Lifestyle and home remedies

Lifestyle changes can help you prevent or slow the progression of atherosclerosis.

• Stop smoking. Smoking damages your arteries. Quitting smoking is the best thing you can do to keep your arteries healthy and prevent atherosclerosis complications.

• Exercise most days of the week. Regular exercise improves blood flow, lowers blood pressure, and reduces your risk of conditions that increase the risk of atherosclerosis and heart disease.

  Aim to exercise at least 30 minutes most days of the week. If you can't fit it all into one session, try breaking it up into 10-minute intervals.

  You can take the stairs instead of the elevator, walk around the block during your lunch hour, or do some situps or pushups while watching television.

• Lose extra pounds and maintain a healthy weight. If you're overweight, losing even just a few pounds can reduce your risk of high blood pressure and high cholesterol, two of the major risk factors for developing atherosclerosis. Ask your doctor what your target weight should be.

• Eat healthy foods. A heart-healthy diet full of fruits, vegetables and whole grains — and low in refined carbohydrates, sugars, saturated fat and sodium — can help you control your weight, blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar.

  Try substituting whole-grain bread in place of white bread. Grab an apple, a banana or carrot sticks as a snack. Read nutrition labels as a guide to control the amount of salt and fat you eat. Use monounsaturated fats, such as olive oil, and reduce or eliminate sugar and sugar substitutes.

• Manage stress. Reduce stress as much as possible. Practice healthy techniques for managing stress, such as muscle relaxation and deep breathing.

If you have high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes or another chronic disease, work with your doctor to manage the condition and promote overall health.