Heart Attack Prevention Tips

Sadly, Michael Clarke Duncan, the star of the movie The Green Mile, died earlier this week after suffering a massive heart attack. Duncan was only 54 years old at the time of his death, and suffered the heart attack on July 13. He struggled to stay alive at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A. for several weeks before his passing.

Duncan lived with a passion for life, and once said in an interview with Men's Health magazine: "I don't regret what's happened and I don't worry about what I don't have. I just do what's in front of me." He also told Men's Health that "my mother used to tell me, as long as I can remember, something that's on my license plate now: YCDA–you can do anything." Duncan's words remind us that we can do anything–that his death can be a lesson to safeguard our lives.

Heart disease is the number 1 killer of men. However, there are several simple steps that you can take to help prevent a heart attack:

1. Drink two cups of coffee per day. People who did this had an 11% lower chance of heart failure than those who didn't in one study conducted by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.
2. Ask your dad how your grandparents died, and when. If you had a relative who died before the age of 60 from a heart-related complication, your chances of having the same thing happen is about 60%. Make sure to visit your doctor regularly, exercise, and maintain a healthy weight.
3. Have a glass half-full attitude. Believe it or not, optimists are 50% less likely to have a heart attack than pessimists.

For other heart attack prevention tips, you can read more. While Duncan has gone on to a better place, he leaves us with inspirational words and a great lesson to cherish our health and lives.