Valentine?s Day might set your heart aflutter, but the real reason to celebrate hearts in February is because it?s American Heart Month.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. One in every three deaths is from heart disease and stroke; in other words, 2,200 people die each day from heart conditions.
?If you?re having chest discomfort, rest for a prolonged period of time (15 minutes or more), [and] call 911 for an ambulance,? says George Fehrenbacher, M.D., F.A.C, co-medical director of cardiology with Sutter Roseville Medical Center. ?A heart attack could be occurring. You need to take care of that right away. Time delay can make the difference between living or dying.?
IN THE KNOW
High blood pressure, high cholesterol or a family history of heart problems could mean you?re at risk for a heart attack or other heart problems. ?The term angina reflects the pain a person gets when not enough blood supply gets to the heart,? says Dr. Fehrenbacher, explaining that angina usually occurs after exercise or exertion. ?It can be a discomfort, but not necessarily always a pain, that manifests as chest tightness and can spread to the lower jaw or down both arms.?
MEN VS. WOMEN
While heart disease affects both men and women, the signs can be different. Men frequently have classic symptoms such as pain across the chest, pain in the left arm and sweating. Women, too, can have those symptoms but they can also experience others, including pain across the shoulder blades, nausea, heartburn, pain in both arms, and a decrease in exercise tolerance. ?Women don?t often present with standard angina in the chest,? says Michael Kirchner, M.D., an interventional cardiologist with Mercy Medical Group. ?Sometimes women have shortness of breath or palpitations.?
Women over age 50 and men over age 40 are at an increased risk for heart and vascular problems. ?We?re trying to make people realize this is a disease that begins in childhood and manifests in adulthood,? says Mary Ann Bauman, M.D., national physician spokesperson for the American Heart Association?s (AHA) Go Red For Women movement, who notes that heart disease kills more women than the top three cancers combined.
The AHA?s Impact Goal, to be achieved by 2020, is to improve the cardiovascular health of all Americans by 20 percent, while reducing deaths from cardiovascular diseases and stroke by 20 percent.
LIFESTYLE CHANGES
?The majority of risk factors are changeable or modifiable,? Dr. Kirchner explains. Whether your vices are consuming too much salt, not exercising enough or not checking your cholesterol, you need to reexamine your heart health priorities. ?If you have bad habits, you can really change them,? Dr. Bauman says. ?But the first step is being aware.? That means going to your doctor for regular checkups, knowing your blood pressure and cholesterol readings, and being mindful of a family history of heart problems.
?Prevent heart problems by engaging in a very healthy lifestyle,? says Dr. Fehrenbacher, who suggests eating healthy, exercising and not smoking. ?The majority of young people under [age] 60 that we see at Sutter Roseville who have heart attacks are smokers,? Dr. Fehrenbacher says. Even if it?s tempting to simply take pills to control your blood pressure and cholesterol, you don?t necessarily always need medicine to treat your heart. ?Diet, weight loss and exercise are always the first approach,? Dr. Fehrenbacher says.
GET MOVING
Exercise is essential for heart health. ?Put exercise on your calendar, so that you?ll do it,? Dr. Bauman says. ?Exercise shouldn?t be, ?Will I?? or ?Won?t I?? You just do it.? Dr. Fehrenbacher, who runs every morning before work, agrees that exercise should be a part of your daily routine. ?Set time aside for it like you?d do for anything else,? he says. ?Have it as a part of your life, rather than a task to do.? Exercise by doing what you enjoy, such as running on the treadmill, swimming, rowing, hiking or biking.
?I?d recommend exercising three times a week, if not more, for 45 minutes at a minimum,? says Dr. Fehrenbacher, noting that a workout should include a five-minute warm-up and a five-minute cool down. ?You really need to get your heart rate to a sustained fashion to gain aerobic fitness.? Even if you can?t do long workouts at first, it?s important to get started. ?You don?t have to be perfect,? Dr. Bauman says. ?You just have to be making steps.?
One thing to avoid? ?Heavy weight lifting is not good for the heart,? says Dr. Fehrenbacher, who recommends toning muscles with increased repetitions of lighter weights, rather than heavy weightlifting such as bench pressing.
EAT SMART
?Diet is a very important part of modification of risks,? says Dr. Kirchner, who recommends the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet, which has the same principles of the Mediterranean diet (find out more about the DASH diet at nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/dash). It?s a lifestyle change?not a one-time diet. ?It?s probably the best validated diet,? he says, noting that patients should eat a diet that?s high in fiber as well as fruits and vegetables, but low in trans and saturated fat. You can even have a glass of wine. ?If you?re a light drinker, there?s less risk,? Dr. Kirchner says. ?One standard serving of alcohol per day for women [and] one or two for men may be cardio protective.?
Stay heart healthy by keeping your weight at a manageable level, reducing salt intake, reading food labels and cutting down on red meat consumption. ?We?re lucky and blessed to [live] in a place where food is grown,? Dr. Kirchner says. ?Go to a farmers? market and buy things cost effectively. Eating more fruits and vegetables will positively affect your risk.? From eating well to exercising often, small steps can yield big health rewards. ?
A MOTHER?S HEART:?HOW LAURA SATRAN IS GETTING HEART HEALTHY
Imagine being only 40 years old and having chronic chest pain. You?d probably think it was stress or even heartburn?not a major red flag.
?I was teaching,? says Folsom resident Laura Satran. ?I was walking to my classroom and thought I was having a heart attack.? The incident, which started in March 2011, and was followed by 20 to 30 others, prompted Satran to go to her doctor. While she wasn?t overweight, a smoker or aware of any family history of heart disease, she knew something was wrong. The problem? The left coronary artery, also known as the ?widow maker? wasn?t sending blood to her heart. ?When that shuts off, you die,? she says.
The day after her diagnosis, June 8, 2011, Satran had a triple bypass. The procedure took place at the Sutter Heart and Vascular Institute of Sacramento; she was hospitalized for nine days.
?It really came as a surprise,? says Satran, noting she never did have a heart attack but found out from her cardiologist that she had high blood pressure and high cholesterol. ?I?m really thankful,? she says. ?Now that I have educated myself on the issue, I know heart disease is the number one killer of women.?
Since her surgery, Satran has made changes. ?My life is drastically different now,? she says, explaining how she exercises regularly with Pilates and yoga, eats healthier and is taking a ?calmer approach? to life. Every day, she takes aspirin, supplements, and medications for blood pressure and cholesterol. She also meets with her cardiologist and does regular blood work. The former teacher, who is married and a mother to two girls, ages 8 and 11, says her family is living a healthier lifestyle too by exercising more and eating better.
The survivor?s advice for others? ?You need to listen to your body,? she says. ?Heart disease doesn?t discriminate based on age or gender. It could be anybody at any stage in your life.? ?
Article by Kristen Castillo?? Family Health & Wellness Magazine published by?Style Media Group.
Article appears in the January/February 2013 Issue of Family Health & Wellness Magazine.
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Source: http://familyhw.com/2012/12/dont-miss-a-beat-be-heart-healthy/
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