- Cardiologists say small, everyday habits can slowly harm your heart health.
- These include sitting too much, ignoring stress and late-night snacking.
- They also recommend avoiding excessive alcohol and seeking help quitting smoking.
Your heart is essentially your body’s engine. It works tirelessly, beating about 100,000 times a day to help keep you moving, breathing and living. Yet, for something so vital, many of us take it for granted.
Cardiologists have a different take. They know that heart disease is often the cumulative result of everyday habits we barely think twice about. The good news? It’s never too late to try and reverse course. Heart doctors don’t expect perfection, but they do wish we would pay closer attention to a handful of habits that can wreak havoc on our cardiovascular systems.
By identifying—and giving up—these common behaviors, they say that you can significantly improve your odds of living a longer, healthier life.
1. Missing Out on Movement
The human body was designed to move, yet stillness has become our default mode. Many of us drive to work (or we work from home and don’t even leave the house!). Then, we sit at our desks for eight hours, ride home via car or train, and spend the evening relaxing on the couch to unwind. Unfortunately, your heart pays a steep price for this lack of activity.
“The most common bad habit I see in my patients is not moving,” says Bradley Serwer, M.D. The downside isn’t just gaining weight or feeling sluggish. “A sedentary life has been linked to heart disease and premature death,” he says.
Fortunately, the fix doesn’t require an expensive gym membership or training for a marathon. It simply requires a shift in mindset to prioritize motion. Find activities you enjoy that get your blood pumping. Then try to make them a regular part of your day. “Go for a walk, ride your bike, swim in the lake, enjoy life,” suggests Serwer. Simple, joyful movement is often the best medicine.
2. Underestimating the Power of Quitting Smoking
“Smoking isn’t as common as sedentary lifestyles, so it affects less people, however, smoking is the single worst thing you can do to your body,” says Serwer. The damage it causes is systemic, affecting nearly every part of the cardiovascular system. “Smoking promotes the development of atherosclerosis, increases the risk of forming blood clots, damages your arteries, raises your blood pressure and reduces the oxygen delivery to your body,” he says.
Of course, if quitting smoking were easy, far fewer people would light up. Considering that smoking impacts your heart health from multiple angles, stopping is the most powerful step you can take for your heart. If you smoke, speak to your health care provider about resources to help you quit.
3. Ignoring Stress
We often view stress as a purely mental or emotional struggle—a bad day at the office or a frustrating traffic jam. But your heart doesn’t distinguish between emotional stress and physical danger. While occasional stress is no big deal, chronic stress triggers a cascade of hormones that can put your body in a state of constant high alert. Over time, this unchecked stress can lead to high blood pressure and even irregular heart rhythms.
To complicate matters, stress can act as a gateway to other choices that harm your heart, says Serwer. When you are feeling stressed, you may be less likely to cook a healthy meal or go for a run and more inclined to turn to less-than-healthy habits for comfort. That’s why it’s so important to be proactive and develop strategies to nip stress in the bud before it snowballs. “By dealing with your mental health in a positive manner, you can avoid the negative consequences of these bad habits,” says Serwer. Managing your mental headspace is effectively managing your heart health.
4. Drinking Too Much Alcohol
From happy hours to celebratory toasts, social drinking is deeply ingrained in our culture. While an occasional glass of wine or cocktail is usually harmless, drinking too much can be problematic for your heart, says John R. Laird, Jr., M.D. “Excessive alcohol consumption can raise blood pressure and increase the risk,” he explains. If you’re wondering how much is too much, the American Heart Association recommends limiting alcohol to two drinks a day for men and one for women.
5. Snacking Late at Night
We live in an era where food is available 24/7, making it all too easy to snack well into the night. That can spell trouble for your heart in all sorts of ways, says Muhammad Malik, M.D. “From a cardiovascular standpoint, this habit is strongly associated with weight gain, insulin resistance, elevated triglycerides and poor blood pressure control,” he explains.
It also works against you in another, less obvious way. “Late-night eating in particular disrupts circadian rhythms and glucose metabolism, leading to worse lipid profiles and higher cardiovascular risk,” he says.
Strategies for Better Heart Health
Breaking old habits can seem daunting, but you don’t have to overhaul your entire life overnight to keep your heart healthy. These actionable strategies can get you started:
- Monitor Your Blood Pressure: “High blood pressure often shows no symptoms, particularly in the early stages, which is why most people do not realize they have it. It can quietly damage your body for years,” says Laird. Regular doctors’ visits can give you a good feel for your numbers, but that yearly appointment is only a snapshot in time. For more consistent feedback, consider purchasing a home blood pressure monitor.
- Add in Soluble Fiber: All fiber is good. But soluble fiber is especially advantageous for your heart, helping remove cholesterol from the body before it can clog your arteries. Experts recommend consuming 5 to 10 grams of soluble fiber per day from foods like oats, quinoa, barley, beans, avocados, chia seeds, flaxseed and berries.
- Schedule Movement: Treat your walk or bike ride like a doctor’s appointment and put it on the calendar. You’ll be less likely to forget (or skip) it.
- Focus on Consistency over Perfection: You don’t need a strict eating plan that makes you miserable. You need sustainable habits. “Heart-healthy eating is not about perfection or restriction. It’s about patterns and consistency,” says Malik.
Our Expert Take
Protecting your heart health doesn’t require running a marathon or giving up all your favorite foods. It’s about your daily habits. So, keep the good ones and lose the bad ones. Cardiologists say habits like sitting too much, smoking, ignoring stress, drinking too much alcohol, and late-night snacking can all slowly harm your heart. By addressing even one of these, you can create a positive ripple effect for your overall well-being. Start small, be consistent and remember that every healthy choice is a signal to your heart that you’re in it for the long haul.
