Help us build a healthier Maine by preventing disease

  1. Schedule an appointment with your healthcare provider to learn your personal risk for heart disease.
  2. Quit smoking. Did you know that just one year after you quit, you’ll cut your risk of coronary heart disease by 50%?
  3. Start an exercise program. Just walking 30 minutes a day can lower your risk for heart attack and stroke.
  4. Modify your family’s diet if needed. Check out these healthy cooking tips. You’ll learn smart substitutions, healthy snacking ideas and better prep methods. For example, with poultry, use the leaner light meat (breasts) instead of the fattier dark meat (legs and thighs), and be sure to remove the skin.
  5. Maintain a healthy weight. Carrying excess weight – especially around your middle – can lead to conditions that increase the risk of heart disease, including diabetes and high blood pressure.
  6. Get enough sleep. Not getting enough sleep puts us at greater risk for obesity, high blood pressure, heart attacks, diabetes and depression.
  7. Manage stress in healthy ways – ways that don’t undermine health like drinking, smoking and over-eating.
  8. Get regular health screenings for blood pressure, cholesterol levels and diabetes.
  9. Stay in touch with friends and family and do things you love. Loneliness and low sense of purpose are hard on your heart.