In 2025, you deserve more than just good health.
You also deserve to get your own health data so you can investigate your numbers or get a second opinion.
One of the easiest ways to do this is to get a preventative CAC scan. This allows you to make corrections if your score isn’t at zero so you can slow or stop the progression of heart disease.
I believe having access to personal healthcare information is critical for improving your metabolic health. I also believe you need to start today — because the longer you wait, the more obstacles you’ll have to overcome.
Why you need a preventative CAC
Many people believe they don’t need a CAC scan until they’re symptomatic. Other people advise against getting a CAC entirely.
The truth is that anyone can benefit from preventative CAC scans, and well before any symptoms appear. Considering more people are experiencing heart attacks under the age of 40, getting your score could be worth its weight in gold.
It’s hard to see a downside here:
- CAC scans are extremely accurate. They can also help you determine how high your risk is, which prevents you from putting off much-needed medical support.
- CAC scans are cost-effective, usually around $100. Keep in mind that any CAC scan is significantly less expensive than heart surgery.
- CAC scans are fairly safe and noninvasive. They come with the same level of radiation exposure as a mammogram.
Another benefit of CAC scans is they allow you to keep your own data. You’ll get results in the mail, on paper, or recorded on a CD, which makes it easy to review your numbers with your healthcare team.
Remember: preventative CAC scans aren’t just about preventing heart disease. They’re also about patient empowerment.
This means taking ownership of your numbers and determining next steps with a team, including how you can slow or stabilize your risks for heart disease.
How to stabilize your calcium score
Most CAC scores range from zero to 1,000. If you’re under 40 years of age and score above a zero, you need to take immediate action. It’s normal for the number to be above zero as we get older, but it should stay low.
Here are some ways to find the root cause of your calcification, stabilize your calcium score, and reduce your risk for heart attack.
Clean out your pantry
You should be eating (and cooking with) whole, real foods — anything that comes from the ground or eats what grows on the ground. These foods shouldn’t have an ingredients label, which means they’re free from preservatives, food dyes, and added or fake sugar.
That said, not all single-ingredient foods are good for your heart. Seed oils and vegetable oils are good examples of this.
You should also be wary of plant-based or vegan diets. While they sound good in theory, they’re not always better for your heart.
Increase daily exercise
This doesn’t need to be a regimented workout. You also don’t need to spend hours at the gym.
Studies show even one 15-minute walk per day can lower your blood pressure, reduce inflammation, and improve your insulin sensitivity. It will also slow your CAC progression, which is good news if you don’t get a score of zero.
I typically recommend starting small and working your way up. Even five minutes a day is better than no minutes a day.
Here are a few other suggestions to help you get started:
- Make your to-dos more active. For example, try taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or park further away from the entrances of buildings.
- Focus on building lean muscle. Resistance exercises not only improve your insulin sensitivity, but they can also help to strengthen your heart.
- Find a way to make exercise fun. For example, you could explore a new active hobby such as gardening or hiking. You could also try pleasure bundling: like only watching your favorite TV show while exercising or pulling up a podcast whenever you hit the gym.
Set a sleep schedule
Shorter sleep is directly correlated to higher risks of calcification. But adding one extra hour of sleep to your schedule could decrease your odds of calcification by 33%.
There’s really no such thing as a ‘perfect’ amount of sleep, since the exact number depends on your personal needs. That said, try to aim between seven and nine hours per night. Your body will tell you where the ‘sweet spot’ is.
Manage daily stress
We need no reminder that we live in stressful times. Our jobs are stressful, our finances are stressful, and health concerns only add to that stress.
It’s rarely possible (or practical) to eliminate all sources of stress. That’s why my recommendation is to make it manageable, whether that means taking up new hobbies or scheduling visits to an infrared sauna.
Some words of advice:
- Don’t let stress stand between you and physical activity. Exercise doubles as a stress reliever, which makes it even more important during busy times.
- Try stepping outside for a moment. Walking in an outdoor setting is directly correlated to reduced stress.
- Get yourself involved in community, whatever that might look like to you. Spend time with friends and family, or look for online social support that can help you find healthier ways of coping with stress.
Look for unusual causes
Sometimes CAC scores go up for reasons outside of diet and exercise. The more I work on complex patient cases, the more I find this to be true.
My patients and I work together to investigate uncommon lifestyle factors that could be affecting their CAC scores. We eventually identify possible trigger points — chronic mold, periodontal disease, Lyme disease, heavy metal toxicity, or something else along those lines.
Once they address these factors, their CAC scores usually stop going up.
So if you’re having trouble identifying the cause of your calcification, it may be time to look outside the box.
Don’t wait to schedule your CAC scan
For too long, America’s approach to healthcare has been reactive rather than proactive. This has cost us dearly — especially when it comes to our hearts.
That’s why I urge you to take your health into your hands. By scheduling a preventive CAC scan, you can make major strides towards reclaiming your metabolic health.
In the meantime, I want you to learn as much as you can about heart health and how to maintain it. One of these resources might point you in the right direction:
- Are You Getting the Right Heart Disease Screening Tests?
- Is it Time to Fire Your Doctor?
- 3 Ways to Test Your Metabolic Health
