Dr. Peter Stokman and Dr. James Madison—and Lise Lunde, adult nurse practitioner, and Rebecca Heimark, physician assistant.
If you need support for losing weight and getting more physically active, take advantage of free wellness coaching offered at Riverwood. Contact Dan Schletty, health and wellness coach, 218-927-5168, or email dschletty@riverwoodhealthcare.org to make an appointment.
Check out the online health assessment tool called Family Health Manager at www.riverwoodhealthcare.org Family Health Manager is an interactive tool that offers you personalized health and wellness options. At no cost, anyone can learn their health score, connect to local resources and create goals in support of healthy living. You can also understand and track key numbers important for overall health. Family Health Manager provides actionable steps to maximize health in key areas such as well-being, activity, sleep, nutrition and pain management. To get started, go to https://health.riverwoodhealthcare.org/fhm
Looking for wellness information? Visit the wellness page on Riverwood’s website. This is a one-stop source of information on both Riverwood wellness resources, such as services and education, and Community wellness resources with info on classes, programs, recreational opportunities and more.