In keeping with its purpose of enabling people to lead a vibrant and healthy lifestyle that results in a vibrant heart, Flora celebrated World Heart Day 2022 by hosting a feel-good educational event at Park Street, Colombo 2.
The evening commenced with all guests who were present at the event receiving a Cardiovascular Disease Risk Assessment (CVD) — a type of screening tool used to measure cardiovascular diseases which were provided by Ayubo Life. Thereafter, invitees and special guests were requested to participate in a 15 – minute segment of heart-smart yoga exercises titled ‘a healthy mind depends on a healthy heart. The renowned yoga instructor Annie Au–who has a degree in human kinetics from the University of British Columbia, trained in functional range conditioning (FRC), and specializes in yoga anatomy conducted this segment together with her husband, Aaron Wickramasinghe. After that, the proceedings got right down to business.
Following a calming and relaxing mini yoga session, was a panel discussion on ‘How to love and take care of your heart,’ moderated by Trishma Pinto. The panel consisted of consultant cardiologist Dr. Kishan De Silva of Kings Hospital, yoga teacher trainer Aaron Wickramasinghe and Stephanie Siriwardhana, former Miss Sri Lanka.
One of the leading general and interventional cardiologists in the country, Dr. De Silva knows what’s good for your heart. A personal fitness, nutritional coach, and former professional Muay Thai kickboxer, Aaron shared his deep knowledge of various forms of yoga and how essential and vital it is to have a balanced diet.
The speaking points for this wide-ranging panel discussion included advisory tips on maintaining a healthy lifestyle with a heart-healthy diet and preemptive measures one can take to prevent the onset of coronary heart disease. The distinguished panelists discussed modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors that must be addressed to maintain a healthy heart.
Satirical skit performed by Blok and Dino
Modifiable risk factors include smoking and exposure to second-hand smoke, a sedentary lifestyle with little or no exercise, unhealthy eating habits, and stress. The good news is that all these are things within your power to control through positive changes in diet and lifestyle.
Non-modifiable risk factors include age, gender, and genetics (if you have a family history of heart disease, it pays to switch to a heart-healthy diet and make preventative lifestyle changes).
The panelists also discussed what constitutes a heart-healthy diet. These include vegetables rich in nutrients (like leafy greens) and fruits, and plant-based proteins like beans, chickpeas, and lentils. Plus, vegetable oils and vegetable oil-based soft spreads (foods that are high in polyunsaturated fats), whole grains like brown rice, wholewheat bread, and oats, and the Omega-3 fatty acids found in oily fish like salmon, mackerel, and in some plant-based spreads.
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