Fortune: Your Resting Heart Rate Can Tell You a Lot About Your Health
Fortune recently interviewed Joseph Ebinger, MD, associate professor of Cardiology in the Department of Cardiology in the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai, for two articles exploring how an individual’s resting heart rate and blood pressure can shed light on their heart health.
According to the American Heart Association (AHA), a normal resting heart rate—the number of times the heart beats per minute when the body is at rest—is 60 to 100 beats per minute for most adults. Ebinger told Fortune cardiovascular exertion lowers a person’s resting heart rate.
“That’s a reflection of a healthy cardiovascular system, one where the heart is able to beat strongly with each individual beat and not have to beat more frequently to get blood out to the body that’s needed for the organs to do all of their jobs,” he said.
Ebinger told Fortune people who have a resting heart rate that is regularly above 100 or who experience an irregular heart rhythm should get a medical evaluation.
“You want that heart rate to be regular, kind of like a metronome,” he said. “If you’re feeling that your heart rate is irregular in any nature, that would be [a] sign to go and see a doctor.”
Blood pressure, the force of blood circulating through the arteries, is gauged by measuring the systolic pressure (the force of blood being pumped out of the heart) and the diastolic pressure (the pressure when the heart fills with blood). A measurement of less than 120/80 mm Hg (systolic over diastolic) is considered normal in adults.
Ebinger told Fortune high blood pressure, or hypertension, is the leading risk factor for heart disease in the U.S.
“Finding ways to control it is really important in minimizing your risk, and it can happen early on in life,” he said, adding that medication and lifestyle modifications, such as exercising consistently, minimizing alcohol and avoiding salt, can help.
Click here and here to read the complete articles from Fortune.