Keeping the American Heart Healthy – Prevention is Half the Battle

Keeping the American heart healthy is so important! But you have to keep at it all year long (and beyond) to help your heart stay strong. GrantWatch is encouraging long term health and fulfillments for the issues that make heart disease so important to recognize. In fact, GrantWatch offers a list of over 2,000 grants in its Health and Medical grants category. It’s comforting to know that there is also countrywide and international funding.

American Hearts Are Precious

If you’ve ever had a friend or loved one diagnosed with heart disease, you know just how harrowing the experience can be. In fact, the symptoms are so diverse that they present in a number of different ways. Heart disease is an umbrella term that encompasses a wide range of conditions that affect the heart’s structure and function. This includes coronary artery disease, heart failure, arrhythmia, and heart valve problems. According to the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation, “11.6 million Americans are estimated to have heart valve disease, and 3 in 4 individuals report knowing little to nothing about the disease.” Perhaps the worst part is that a large number of Americans will suffer their first heart attack before they even know they have the issue.

As Americans, we’re raised to believe in the ideal of the American Heart. It’s as though we consider the American heart to beat fast, stronger, more passionately for the things we care about. It’s closely tied to our sense of identity, that sense of pride we carry. If this is the case, then of course we should all do our part to ensure we stay healthy. GrantWatch believes that all life is precious. We’re not medical doctors but there is some information we believe our subscribers should know. So, without further ado, let’s see what the Mayo Clinic has to say on the matter.

Strategies to Prevent Heart Disease

1. Don’t smoke or use tobacco. Chemicals in tobacco can damage the heart and blood vessels. Cigarette smoke lowers the oxygen in the blood, which raises blood pressure and heart rate…There’s good news though. The risk of heart disease starts to drop in as little as a day after quitting. After a year, without cigarettes, the risk of heart disease drops to about half that of a smoker. No matter how long or how much you smoked, you’ll start reaping rewards as soon as you quit.

2. Get moving. Aim for about 30 to 60 minutes of activity daily. Regular, daily physical activity can lower the risk of heart disease. Physical activity helps control your weight. It also lowers the chances of getting other conditions that may put a strain on the heart. These include high blood pressure, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes.

3. Eat a heart-healthy diet. A healthy diet can help protect the heart, improve blood pressure and cholesterol, and lower the risk of type 2 diabetes…Two examples of heart-healthy food plans include the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) eating plan and the Mediterranean diet.

4. Maintain a healthy weight. Even a small weight loss can be good for you. Reducing weight by just 3% to 5% can help lower certain fats in the blood called triglycerides. It can lower blood sugar, also called glucose. And it can cut the risk of type 2 diabetes. Losing even more helps lower blood pressure and blood cholesterol levels.

MayoClinic.org, “Strategies to Prevent Heart Disease”

More Tips to Boost Your Heart Health

5. Get quality sleep. People who don’t get enough sleep have a higher risk of obesity, high blood pressure, heart attack, diabetes and depression. Most adults need at least seven hours of sleep each night. Children usually need more.

6. Manage stress. Ongoing stress can play a role in higher blood pressure and other risk factors for heart disease. Some people also cope with stress in unhealthy ways. For example, they may overeat, drink or smoke…Healthy tactics include physical activity, relaxation exercises, mindfulness, yoga and meditation.

7. Get regular health screening tests. High blood pressure and high cholesterol can damage the heart and blood vessels. But if you don’t get checked for these conditions, you likely won’t know whether you have them. Regular screening tests can tell you what your numbers are and whether you need to take action…Blood pressure…Cholesterol levels…Type 2 Diabetes screening.

8. Take steps to prevent infections. Certain illnesses caused by infections can make existing heart problems worse. Vaccines help protect against infectious diseases. So stay up to date on the following shots: …Yearly flu vaccine…COVID-19 vaccine…Pneumococcal vaccine…Tdap vaccine.

MayoClinic.org, “Strategies to Prevent Heart Disease”

Below are grants currently available that address heart health-related grant funding needs.

Heart Health-Related Grants

1. Grants of up to $50,000 to eligible nonprofits and public entities for health-related programs and activities related to research, community health, and professional education. Also, funding is for direct program expenses. In certain circumstances, funding will be used for general operating expenses. Moreover, the Foundation currently accepts proposals in any of three broad areas: community health, professional education, and research. The Board encourages and gives particular consideration to proposals designed to improve the cardiac health of populations with a higher than average risk of heart disease and/or are generally underserved by our current health system.
2. There are grants to eligible organizations for programs to improve the health/well-being of local residents. In addition, funding priorities include heart disease-related indicators, stroke, and aging populations.
3. Additionally, grants to eligible nonprofits to benefit communities. In fact, funding is for programs in the areas of medical research and disabilities. As a result, grant funds will be for program and capital support, research, scholarships, and funds to meet the challenge of matching funds. Areas of interest include medical research, specifically heart, cancer, vision and Myasthenia Gravis.
4. Grants of up to $25,000 to eligible nonprofits to address health needs and provide access to healthcare in underserved populations. Funding is for projects, programs, and general operating support to include the following: chronic disease, mental and behavioral health, and access to healthcare. Altogether, funding will target organizations and services to positively impact existing barriers. It is vital to recognize the health value of early detection and management of chronic disease. There will also be requests to reduce health disparities through screening, follow-up care, and/or management for multiple conditions, including heart disease.
5. There are grants to eligible nonprofits for programs and projects to benefit the community. Also, in the funding areas of healthcare and medical research, heart disease will be among the conditions addressed.

Additional Heart Health-Related Grants

1. Also, grants to eligible nonprofits for research addressing heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and lung disease, including asthma. Moreover, funding is for innovative scientific research, and for centers of excellence that collaborate in sentinel genome sequencing and advanced research. As a result, the goal is to develop new treatment pathways for heart disease, lung disease, cancer, and diabetes.
2. Grants of up to $20,000 to eligible nonprofits for programs that benefit underserved communities. Program areas include health and human services, humanities, arts and culture, education, the environment, and endangered species. Additionally, special consideration will be for the focus areas of heart disease, healthcare/nursing, domestic violence awareness, and endangered species.
3. Lastly, grants to eligible nonprofits for medical research. Funding supports research to be conducted in the areas of cancer and heart disease.

We hope you’ll join in observing American Heart Month and help the people you love do all that they can to keep themselves heart healthy!

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Please Note: There is no guarantee by GrantWatch nor the author of grant awards as a result of this information.