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Theresa A. McKenna, Ph.D., RN, CDE
Taking Outstanding Care of Yourself:
Personal Health Empowerment
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Financial Disclosure:
No relevant financial relationship exists
Extremely good or excellent
 Easy to notice especially because of
being important or very good
 Standing out from a group
 Marked by eminence or distinction
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www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary
Healthier Eating
 Increased Activity
 Quality Sleep
 Regular Leisure
 Health Monitoring
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Consume a dietary pattern that emphasizes intake
of vegetables, fruits, and whole grains; includes
low-fat dairy products, poultry, fish, legumes, nontropical vegetable oils and nuts; and limits intake of
sweets, sugar- sweetened beverages and red
meats.
Adapt this dietary pattern to appropriate calorie
requirements, personal and cultural food
preferences, and nutrition therapy for other
medical conditions (including diabetes).
Achieve this pattern by following plans such as the
DASH dietary pattern, the USDA Food Pattern, or
the American Heart Association Diet.
Achieve and maintain a healthy weight
2013 AHA/ACC Guideline on Lifestyle Management to Reduce Cardiovascular Risk
Circulation. 2013: published online before print November 12, 2013, 10.1161/01.
cir.0000437740.48606.d1.
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Sleep quality and quantity need to be considered
Insomnia and obstructive sleep apnea are associated
with increased risk for cardiopulmonary mortality and
increase in CRP (inflammation marker)
Am J Med. 2014 Oct 16. pii: S0002-9343(14)00914-0. doi: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2014.10.015
Sleep duration is also associated with predicted 10-year
cardiovascular risk.
 7 hours/night appears to be the ideal
 Greatest cardiovascular risk occurs amongst those
sleeping <5 hours/night.
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J Am Heart Assoc. 2014 Dec 2;3(6):e001454. doi: 10.1161/JAHA.114.001454.
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Engage in 2 hours and 30 minutes a week of
moderate-intensity, or 1 hour and 15
minutes (75 minutes) a week of vigorousintensity aerobic physical activity, or an
equivalent combination of moderate- and
vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity.
Aerobic activity should be performed in
episodes of at least 10 minutes, preferably
spread throughout the week.
2013 AHA/ACC Guideline on Lifestyle Management to Reduce Cardiovascular Risk
Circulation. 2013: published online before print November 12, 2013, 10.1161/01.
cir.0000437740.48606.d1.
The body’s stress reaction causes
adrenaline to be released:
-Heart rate rises
-Blood pressure rises
Glucose is also released, causing increases in
blood glucose
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Chronic stress can lead to hypertension,
damaged arterial walls, and elevated
blood glucose. All are associated with
higher cardiovascular risk.
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Personal health empowerment includes
awareness of basic health markers:
-Do you know your average BP?
-Are you aware of your last fasting
blood glucose or HbA1c level?
-What is your weight? Your BMI?
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When was your last:
-mammogram?
-colonoscopy (if appropriate)?
-eye exam?
-dental visit?
-other specialist exams?
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What is your alcohol intake like?
-By CDC criteria, “heavy drinking” is considered 8
drinks or more per week for women, or 15 drinks or more
per week for men.
How is “a drink” defined?
 12-ounces of beer (5% alcohol content).
 8-ounces of malt liquor (7% alcohol content).
 5-ounces of wine (12% alcohol content).
 1.5-ounces or a “shot” of 80-proof (40% alcohol content)
distilled spirits or liquor (e.g., gin, rum, vodka, whiskey).
http://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/faqs.htm#heavyDrinking
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I am making at least one healthy food change.
I have been slowly losing weight (if I need to).
I am not smoking at all.
I am having no more than 1 alcoholic
drink/day (women), or 2 drinks/day (men).
I increased my physical activity.
I am getting about 7-8 hours of sleep/night.
I am doing something relaxing at least
½ hr. each day.
I made appts. for any due (or overdue) health
screenings.