Lifestyle Changes

The goals of lifestyle change include:

• Decrease the risk of further heart damage
• Lessen symptoms
• Improve heart function

Decrease risk of further heart damage

• Stop smoking.
• Reach and maintain your healthy weight.
• Control high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol and diabetes.
• Exercise regularly.
• Ask your doctor about use of alcohol

Lessen symptoms

• Maintain fluid balance
• Decrease sodium (salt) in your diet .
  Sodium is found naturally in many foods we eat. It is also added for flavoring (known as salt!) or to preserve food. Do not add salt to your food and do not use salt substitutes since they often are high in potassium. If you follow a low-sodium diet, you should have less fluid retention, less swelling and breathe easier. See Nutritional Guidelines for Heart Failure.
• Weigh yourself daily.
  Weigh yourself each morning, in similar clothing, after urinating, but before eating, and on the same scale. Record your weight in a diary or calendar. If you gain two pounds in one day or five pounds in one week, this means you are retaining fluid. Call your doctor. He or she may want to adjust your medications. See Monitoring Your Health When You Have Heart Failure.
• Your doctor may also ask you to:
  • drink or eat less fluids
  • keep a record of the amount of fluids you drink or eat (intake) and amount you urinate (output) . Re member, the more fluid you carry in your blood vessels, the harder the heart must work to pump excess fluid through the body. A 2000 mg sodium diet and limiting fluid intake to less than 2 liters per day will help decrease the workload of your heart and prevent symptoms from recurring.
• Learn what your "dry" or "ideal" weight is.
  This is your weight without extra water (fluid). Your goal is to keep your weight within four pounds of your dry weight. This can be maintained by keeping your intake equal to your output.
• Monitor your symptoms. Call your doctor:
  • if new symptoms occur
  • if your symptoms worsen

  Do NOT wait for your symptoms to become so severe that you need to seek emergency treatment.

• Take your medications as prescribed.
  • Medications are used to improve your heart's ability to pump blood, decrease stress on your heart, prevent or slow the progression of heart failure (ventricular remodeling) and prevent fluid retention.
  • See medications for heart failure in women for more information about medications

Improve heart function

• Eat a healthy diet
• Eat less than 2,000 milligrams (2 grams) of sodium each day.
• Reach and maintain a healthy weight (you may need to eat fewer calories per day).
• Limit foods high in fat, cholesterol and sugar.
• Manage your fluids
• Weigh yourself daily.
  Keep your weight within four pounds (two pounds lower or higher) than your dry weight.
• Limit fluid intake to 2 liters or less per day.
• Be creative in managing your thirst.
• See Monitoring Your Health When You Have Heart Failure.
• Exercise regularly.
  A regular cardiovascular exercise program, prescribed by your doctor, will help improve symptoms, strength and your sense of well-being. It may also decrease heart failure progression. See Heart Failure Exercise Guidelines.
• Avoid heavy exercise or activities
  Activities, such as pushing or pulling heavy objects, shoveling, or strenuous occupations, may worsen heart failure and its symptoms.
• Prevent respiratory infections
  Ask your doctor about flu and pneumonia vaccines.
• Take your medications as prescribed
  Do not stop taking them without first contacting your doctor.
• Get emotional or psychological support - if you need it.
  Heart failure can be difficult for your whole family. If you have questions, ask your doctor or nurse. If you need emotional support, social workers, psychologists, clergy and heart failure support groups are a phone call away. Ask your doctor or nurse to point you in the right direction.

To help you with your lifestyle changes, you may benefit from a heart failure disease management program.

• Find a Cleveland Clinic heart doctor who specializes in heart failure in women

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