BATON ROUGE — The average heart beats 100,000 times per day, circulating blood and oxygen throughout the
body.

Dr. Demilade Adedinsewo, a Mayo Clinic cardiologist, says that to keep the heart healthy, there are eight behaviors and numbers to keep in check.

Let's start with sleep.

"Seven to eight hours of sleep at night is recommended for ideal cardiovascular health,” Adedinsewo said.

Fewer hours or poor-quality sleep can lead to physical symptoms that affect the rest of your body, including your heart.

In addition to sleep, it's important to maintain an appropriate weight, keep blood glucose, blood cholesterol and blood pressure within range, avoid smoking and secondhand smoke exposure, follow an eating plan rich in nutrients, such as the Mediterranean or DASH diets and finally, exercise.

"Get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity every week. This does not
necessarily have to be split up 30 minutes, five days a week, even though that's an easy way that we think about it. Really, every little thing that you do adds up,” Adedinsewo said.