Athletes die of heart attacks too
We're often lead to believe that if we exercise regularly, our heart should be fine as we age. But here's something that might throw a wrench in that theory: Runners die of early heart attacks too.The truth is, while exercise is great for your heart and can reduce your risk of heart disease by quite a bit, it doesn't mean you're immune to heart troubles just because you go for a run every few days. You still need to maintain a healthy lifestyle that is low in fat and high in produce, grains and lean protein. And most importantly, you need to talk to your doctor and get screened for heart disease.
"Mission Lifeline" to battle the deadliest heart attacks
Filed under: American Heart Association
The deadliest form of heart attack, which involves total blockage of a heart artery and is called an ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), is hopefully about to get a little less deadly. The American Heart Association is planning to launch a new community-based program called "Mission Lifeline" specifically designed to improve treatment times for patients suffering from this type of heart attack. The plan will focus both on teaching patients to recognize the symptoms of a heart attack sooner and call 911, and on establishing reliable speedy systems to transport the patients in need to appropriately equipped hospitals.
Quitting smoking only reduces heart attacks in small towns?
Filed under: Smoking, Stress, Women Heart Health, Men Heart Health
Smoking bans are a great idea -- they make the air cleaner for non-smokers and reduce the amount of time that smokers spend puffing on the old cancer sticks. Smoking bans have even been shown to lead to a big drop in coronary heart disease ... in smaller towns, that is. According to this, it's a phenomenon that is just emerged as cities and towns implement smoking bans -- a decrease in heart conditions are only seen in smaller urban areas when a smoking ban comes into effect. Why is this? The original post cites statistics and the incorrect assumption that because two things are linked, one causes the other. Which is true, but it makes me curious, especially since I live in a large city. Is pollution a substantial reason behind heart attacks? The stress of living in a busy urban centre? Road rage? I think it's a good reminder that we need to look after ourselves and our hearts and not assume that our environments will help keep us healthy.
What do you think?
Getting up early is bad for your heart?
Filed under: Prevention
As a general rule getting up early is thought to be a healthy habit, but new research says that may not necessarily be the case -- at least not when it comes to your heart anyway. A recent study that followed over 3,000 adults ranging in age from 23 to 90 yrs old found that those who got up early had a higher risk for cardiovascular conditions like high blood pressure and stroke. It's important to realize also, though, that early risers are generally older, so it's possible that also has something to do with the increase in cardiovascular problems. Also, sleep deprivation is a proven heart risk factor, and obviously getting up early often means not getting enough sleep.
So the key may be that early to rise is fine, as long as it's early to bed also?
The flu linked to some heart attack cases
Filed under: Prevention, Research
Flu season just got a little more serious. Aside from running the risk of catching the debilitating sickness and finding yourself bedridden for several days, there may be more serious, heart-related consequences of influenza.
An estimated 10 to 20-percent of people living in the US catch the flu each year. On top of that, only about 60-percent of people who should get the flu vaccine actually get it (and even less people get it in Europe). Personally, I haven't had a flu shot administered since my junior year of college, so I'm not faring any better in that regard. But, maybe we should all think again about getting one next year.
It turns out that the flu may be a trigger of some sort for heart attack. Recent research, published in the European Heart Journal, suggests that influenza epidemics are associated with an increased number of deaths resulting from heart disease and, perhaps even scarier, is that flu can actually trigger the heart attacks that result in death.
The science of it breaks down like this, according to the researchers from the Texas Heart Institute: Flu can cause acute and severe inflammation in the body. In some people, this may lead to a destabilization of atherosclerotic plaque in coronary arteries, thereby causing heart attacks.
One doctor associated with the study went as far as to say that because "between 10 and 20% of people catch flu every year, I have estimated that we can prevent up to 90,000 coronary deaths a year in the USA if every high risk patient received an annual flu vaccination."
If he's right, which he very well may be, I think the next flu season may be the one where I get back in line for my shot.
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Why Vioxx is so dangerous
Filed under: Research
Vioxx has been in the news for awhile now for negative cardiac effects including heart attacks, and now new research may have pinpointed why. It all seems to come down to the pain killer's side effect of causing the body to produce extra amounts of a protein called "tissue factor" that has to do with blood clotting. Too much TF equals too much clotting, which equals heart attack and stroke problems.Experts believe Vioxx isn't the only pain med to carry this risk, but all cox-2 inhibitors cause the increased production of tissue factor -- including Celebrex, which is still available. This study was not considered conclusive, but if you have questions or concerns about medications you're currently taking speak with your doctor.
Athletes need more heart screenings
Filed under: Exercise
Believe it or not Italy is the only country in the world that requires all professional athletes to undergo heart testing, and as a result the number of sudden fatal heart attacks has dropped dramatically. It's widely known that seemingly small and most likely otherwise unknown heart problems (like an irregular heartbeat) are greatly exaggerated and can be fatal for many athletes due to the strain they put on their systems. And without screenings the majority of people don't have a clue they're in danger until it's too late. More American sports organizations should jump on that bandwagon (and many are) and start requiring screenings or, at the very least, athletes themselves should initiate testing.
Aspirinsufficient
Filed under: Type 1, Type 2, Research
You hear it from your doctors. You hear it from your friends and relatives. You hear it on TV. You hear it, well, all the time: Aspirin can help prevent future heart attacks.
You hear it for good reason, because it does.
That is, unless you are a person with diabetes. Researchers from the Sianai Hospital of Baltimore recently demonstrated that the standard dose of aspirin may not provide adequate protection against future heart attack. Studying 120 aspirin treated patients -- 30 of which had diabetes -- with stable coronary artery disease, the researchers discovered that diabetic patients showed a greater proclivity to aspirin resistance than non-diabetic patients.
This does not mean that aspirin cannot help people with diabetes in preventing future heart attacks, rather it merely points out that physicians should refrain from, as one researcher put it, "the one-size-fits-all approach to aspirin therapy."
Heart health and family history
Filed under: Family history, Prevention
When we first applied for life insurance, my marathon running husband was shocked to find out that his premium would be twice as high as mine. The reason, according to our agent, was his strong family history of early heart disease. Though we knew that genetics play a role, we thought that a healthy lifestyle would balance things out. Not so, at least in the eyes of life insurance companies.A healthy lifestyle does have a significant impact on your heart health, but if you've been wondering just how much of a role family history plays in your personal risk of cardiovascular disease, check out this article from WebMD. It covers the basics of family history and may help initiate a conversation about prevention with your doctor.
Getting drunk increases women's heart attack risk
Filed under: Prevention, Research, Women Heart Health
When it comes to alcohol and heart attacks, it appears that moderation wins again. That news comes out of the University at Buffalo, New York, where researchers found that women who got drunk once a month or more sharply increased their risk of heart attack.What's interesting is that women who drink actually seem to have a decreased risk of suffering a heart attack, when compared to women who don't drink at all. But being intoxicated -- or drinking enough alcohol to slur your speech and change your behavior -- appears to reverse that benefit. And, according to the study, being drunk even infrequently is enough to put you at risk.
So the final word, according to Dr. Joan M. Dorn is:
"...if you don't drink, don't start, but if you're concerned about heart health, light to moderate consumption does appear to lower risk, but there's an upper limit."