Healthy lifestyles and atrial fibrillation prevention

  Atrial fibrillation is the most common cardiac arrhythmia, and its incidence has been increasing in recent years as the population ages and cardiovascular risk factors are not well controlled. The development of AF significantly increases the risk of a variety of diseases, including stroke, heart failure and dementia, significantly increasing the burden of health care costs on individuals, families and society. Given the serious complications and high economic burden associated with AF, primary prevention of AF is particularly important.  Previous studies have identified a number of risk factors associated with the development of AF, such as obesity, smoking, hypertension, diabetes, and physical inactivity. Some of these risk factors can be avoided through lifestyle changes, such as increasing physical activity, maintaining a reasonable body mass index (weight loss in overweight and obese people), quitting smoking, and reducing alcohol consumption can reduce atrial fibrillation episodes. And a large sample size observational study published in July 2015 analyzed the effectiveness of reducing four atrial fibrillation risk factors in the prevention of atrial fibrillation through a combination of healthy lifestyle choices. The study enrolled a healthy AF-free population aged 45-83 years, including 39,300 Swedish men and 33,090 Swedish women, and defined a healthy lifestyle as having a body mass index <25 kg/m2, regular exercise for ≥20 minutes per day, not smoking, and not drinking alcohol or drinking only small amounts (less than 2 drinks per day for men and less than 1 drink per day for women). The results of the study found that people who made healthy lifestyle choices had a significantly lower risk of atrial fibrillation compared to those who did not, and those who met all four of these healthy lifestyle choices had half the risk of atrial fibrillation. This shows that a healthy lifestyle is important in reducing the occurrence of atrial fibrillation.  A study at the 2015 American Heart Association (AHA) Annual Meeting also found that adhering to the AHA's Life's Simple 7 for a healthy heart can reduce the risk of ischemic heart disease and stroke. Life's Simple 7), not only protects cardiovascular health, but also prevents many chronic diseases. Therefore, by promoting a healthy lifestyle, we can not only help prevent atrial fibrillation, but also improve overall health.  The "Simple Lifestyle 7", or 7 heart-healthy lifestyles, include non-smoking, maintaining proper weight, regular exercise, a healthy diet, ideal cholesterol levels, ideal blood pressure levels, and ideal blood sugar levels.  1, non-smoking: smoking is the first preventable factor in the cause of premature death, and quitting smoking is the key to preventing cardiovascular disease.  2, appropriate weight: body mass index (BMI) control below 25 will greatly reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome. The calculation is weight (kg) / height (m)2. 3, regular exercise: aerobic exercise 3 to 5 times a week for 30 to 40 minutes each time is good for health. Brisk walking and jogging are recommended ways to exercise. The right amount of exercise means a certain amount of intensity, a little sweat, but will not make your back sore.  4.Healthy diet: balanced and reasonable diet, with low cholesterol, low fat, low sugar, low salt, more vegetables and fruits and other light talk and low calorie meals.  5.Ideal cholesterol level: In general, for people without cardiovascular disease risk factors, total cholesterol level should be controlled below 200 mg/dL, and low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C) level should be controlled below 130 mg/dL. However, the "ideal" cholesterol level varies with risk factors and requires intervention under the guidance of a physician.  6. Ideal blood pressure level: The ideal blood pressure level for normal people is 120/80mmHg, and the blood pressure of hypertensive patients should be controlled below 140/90mmHg in a long-term and stable manner.  7, the ideal blood sugar level: fasting blood sugar level should be lower than 6.1mmol/L (110mg/dL), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) level is controlled below 6.2%.