Provided by Sentara Northern Virginia Medical Center
Sentara Northern Virginia Medical Center (SNVMC) is adopting the Pritikin Intensive Cardiac Rehab Program to help ensure that patients make full and lasting recoveries from cardiac events. The Pritikin program embraces three pillars: exercise, nutrition, and a healthy mindset, all to empower patients to make good choices for their continued good health.
“Pritikin Intensive Cardiac Rehabilitation Program is a leading, comprehensive lifestyle modification program which is a great addition to services at the Sentara Heart & Vascular Center,” says Kambeez Berenji, MD, Cardiac Rehabilitation Medical Director.
“This program is easier to stay with,” says Sentara patient Ken Cohen, following biceps curls on a weight machine in one of Sentara’s cardiac rehab units. Cohen went through a previous rehab program which required a primarily vegan diet. “It was tough to stay on that one,” Cohen says, due to the strict dietary rules. “I lost 30 pounds, but the dietary rules were hard to follow.”
Sentara patient Ken Cohen finds the Pritikin program easier to follow and stick with.
The Pritikin program allows lean meats and fish as proteins in a balanced diet. Clinical dieticians recommend using spice blends at home to make heathy eating more fun. “Just make sure you’re buying spice blends with no sodium,” added clinical dietician Terri Larsson during a nutrition class. “Otherwise, you might be inadvertently adding sodium to your diet.” Larsson also advised using condiments like chopped garlic in water, not oil, because oil adds fat. “I’m a dietitian not a cook,” she noted while chopping celery for a vegetarian chili. “Make it easy on yourself.”
Pritikin’s comprehensive lifestyle change program improves cardiovascular health by teaching patients important skills based on three pillars:
- Regular Exercise – to improve cardiovascular endurance and increase strength.
- Heart-Healthy Nutrition – Patients learn to cook affordable, high-fiber, satisfying meals, read nutrition labels and make good choices dining out to manage their weight.
- Healthy Mindset – Manage stress and anxiety, improve communication and set goals.
“The Sentara Heart & Vascular Center is pleased to offer the unique, non-invasive Pritikin program to patients in the community,” said SNVMC President Jeff Joyner. “It gives people the knowledge and tools to make good decisions around diet and exercise and managing stress. The program is user-friendly, so patients are more likely to stay with it as a healthy lifestyle.”
The Pritikin program can assist patients in their recovery from a variety of cardiac events, including:
- Heart attack
- Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery
- Stenting or Angioplasty
- Angina (chest pain)
- Heart Valve Repair or Replacement
- Heart or Heart/Lung Transplant
- Chronic Heart Failure (CHF)
In additional to SNVMC, the Pritikin program is offered at Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital in Charlottesville, Sentara CarePlex, Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, Sentara Leigh Hospital all in Hampton Roads, and Sentara Albemarle Medical Center in Elizabeth City, N.C. Others will be added through the year until all 12 Sentara hospitals offer the Pritikin Intensive Cardiac Rehab program.
Learn more about the Pritikin Intensive Cardiac Rehab Program and Sentara’s comprehensive Heart and Vascular services by visiting sentara.com/heart-center or call the SNVMC Heart & Vascular Center at 703-523-1980.
