Circulatory System

You cannot afford to take your circulatory system for granted. Without proper circulation, your body is in trouble. From little things like fatigue to big problems such as heart failure, circulatory health is extremely important. Some problems might seem to be out of your control, but it is wise to pay attention to signs that circulation is not running smoothly.

What is the Circulatory System?

This is the system which pumps blood around your body from the heart through veins, capillaries, arteries, and into every area. That includes the GI tract and brain. Blood picks up and delivers things: oxygen and carbon dioxide, nutrients, and waste. Platelets carry the key to clotting when you cut yourself. Red cells carry iron and oxygen. White cells contribute to an immune response.

Problems with Blood Flow

What sorts of problems potentially beset a person in this part of his or her life? Weak arterial walls, plaque build-up along these walls, poor blood pressure, and injury or illness in a heart valve can lead to heart attack, dizziness, stroke, or thrombosis.

Usually, lifestyle is the reason for heart problems. An individual is overweight, not fit enough, or has incurred a sports injury. Some individuals are born with a gene that triggers high cholesterol, but most people can control cholesterol and other issues mentioned above by moving around and eating properly.

Signs of Trouble

A lot of these problems go on invisibly so one doesn’t realize circulation is an issue until he suffers chest pains and calls an ambulance. Signs of trouble could include coldness and numbness or tingling in the extremities for no apparent reason, a high resting heart rate, periods of chest pain which do not result in heart attack, headaches or aches in other parts of the body especially around an injured area, and a bluish tinge in the extremities.

Feeling dizzy could be another sign. Generally feeling tired could be caused by many things, poor blood flow being just one of them. Muscles tire out more readily if nutrients and oxygen are not delivered. You probably have trouble concentrating.

Healthy Living for Good Circulation

Fats are important, especially those containing omega fatty acids and protein for building lean muscle. Fish and chicken are two great examples; nuts, beans, and soy are good examples too. Swap bad fats (fried or fatty food) with avocado, low-fat cheese, plain peanut butter, and salmon. Bad cholesterol will be controlled by good cholesterol. These nutrients also help your body lay down and repair muscle tissue in the heart as elsewhere.

Drop your weight to within a range considered reasonable for your age and build. If you feel good in your body it isn’t necessary to be skinny which can lead to other sorts of problems. Just stay trim and able to move around without getting out of breath all the time. Seek signs of good health, not how great you look in a bathing suit.

Exercise by walking up stairs instead of taking the elevator, walking places when time permits instead of driving, or taking your bicycle to cover more distance in a shorter time. Either work fitness into your daily routine with housework, shopping, and cleaning or carve out time to get your heart rate up.

This could involve going to the gym, borrowing DVDs from the library, signing-up to a cable fitness channel, or buying equipment for the home. Brisk walks with friends are all you really need to improve a circulatory system that has been mistreated for a long time.

Your resting and active heartrate will improve even with 20 minutes of brisk walking daily, although you will become quicker requiring a longer route in order to increase your heartrate for 20 minutes when you are fitter. Involve people if this helps motivate you and keep you on task.

Take Supplements

Consider taking vitamins and minerals as part of your daily routine. A simple multi-vitamin will do wonders for cholesterol and blood pressure in the average person. Someone with known problems in this area, however, should probably be taking more such as CoQ10, omega-3 fatty acids, and minerals to replace electrolytes lost during exercise or lacking in the diet.

People with low blood pressure suffer too, although they are usually slender individuals or very fit. A low BP can cause tiredness and dizziness, either of which might result in lower quality of life or injury.