Mental health and your heart – British Heart Foundation

What is a mental health problem or condition?

Everyone goes through difficult or challenging times at some point in their lives, so its normal to feel worried or anxious sometimes. But if these feelings wont go away and keep affecting your day to day life, then it may be a mental health condition.

Around one in four people in the UK will experience a mental health problem in their lifetime. Some common mental health conditions include:

If youre worried about your mental health, you should discuss this with your GP. Theres support and medication available to help you live well.

Youre more at risk of developing heart and circulatory diseases if you have a mental health condition. The good news is there are many healthy changes you can make to help lower your risk and improve your general health and wellbeing. You can:

Read more about risk factorsand what you can do about them.

Looking after yourself if you have a mental health condition can sometimes feel overwhelming, but taking steps towards a healthier lifestyle will help your body and mind.

Physical activity can boost your mental health. It can release chemicals in your brain which act a bit like antidepressants and can help ease anxiety and depression. This will help you concentrate and leave you feeling better about yourself. Walks in the park, gardening and housework are all great ways to get active.

Try to be active every day. Every minute counts!

Get more tips on being active.

Before you startdoing more physical activity remember to talk with your doctor first.

Eating a healthy and balanced diet is important to keep your whole body working well. Your mental health condition may change the way you feel about food. Some medications can increase or decrease your appetite. If youre worried that the medication youre taking is affecting your weight, speak to your doctor.

Shopping and cooking can sometimes feel like a challenge when you have a mental health condition. You may lose interest in food or you may want to eat more when youre unhappy or troubled. These changes can mean you lose or gain weight and that may not be good for your health.

Try not to skip meals, especially breakfast, as this can worsen your mood and make you feel irritable, tired and hungry.

Start the day with breakfast people who eat breakfast regularly are more likely to keep a healthy weight than people who dont.

Healthy eating can help you control your weight, blood pressure and cholesterol levels, which can reduce your risk of developing heart and circulatory diseases.

Tips for healthy eating:

Its a common belief that smoking helps you relax, however, smoking actually increases anxiety and tension. Smoking can also stop your mental health medication working properly. This means you may need to take a higher dose of medication than if you didnt smoke. So, when you quit or cut down on smoking, your doctor may reduce the dose you usually take.

If you smoke, the short-term benefits it may seem to give are outweighed by your higher risk of developing smoking-related health problems such as lung cancer and heart and circulatory diseases. Stopping smoking has huge benefits for your health and its never too late to give up smoking.

Stopping smoking is the single most important step you can take to protect your heart health.

If youre thinking about quitting or reducing your smoking, its a good idea to talk to your doctor first.

Tips to help you stop smoking:

Read more about smoking and the benefits of stopping.

Alcohol is a depressant and can change your mood very quickly. You may drink to help you feel better or deal with the symptoms of your mental health condition, but it may make your condition worse. Drinking too much alcohol can cause a lot of different health problems.

Drinking alcohol when youve been diagnosed with a mental health condition can reveal or magnify your underlying feelings. This is one of the reasons that many people get particularly angry, aggressive, anxious or unhappy when theyre drinking.

When taking some types of mental health medication, you shouldnt drink alcohol. So, its important you check this with your doctor.

Tips on how to cut down on alcohol:

Read more about recommended alcohol limits for men and women.

Some types of mental health medication can also affect your weight. Talk to your doctor if youre worried about how your medication might affect your weight.

If youve been diagnosed with a mental health condition, its important to remember that youre not alone. You can find support from healthcare professionals including your GP and by talking to your friends and family. Whether you need practical advice or a sympathetic ear, you can:

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Mental health and your heart - British Heart Foundation