Heart Disease

“Follow your heart, but be quiet for a while first. Ask questions, then feel the answer. Learn to trust your heart.”

Yesterday I talked about cancer, the #2 killer in America with 559,888 deaths in 2006. The first place award goes to Heart Disease (more formerly known as Cardiovascular Disease or CVD) with 831,272 deaths in 2006 (34.3 percent of all deaths or 1 of every 2.9 deaths). What exactly is Heart Disease?

• Coronary heart disease: caused by atherosclerosis (ath"er-o-skleh-RO'sis), the narrowing of the coronary arteries due to fatty build ups. Partial blockage results in chest pain and total blockage cuts off blood to the heart muscle and results in a heart attack.
• Stroke: blood to a portion of the brain is cut off by a blood clot or a burst blood vessel.
• Heart Failure: occurs when the heart cannot pump enough blood to support other organs. The heart may still be beating but with insufficient strength.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) recognizes the following risk factors for Heart Disease:
* high cholesterol
* high blood pressure - It's called the "silent killer" and greatly increases the likelihood of heart attack or stroke. 90–95% of the time the cause of high blood pressure isn't known but it is often treatable.
* smoking
* being overweight
* lack of exercise (people who are sedentary are almost twice as likely to suffer heart attacks as are people who exercise regularly.)
* African American women have the highest risk for death from heart disease
* Male pattern baldness, hair in the ear canals, and creased earlobes are associated with a higher risk for heart disease in white males.

On the positive side:

* People who eat beans at least four times a week have a lower level of heart disease (19% lower) than people who eat beans less than once a week.

Bottom Line

Heart attack and strokes can strike suddenly with no warning. They either kill outright or leave a person confused as to what just happened. Many don't recognize the symptoms. See:
http://perpetualpreparedness.blogspot.com/2010/11/stroke.html  (Stroke)
http://perpetualpreparedness.blogspot.com/2010/03/chest-pain.html (Heart Attack)

Heart failure is often a gradual process and does have symptoms which include—

• Shortness of breath during daily activities.
• Having trouble breathing when lying down.
• Weight gain with swelling in the legs, ankles, or lower back.
• General fatigue and weakness.

See http://www.medicinenet.com/edema/page3.htm (Edema)
and http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4585 (Congestive Heart Failure)

Chest Pain

"Heart attacks - God's revenge for eating his little animal friends"

According to Women's Health Magazine, the fourth Warning Sign that should not be ignored is passing chest pain. Now I could have sworn I had already written about heart attacks but could not find it in my blog. So here goes.

While the heart is a powerful muscle, it has NO pain nerves. There is no direct feedback that something is seriously wrong (other than the classic instant death heart attack). Most heart attacks start slowly, with mild pain or discomfort. People affected aren't sure what's wrong and wait too long before getting help.

We need to recognize a heart attack though its secondary side effects within the first 5 minutes!

Chest discomfort. Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes, or that goes away and comes back. It can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain.

Discomfort in other areas of the upper body. Symptoms can include pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach.

Shortness of breath. May occur with or without chest discomfort.

Other signs: These may include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or light headedness

Bottom Line

If you experience the symptoms above call 9-1-1. Even if you're not sure, call 9-1-1. An EMT can begin treatment when they arrive — up to an hour sooner than driving yourself to a hospital. Your doctor will do an EKG to determine whether your heart has been damaged, and then decide on the best response; false alarm, prescribe clot-attacking drugs, or perform surgery to clear your arteries.

Resources

http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4595

http://www.healthcentral.com/heart-disease/patient-guide-44510-6.html

http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/actintime/haws/women.htm

Snow!

"Getting an inch of snow is like winning 10 cents in the lottery."-Bill Watterson (Calvin & Hobbes cartoonist)

Last month my family experienced a snowstorm that dropped nearly two feet of wet, heavy snow and we had to shovel the driveway five times in 24 hours. Now, after the fact, I thought I’d look at the safety issues of snow removal.

Snow shoveling is NOT without risk. One study determined that after only two minutes of shoveling, sedentary men’s heart rates rose to levels higher than those normally recommended during aerobic exercise. Heart attacks are not uncommon. A middle-aged minister of our church died while shoveling some 20 years ago. Cold air makes it harder to work and breathe, which adds some extra strain on the body. There also is the risk for hypothermia, a decrease in body temperature, if one is not dressed correctly for the weather conditions. Shoveling improperly can also cause back strain.

Recommendations

• Avoid caffeine or nicotine before beginning (that is no smoking or coffee). These are stimulants, which may increase your heart rate and cause your blood vessels to constrict. This places extra stress on the heart.


• Dress in several layers so you can remove a layer as needed.


• Warm up your muscles before shoveling with some gentle stretches or walking about. Begin shoveling slowing until the heart and body are ready for a workout.


• Beware of extra-large shovel scoops that will cause more strain as you lift heavy loads. Smaller loads are safer.


• Bend from the knees (not the back) and tighten your stomach muscles as you lift the snow. Avoid twisting movements. Lift with your legs, not your back.


• Know the signs of a heart attack: chest pain, discomfort in other areas of the body, shortness of breath, and lightheadedness, nausea, or sweating.


• If snow is sticking to your shovel, spray it with shortening or vegetable oil.

Bottom Line

Take it slow and easy and pace yourself. Better to be a tortoise than a dead hare.

Resources

http://www.ext.nodak.edu/snow.htm

http://seasonal-home-maintenance.suite101.com/article.cfm/how_to_shovel_snow_safely_and_injuryfree

http://www.wikihow.com/Shovel-Snow

http://www.ehow.com/how_13048_shovel-snow.html

http://fitness.suite101.com/article.cfm/how_to_safely_shovel_snow