A: Congratulations on your commitment to improving your health and preventing another heart attack. If you can see your situation as an opportunity instead of a flow, there is much that you can do to improve yourself today and all of the days to come.

Researchers recently presented a study to the European Society of Cardiovascular Congress 2021 showing that you could add another seven and a half years of health to your life after a heart attack if you adopt healthy lifestyle habits and take your prescribed medications.

However, only 7 percent of the 3,200 patients aged 53 to 69 who participated in the study achieved recommended goals for lifestyle improvement and drug adherence. For example, 30 percent still smoked and 40 percent had dangerously high systolic blood pressure of 140 mmHg or more. In addition, about 15 percent of patients were not taking anticoagulants, cholesterol medications, or blood pressure medications.

How to do better than them? 80 to 90 percent of the risk of a heart attack can be changed by quitting smoking, eating a healthy diet, reducing abdominal obesity, getting enough physical activity, and controlling high blood pressure, diabetes and high blood lipid levels – using lifestyle modifications and medications. So do your checklist: take prescribed medications. Get 30 to 60 minutes of exercise five days a week; no smoking; and eat a diet that helps you reach and maintain a healthy weight and control your cholesterol and blood sugar. Push your doctor to bring you to blood pressure 120/80, LDL cholesterol below 70 and to help reduce overall inflammation so that a blood test shows MPO below 1 and hs-CRP below. 1. You’ll be there a lot longer if you do.

Q: I hate complaining, but I feel hassled – I have problems with urinary incontinence, have bad breath, and sweat so much that it’s embarrassing. I am well through menopause and no one else my age (57) seems to cope with all of this. What is happening?

Stéphanie W., Bayshore, NY

A: When faced with embarrassing bodily issues it may seem like you are the only one in the world who has to deal with them, but rest assured, they are far more common than you might imagine – and they can be managed if you find the courage to talk to your doc.

It’s amazing how reluctant people are to tackle these so-called sensitive questions: Urinary incontinence is a common problem, affecting 30 percent of women between the ages of 30 and 60, according to the American Urological Association. But one study found that 66% of women don’t tell their doctor. Depending on the cause, Kegel exercises can strengthen pelvic floor muscles, bladder training can help you learn to hold it back, and certain topical medications and estrogen can relieve symptoms.

Bad breath plagues most people at one time or another. When it is constant, it can be a sign of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Most often, however, it results from poor dental hygiene, gum disease, and infrequent professional teeth cleaning. Make an appointment with the dentist (that’s for sure) and brush twice and floss once a day.

Regarding excessive sweating: According to the Cleveland Clinic, what is called focal hyperhidrosis is an inherited skin disorder, and it usually appears before the age of 25. If you develop excessive sweating later in life, it may be related to a medical problem such as diabetes or Parkinson’s disease. Naproxen, certain antidepressants, insulin injections, and zinc supplements can also cause excessive sweating.

Make a doctor’s appointment to take care of each condition. You will feel so much happier and less worried.

Contact Drs. Oz and Roizen on sharecare.com.