Heart Health
- What Is A Heart Attack
The health of your heart is one of
the most important indicators of your overall level of
health. In fact, nothing is more important in terms of
living a long and healthy life than having a healthy
heart.
The sad reality is, however,
that most Americans do not take care of their heart
health. In fact, the National Center for Injury
Prevention and Control reports that heart disease was
the leading cause of death in the United States in 2004.
In fact, heart disease accounted for over 27% of all
deaths. This number rises to 30% if you look just at
deaths of people over the age of 65. It is obvious from
these numbers that people are not taking their heart
health seriously enough.
What is heart disease?
To understand what heart disease is, it is important to
first understand exactly what your heart does. Your
heart is actually just a muscle, and like any other
muscle it depends on receiving oxygen and nutrients from
a steady supply of blood.
The most common type of heart disease is coronary artery
disease. With coronary artery disease, plaque (fatty
materials, calcium and scar tissue) builds up in the
arteries that bring the blood to your heart. Eventually,
the plaque buildup gets to the point where it can
drastically limit the amount of blood that reaches your
heart. Not surprisingly, this can have severe
consequences, ranging from angina (chest pain) to a
heart attack. Plaque buildup can also lead to another
common problem, congestive heart failure. If you have
congestive heart failure, your heart does not pump
strongly enough. As a consequence, your body does not
get the blood and oxygen it needs to work properly. This
leaves you easily out of breath, limiting your physical
activity, which only makes the situation worse.
How can you prevent
heart disease?
While the specter of heart disease may seem daunting, it
should not be something you are afraid of. The fact is
that heart disease is preventable and manageable. The
medical profession is well aware of the factors that
constitute a heart health risk. To be fair, some of the
risk factors are unavoidable. The older you are, the
more at risk you will be. And men are far more at risk
than pre-menopausal women. You are also more likely to
develop heart disease if you have already experienced a
stroke or heart attack, or if close family members have
had strokes or heart attacks. A number of factors,
however, are entirely within your control.
The most common risk factors that can lead to heart
disease are high cholesterol, high blood pressure,
stress, smoking, diabetes, alcohol consumption, lack of
physical activity and being overweight. So what can you
do to help avoid developing heart disease? You can give
up smoking and limit your drinking. You can become
physically active, start eating better (with a low fat
diet), and maintain a healthy weight. See your doctor
for a checkup and work with him or her on developing a
plan to maintain your heart health today.
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1. The Boston Heart Party: What is CVD?
... These are the most common types of CVD: high blood pressure (hypertension) coronary heart disease, which includes heart attack and angina pectoris (chest pain) stroke heart failure What are the Risk ...
http://www.bostonheartparty.com/what_is_cvd.php |
2. Ayurveda - Cardiac diseases (Rhidroga)
... The clot formation can suddenly choke off the blood supply and lead to a heart attack, stroke or kidney failure. What Ayurveda can offer - Ayurved is very much concerned about conservation of ...
http://www.ayurveda-foryou.com/treat/heart.html |
3. BHF Any Questions? - Silent heart attack and silent ischaemia
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http://www.bhf.org.uk/que ...=1162&thirdlevel=1317 |
4. Essay or Coursework - What causes heart murmurs?
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http://www.coursework.info/i/76468.html |
5. What is heart disease: prevention, care, and treatment?
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http://www.ilil.essortmen ...hatisheartdi_rqdt.htm |
6. Wockhardt Hospital-Know Your Heart-How To Prevent Heart Disease
... Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) Heart Attack Stroke What is Coronary artery disease (CAD)? How will it affect me? Coronary artery disease(CAD) is caused by deposition of fats inside the coronary artery ...
http://www.whhi.com/preventheartdisease.htm |
7. What Happens During A Heart Attack - HEART ATTACK Information
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8. The Care Group - Frequently Asked Questions
... of women? 4) What are Triglycerides? 5) Should I be concerned about another heart attack in the ... ... she start taking fish oil after having a heart attack. What does fish oil have in it that would be ...
http://www.thecaregroup.com/amod/faq/ |
9. Women & Heart Disease
... me? What are the warning signs of heart disease or a heart attack? If I experience signs or symptoms of a heart attack, what steps do I need to take? Please click here for more specific information ...
http://www.sutterheartins ...conditions/women.html |
10. Diseases and conditions: What is heart failure?
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http://www.txtx.essortmen ...whatisheartfa_oma.htm |
11. Hardin MD : Heart Attack
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http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/ ...n/md/heartattack.html |
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13. New Treatments Offer Hope for Heart Failure Patients
... can also lead to heart failure, but heart failure can also occur without a person having a heart attack. What are the two types of heart failure? Heart failure can be caused by the heart not ...
http://www.umm.edu/features/heart_failure.html |
14. What Is A Heart Attack
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15. Boeafitness.com - What is Heart Disease?
what's this? Boeafitness.com Home What is Heart Disease? Mar 7, 2006 Author: Kristy Haugen The term ... ... can cause angina (chest pain) and lead to a heart attack. Coronary artery disease over time can ...
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16. Rationally Speaking
... When I say "heart attack" what are your first thoughts in terms of causes? A good bet is that you will consider cholesterol levels, and immediately after that, diet. After a bit more thought, you ...
http://www.darwin.ws/Rati ...peaking/RS2001-11.htm |
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