Six Numbers Can Save Your Life

Want to maintain a healthy heart? Keep track of these six health measurements that can warn you of trouble ahead. Six measurements can tell where you stand in your battle against the heart's attackers. Three you can check yourself-all you need is a pencil, tape measure and a watch with a second hand. The others you can get from your doctor. Write these numbers down and keep track of them over time, and they will speak volumes about the health of your heart.

1. Daily Calorie Needs

How much food do you actually eat? In a perfect world, you'd eat just enough to provide fuel for your body. In reality, many of us eat between 100 and 1000 calories more than we need every day. An extra slice of cheese here, an extra helping of meat there, a bag of chips-"just this once"-all add up to weight gain, and becoming overweight is among the worse things you can do for your heart.

Few people know exactly how many calories they need each day, but you can work that out by multiplying the number of kilograms you weigh by about 28 to 33, depending on how active you are. Most women need 2000 calories a day for good health, men generally about 1550. The roughly equates to 300 to 400 calories for breakfast, 500 to 600 for lunch, 600 to 700 for dinners, and two or three snacks of roughly 100 to 200 calories each.

But picky calorie counting is not the best way to match your food consumption to your body's energy needs. It is far better to change the type of food you eat. It's almost impossible to consume too many calories if you focus on eating lots of fruits and vegetables. And having a diet rich in produce means you get plenty of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and other nutrients essential for heart health.

2. Waist Size

Of all the ways to measure whether your is affecting the health of your heart, waist size is one of the best. An even more accurate measure is your waist-to-hip ratio (calculated by dividing your waist circumference at its narrowest point by your hip circumference at its widest point): A ratio of more than 0.90 in men or 0.85 in women shows central obesity and may indicate metabolic syndrome, a group of risk factors that can accompany heart disease.

Fat cells are not just storage vessels for extra calories your body can't burn off. When body fat is packed into your abdomen-in and around your internal organs-the fat cells release inflammatory chemicals and off killer levels of appetite-controlling proteins. The result is that your risk of heart attacks increases as inflammation speeds up atherosclerosis.

In addition, your risk of insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome rises as inflammatory substances interfere with the way muscle and liver cells function. Meanwhile, your natural appetite-suppressing system is disrupted, leading to more overeating and more abdominal fat.

T o check your waistline wrap a tape measure around your abdomen, at or near your belly button. Keep it snug but not tight-and don't pull your stomach in. For women, health risk begins to rise with a waist of more than 88 centimeters 935 inches). For men, risk increases with a measurement of over 102 centimeters (40 inches). Check every two weeks.

3. Cholesterol Counts

It is important to know not just your total cholesterol reading but also your levels of bad LDL cholesterol and good HDL cholesterol. When you see your doctor for blood-test results, the lab report may have itemized these two types and perhaps also given a ratio of your total cholesterol to HDL (TC:HDL), if so, ask for the readings for both forms of cholesterol and the ratio figure and jot them in your diary.

Aim for total cholesterol below 5.2 millimoles per litre (mmo1/L), or below 5 mmo1/L if you have heart disease or diabetes, and LDL-cholesterol levels below 3.5 mmo1/L, or below 2 mmo1/L if you have a history of heart disease. A healthy HDL level is 1.3 mmo1/L or above.

You have to fast for eight to 12 hours before most blood tests. If your total cholesterol is consistently higher than 6 to 6.5 mmo1/L, your doctor will suggest life-style measures and may offer you treatment and recommend regular check ups.

4. Blood Pressure

Blood pressure (BP)-the force of blood against the walls of your arteries-rises and falls naturally during the day. When it remains elevated, you have hypertension (high BP), and this carries a higher risk of atherosclerosis, heart disease and stroke.

A reading of 140/90 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) or more is considered high. If it's between 120/80 and 139/89 mm Hg, you may still be at risk and should take steps to prevent hypertension. Eating high-in-potassium fruits and vegetables can help. Regular BP checks will help spot a potential problem early.

5. Triglycerides

Triglycerides are made from the fats and carbohydrates you eat, which are converted into a form that can be stored in fat cells. Triglycerides are also released from fat tissue when the body needs extra energy between meals. It's normal to have some triglycerides in your bloodstream, but high levels are linked to coronary artery disease-especially in women.

When you have high triglycerides paired with low HDLs, your risk of insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome may be increased. A normal triglyceride reading is less than 1.7 mmo1/I.

A triglyceride check is usually done from the same blood sample you give for fasting cholesterol teast. Your doctor will advise how often you should  have your triglycerides checked. Regular checks are an important early warning system for your heart.

6. Morning Pulse Rate.

Your pulse rate is the number of times your heart beats in one minute. Regular monitoring of your resting pulse, first t hing in the morning, will help you see if your exercise regimen is strengthening your heart. For example, a normal resting-pulse rate is 60 to 90 beats per minute. People who are fit tend to have lower resting-pulse rates because their heart muscles are in good shape. But if you don't exercise regularly and your heart rate is lower than the normal range, tell your doctor-it could be a sign of heart disease.

Once a month, take your pulse in the morning before you get out of bed. To check if your exercise program is working, assess your maximum pulse just after exercise and note how long it takes to return to its normal resting rate-the time interval should reduce as you get fitter. You will know your exercise program is strengthening your heart if your pulse rate gradually falls within the healthy range.

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