Each Year 1. 1 Million people in the United States have heart attacks and almost half of them die. It may be surprising that while many women believe breast cancer is most threatening to them, it is a fact that they are eight times more likely to die of a heart attack. Coronary Artery Disease which often leads to a heart attack is by far the leading cause of death of both men and women. WHAT IS A HEART ATTACK? Other Names for a heart attack include the name Myocardial Infarction, Coronary Thrombosis and Coronary Occlusion.
A Heart attack occurs when blood supply to part of the heart muscle itself is severely reduced or stopped. WHAT CAN CAUSE A HEART ATTACK? Placque build up is one way of causing a heart attack, deposits of fat like substance this is when plaque blocks in artery and eventually bursting, tearing, and even rupturing where in which a blood clot forms and blocks the artery. This is and when a heart attack takes place. But as well there is also soft and vulnerable plaque in which doctors used to believe that the reason for heart attacks and strokes were the buildup of fatty plaque within an artery leading to the heart or the brain.
Researchers are now founding out that people who have heart attacks do not have arteries severely narrowed by plaque but instead plaque may be buried inside the artery wall and might not always buldge out and block the blood flow. But instead inflammation leads to what is called soft or vulnerable plaque in which different cell types help with blood clotting. Cocaine is a highly addictive central nervous system stimulant extracted from the leaves of the coca plant, in its most common form cocaine is a whitish crystalline powder that produces feelings of euphoria when ingested.
It affects the heart any many ways causing long term damage or even death. several ways would be that the heart will be so fast that it can’t get all the oxygen that it needs, it can cause irregular heartbeats that can lead to cardiac arrest and eventually sudden death, Or can cause blood vessels carrying blood to the heart to narrow or even close completely, Interrupting blood supply to the heart causing part of the heart to die.
A Study by Harvard University Researchers suggest that alcohol drinking may lower the risk of a heart attack from anywhere to between 40-60 percent, With even moderate consumption of alcohol with the help of four healthy behaviors (including non-smoking, exercising, and eating five serving of fruits and vegetables) added 14 years to your life according to Harvard University. They as well advice people that do drink to continue to do so in moderation, With no more than two drinks per day for men and one drink per day for women.
Smoking is a practice where a substance, mostly commonly tobacco and marijuana are burned and the smoke tasted or inhaled. We all have Seen these truth commercials that are on television that tells why smoking are bad for us as well what are contained in cigarette smokes. Allow me to share some with you; Ammonia which are used in cleaning products and fertilizers, Carbon Monoxide also known as the silent deadly killer also can be found in a car exhaust’s, Arsenic which can be found in rat poison, And as well as pesticides used to kill insects and bugs on our lawns and gardens are also used in cigarette smokes.
What smoking does to the heart is it decreases oxygen to the heart, Increases blood pressure as well as heart rate, Increase in Blood clotting, And damage cells that line with the coronary arteries and other blood vessels. Stress is a biological term which refers to the consequences of the failure of the human body to respond inappropriately to emotional or physical threats toward the individual whether actual or imagined.
It is confirmed that people who experience high amount of stress at work are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes as well as other diseases such as psoriasis which is a non-contagious skin disease that effects the skin and joints usually causing scaly patches to appear on the skin, eczema which is a disease of the skin which causes crusting, flaking, itching, dryness, oozing, and even bleeding of the skin as well as certain types of cancer. Even lowering resistance to certain type of viruses.
Stress does not only cause detoriation to heart but to your gums as well making you less immune from common colds to cancer. People who are stressed are very much more likely to pick up habits like smoking, over eating, and are even less likely to exercise. The exposure to extreme cold may play another important role in why heart attacks happened. It has been confirmed that people who have suffered heart attacks have suffered it during the winter months. The reason why the extreme cold may increase a chance of some one getting a heart attack would be due to over exertion.
Meaning for example people who don’t exercise at all in their lifestyle going out in the cold to shovel away snow. As well may affect the heart by increasing its heart rate as well as raising the blood pressure. With the in-activity of a person who does no type of exercising activity at all in combination with the cold may cause a very high risk factor I causing that individual to catch a heart attack. RISK FACTORS There are many things that can contribute to having a heart attack.
Most of these you can’t really change; Like Age for instance, About 85 percent of people who die from Coronary heart disease are about the age of 60 years or older. Gender as well plays another important role, Men are more likely to have an attack then women and earlier as well to. Especially family history, those with family history of heart problems are twice as likely to have heart problems of their own as they get older. Other risk factors can be treated or modified with early change of your lifestyle Such as people who smoke.
People who do smoke risk factors increase’s up by three to four times more than non-smokers and even to die much quicker. Obesity is another risk factor that can be treated very early if taken the right pre-cautions; excess weight increases the strain of the heart making the individual a very big risk factor. The best you can do and to do is to maintain a physical and healthy activity at an early age. High Blood Pressure, What it does to the body is cause the heart to overwork causing the heart to enlarge and weaken overtime. SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS.
There are many signs and symptoms if you suspect that you are having a heart attack or someone you know is having one. Depending on your gender symptoms may differ. Like for men you may feel a squeezing pain in the center of your chest for a few minutes, as well as your arm, back and even your jaw bone. Shortness of breath, Fainting, Nausea, and Vomiting. For women they may feel abdominal pain, clammy skin, unexplained fatigue, and dizziness. Not all people who do have heart attacks experience the same symptoms some don’t even experience symptoms at all.
TREATMENT If experiencing a heart attack or see someone experiencing a heart attack the best thing if possible would be to take aspirin or give aspirin as soon as possible. What it does is prevent blood clots, decreases your heart’s workload, improve its pumping function, and help treats abnormal life threatening heart beats. Quickly get you are the patient to the hospital as soon as possible where doctors will administer first aid as soon as possible. Most likely you will be kept there for a few days or even more before you are well enough to leave.
PREVENTION It’s never too late to prevent a heart attack even if you have had one already. Drug therapy has increased in individuals who have had heart attacks already. Aspirin which makes your blood thinner makes your heart less likely to catch a blood clot. Beta Blockers which lowers your heart rate and blood pressure, reduces the demand on your heart and helps in preventing a heart attack. Most people who suffered a heart attack will need to take beta blockers for the rest of their lives.
They way you live your lifestyle, Don’t Smoke, Check your cholesterol, Exercise regularly, Get regular medical checkups, Manage stress, consume alcohol in moderation, Maintain healthy weight, and Eat foods that are healthy for your heart. CONCLUSION Although heart attacks remain a major killer in our society there many steps you can take to minimize our risk factors. You can learn to recognize the symptoms and act appropriately. They are also effective treatments to lessen the effects of a heart attack if you do get one.