Summer is nearly upon us, and with that comes hot days and an increased strain on the body. The heart, in particular, will have an increased burden, and it is probably the busiest organ in the summer. Therefore, it’s important to do what you can to keep a healthy heart.
When the weather is hot, the heart is busy dispatching blood to the body’s surface to help the limbs dissipate heat. The blood vessels under the skin expand, leading blood flow to the skin to increase. Thus, the amount of blood flowing back to the heart is rather large.
When the blood is busy dissipating heat, the blood supply to the brain is relatively reduced. This reduction in blood supply may cause a person to feel lightheaded and dizzy, something not uncommon on a hot summer day.
So what can you do to help keep your heart healthy in the summer? Aside from drinking water, is there anything else you can do to help the body manage the summer heat and feel more comfortable? Fortunately, the answer is yes. Let’s take a look at a few suggestions that may just surprise you.
How your emotions impact your heart
When you think of heart health, you may think of exercise, eating healthy, and taking supplements or medication. But there’s an important factor that you don’t typically associate with whether or not you have a strong and healthy heart — your thoughts and emotions.
Have you ever stopped to think about the term “heartbroken”? While we usually think of it as a person who is emotionally broken, it actually has another meaning — that is, a broken or damaged cardiovascular system in a literal, physical sense.
So what types of emotions and thoughts can impact your heart? Well, when someone asks you a question, for example, and you’re impatient, or perhaps you think others are stupid or irritating, this negative mental state can lead to a negative impact on your heart. When someone says something you dislike and you instantly get angry, or perhaps attack someone verbally, this type of hostile reaction greatly increases your chance of suffering from cardiovascular disease.
Your emotional and mental states have an impact not just on your heart, but other organs as well. For example, it’s said that anger hurts the heart, while resentment damages the lungs. In reality, your emotions affect not just your mind, but your overall health.
Anger, in particular, plays a significant role. In a 25-year-long study, researchers found that people who exhibited the most hostility were five times more likely to have cardiovascular problems than those who were least hostile among the group. Researchers also studied the relationship between marriage and cardiovascular health. They found that couples who help each other and laugh with each other have the healthiest hearts, while those who scold and dislike each other are most likely to have arteriosclerosis.
Eliminate anger, cultivate kindness
Many studies have shown that irritability, anger, and resentment have a negative impact on health. It turns out that the anger you’re holding in your heart may literally be creating disease. Perhaps that’s why spiritual traditions have always regarded anger as a poison. In fact, Buddha said: “Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.”
So don’t be proud of your fiery or picky personality. If you want to have good, long-term health, let go of any impatience or anger, and instead, replace it with a heart of compassion and kindness. As the ancient sage Lao Tzu once said: “I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.”
Reduce pressure points
Those who pressure others, perhaps by putting expectations on them, by not doing their fair share or taking advantage of others, or by competing to outdo those they’re around, may find that such pressure leads to an elevation of their blood pressure. While taking medication can help relieve this burden on the cardiovascular system, a natural and simple solution may lie in changing your thoughts and actions.
By thinking of others first, you can relieve some of the pressure points in your life by being helpful and thoughtful. And when you let go of competing with others and trying to get ahead, you also relieve the pressure on yourself. In this way, you may naturally improve your blood pressure and relieve this additional burden on your heart.
Practice tolerance
Keeping a calm heart by having tolerance for others is very nourishing for the heart. If you are nitpicky and find something wrong with every little thing, you will find daily life exhausting.
Instead, look at things with a broad and open mind. You may just discover that those things that bothered you really aren’t that big of a deal after all. In this way, your heart rate will stay low and steady, and your heart will be healthier in the long run.
Rest and relax
You should have a rest when it’s time to rest. How do you know when that time is? Well, in particular, if you’re feeling more prone to anger and getting irritable with others, it means you should take a good rest!
Worry and happiness both exist only in your own mind. Only you can decide whether you want to nurture your mind or hurt it. Taking some time to relax, getting a good night’s rest, and doing things like meditation, can all go a long way to help clear the worry and stress. And of course, less stress always makes for a healthier, happier heart.
Translated by Patty Zhang
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