Guest blog written by Roselyn Singh

Namaste, Bula and Kia ora, my name is Roselyn Singh, I was born in the beautiful Island of Fiji and migrated to New Zealand at a young age and continue to reside in South Auckland. Since my teenage years till now, I have been a pillar of support for my parents, especially as one of my parents have suffered from a heart attack and have undergone bypass surgery. My lived experiences and passion for health, motivated me to pursue further studies thus, completing a Bachelor's degree in Health Promotion at AUT, followed by a Postgraduate Diploma in Public Health. I am a trained Health Coach, currently working in Primary Care, one on one with patients in Auckland to provide them with education specific to their long-term conditions and support them with behaviour change to help improve their health outcomes. Recently, I worked at Heart Foundation as a Heart Health Advocate in Counties Manukau and helped increase heart health awareness through education, heart health conversations, blood pressure, and pulse checks.
Kyun karo dil ke dekh bhal? (Why should I look after my heart?)
We need to look after our heart because it does such an amazing job. Our heart is located in the middle of our chest, slightly to the left, and weighs approximately 300 grams. Many a time, we forget to realize what a vital role our heart plays as every minute it pushes between 5 to 7 litres of blood, pumping blood all around our body carrying nutrients and oxygen. Thus, which is why it is important for us all to look after our heart health.
The New Zealand Health Survey (2021) reported that 175,000 people are currently living with heart disease. This is more than 1 in 23 adults. In NZ, we are still losing our loved ones prematurely to heart disease as 1 in 3 deaths are caused by cardiovascular disease. In the Indian community living in NZ (between 2012 and 2018) the proportion of premature deaths related to cardiovascular disease for males under the age of 65 was 31.6% and females 13%. Premature means that these deaths could possibly have been prevented if individuals accessed healthcare at the right time and received appropriate support.
It can be complicated thinking about how and what you can change to better look after your heart health, but remember, small changes and consistency can make a big difference not only in your life but the life of your family.
Kaise karo dil ke dekh bhal? (How should I look after my heart?)
Visit your GP regularly if you have a family history of diabetes, cholesterol, high blood pressure so that you are able to go for blood tests and have discussions about how to manage these risk factors which contribute to poor heart health.
If you are a male aged 30 or female aged 40 of Pacific, Māori, or South Asian including Indian ethnicity you should be having a Heart Check with your GP so that together you can estimate your risk of having a heart attack in the next 5 years and discuss small changes to help your heart health.
You do not need to do long periods of physical activity at once but can break it up into small sections to ensure movement throughout the day, even a simple action like parking your car further away at work or when going shopping is a great start.
Manage stress through yoga, meditation, breathing exercises, journaling, or spend time in nature.
Check what you eat/drink:
Reduce smoking and alcohol intake.
Include more fresh vegetables in your meals or using frozen vegetables which is more affordable and still nutritious.
Explore having a meat free day or meal once a week.
Reduce use of ghee or oils that are solid at room temperature, olive oil is a good alternative.
Check serving sizes for meals heartfoundation.org.nz/resources/food-portions-a4-poster.
Increase intake of water, infused with lemon, orange or cucumber slices or mint leaves and swap from fizzy to diet or no sugar versions.
Switch from full fat milk, yoghurt, coconut milk and cream to low fat.
Use healthier cooking methods like steaming, grilling, air-frying instead of deep frying.
Move more
By breaking up the amount of time you spend sitting.
Doing chores at home like vacuuming, mopping.
Following fun Bollywood Zumba videos on Youtube.
Or going to a community exercise or dance group.
Gardening at home or walking (outdoors/inside a mall in winter).
Aap akele nahin hain (you are not alone in this)
There are many way to find support in the community…
My Heart Check is a free tool on the Heart Foundation website which you can use from the comfort of your own home, to learn about your heart age in comparison to your actual age and find out your estimated risk of having a heart attack or stroke and how to reduce this. . You can find more information about the tool and give it a try at heartfoundation.org.nz/your-heart/my-heart-check.
0800 Nurses Line – You can also call the 0800 863 375 Heart Helpline at Heart Foundation between 9.00am - 3.00pm, Monday to Friday and speak with an experienced cardiology nurse who can give you information, advice and support about your heart health/heart condition. heartfoundation.org.nz/your-heart/hearthelp/were-here-to-help Contact 111 in an emergency.
The Heart Foundation has various resources which you can download for free and use including healthy eating recipes, specific pamphlets on cholesterol, diabetes, smoking. Also, booklets on specific heart conditions like Angina, Atrial Fibrillation, and much more in some Pacific, Te Reo and Asian and Hindi heartfoundation.org.nz/resources.
Health Coach service is a free service that a registered patient is able to access at their GP clinic, it is worthwhile when you are visiting your doctors next time to find out if your clinic has a Health Coach. You can request to see them on the day or make an appointment to get a better understanding about conditions such as prediabetes, diabetes, cholesterol, know your numbers plus support with making lifestyle changes. Usually, Health Coach Sessions are available face to face or over the phone. Likewise, Health Coaches may be able to connect you with a Health Improvement Practitioner or Wellness Advisor onsite for brief intervention support regarding anxiety, depression, stress which are emotions you can feel due to various circumstances like being diagnosed with a new health or heart condition. Find out if your clinic has a Health Coach .wellbeingsupport.health.nz/available-wellbeing-support/wellbeing-services-in-general-practice/