Posts Tagged ‘heart attack’
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Heart Attack Prevention Tips
While some have to fight the battle of the bulge for mere shallow reasons, there are those who do all the dieting and exercising to reduce their cholesterol levels just to stay alive. And while cholesterol is an important component of the membranes of cells, playing an important part in maintaining brain synapses as well as in the immune system, it is also the largest cause of heart attack and stroke.
While it is great that most people who are suffering from high levels of cholesterol go to their dieticians to have their daily eating habits tweaked by following a strict meal plan in order to help them lower their cholesterol levels (hopefully back to normal levels), some people have really gone overboard, but if you feel compelled to lower your cholestorol, consult with your doctor, most doctors are fine with prescribing cholesterol reducing drugs.
When coupled with a healthy diet and regular exercise, the drugs can make quite a difference in your cholesterol levels, at least enough that your levels can be considered safe.
There are four kinds of cholesterol reducing drugs:
1. Bile acid
Sequesterants are cholesterol reducing drugs that aim to bind with the bile that is being produced by one’s liver. The bile helps out in our digestion as well as in the absorption of fats from the intestine. This cholesterol reducing drug blocks out the digestion of fats from the bile to help prevent the formation of cholesterol. Various cholesterol reducing drugs in this category are the following:
- Colestipol – Colestid – Coleseyalam – Welchol – Cholestyramine – Questran
2. Statins
Popularly known as statins, the HMG-CoA inhibitors are cholesterol reducing drugs that prevent the enzyme called 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-conenzyme, a reductase, from converting fat into cholesterol. This cholesterol reducing drug is seen as the most effective one in the market today and does some added good to one’s body as 2003 reports claim that people with heart failure but no coronary artery diseases receive great benefits from this in as early as 14 weeks.
Popular drugs from this cholesterol reducing drug group include:
- Simvastatin – Zocor – Cerivastatin – Baycol – Fluvastatin – Lescol – Lovastatin – Mevacor – Prevastatin – Pravachol – Atorvastatin – Lipitor
3. Fibric Acid
The cholesterol reducing drug called fibric acid and its derivaties are less effective than the statins when in comes to lowering one’s cholesterol level.
Popular drugs under this kind of cholesterol reducing drugs are:
- Clofibrate – Atormid-S – Gemfibrozil – Lopid – Fenofribrate – Tricor
4. Niacin
Niacin, or vitamin B-3, also is effective in lowering cholesterol levels. Although the normal vitamin dose of niacin is only set at 20 mg for each day, the dose required to reduce cholesterol levels is at least 500 mg each day. Niacin helps reduce cholesterol by inhibiting very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) secretion in the bloodstream.
About the author:
For more great cholesterol related articles and resources check out http://www.Tips-To- Lower-Cholesterol.com
Written By: Stephen White
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Prevent Heart Disease
Copyright 2005 Mike Spencer
You should always keep in mind that whatever actions you do today can either help to prevent, delay or minimize the effect of heart disease or worsen it. The key is to control risk factors. Granted that you cannot control every risk factor for heart disease such as family history but you can definitely do something about your behavior. Age and gender also influence your risk of heart disease.
Major Risk Factors of Heart Disease
Cholesterol Levels
Cholesterol is a type of a lipid, a soft, fatlike substance that serves as a source of fuel. Excessive cholesterol can cause buildup of atherosclerotic plaque. Accumulation of plaque in arteries can block blood flow and lead to a heart attack. LDL cholesterol, the so-called “bad” cholesterol, is transported to sites throughout the body, where it’s used to repair cell membranes or to make hormones. LDL cholesterol can accumulate in the walls of your arteries. HDL cholesterol, the so-called “good” cholesterol, transports cholesterol to the liver, where it’s altered and removed from the body.
Blood Pressure
Normal blood pressure level is defined as less than 130 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) for systolic blood pressure and less than 85 mm Hg for diastolic blood pressure. The higher the blood pressure, the more likely it is to take a toll on the heart and on the brain. Blood pressure should be checked whether or not your levels are high. For normal, check once every two years. For high-normal, check once a year. If extremely high, you should get immediate care. Then get multiple measurements to know if a high level is sustained over time.
Diabetes
Another risk factor for heart disease is diabetes, a chronic disease of insulin deficiency or resistance. Type 2 diabetes, the most common type, is associated with obesity and may be prevented by maintaining ideal body weight through exercise and balanced nutrition.
Tips For Controlling Risk of Heart Disease
Stop Smoking
The effect of smoking on your lungs can cause almost every other medical condition.
Get Active
Routine physical activity is highly recommended and helpful in controlling obesity. Try to perform 30 minutes of moderate physical activity every day. Fast walking is one of the best way to prevent heart disease. If you can lose even a small amount of weight, five pounds for example, it may have a positive effect on lipid levels and blood pressure preventing heart disease.
Limit Alcohol Consumption
Limit daily alcohol intake to three ounces or fewer to prevent heart disease. People who drink large amounts of alcohol (six to eight ounces a day) tend to have higher blood pressure.
Watch What You Eat
Eat five helpings of fruits and vegetables daily to prevent heart disease.
Maintain adequate dietary potassium, calcium and magnesium intake.
Reduce saturated fats and cholesterol to stay away from heart disease.
About the Author
Mike Spencer has been helping people protect their health for many years. To find out how you can help protect your heart and prevent heart disease visit mikes site at: http://www.heart-healthy-diet.com
Written By: Mike Spencer
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Heart Attack Symptoms
Heart attacks are something that can be inherited from others in your family or you can create a world where you are eating and leading the lifestyle that is going to lead to a heart attach. No matter if your parents have had heart attacks, or if you are leading a sedentary lifestyle, it is important to understand and learn about what is going to be the signs of a heart attack. Heart attack symptoms are something that should not be ignored, and that you should seek medical attention for if you feel or think that you are having a heart attack. A heart attack can lead to death, and a severe heart attack can sometimes be prevented or treated if you know what some of the heart attack symptoms are.
Heart attack symptoms in every day life
No matter what you age, there can be underlying problems that are going to lead to a heart attack if you are not careful. The first line of defense for anyone, is to get regular checkups. For the doctor to see you when you are healthy and feeling good, and then when you are sick, the doctor can determine easier what may be out of line or out of whack making you feel ill. Getting a regular physical is going to be a good defense preventing medical problems in the long run.Heart attack symptoms can be very sudden and for other people they can be long-term problems, pains and even just discomforts. A heart attack is one that can come on and not last very long, or for other people it can be sudden and the pain can last for hours.
If you feel a heavy feeling in your chest, like someone is standing on your chest and you just cant catch your breath, this is a sign of a heart attack. If you have been feeling a pain that comes and goes, that is uncomfortable, that is a squeezing feeling or a sharp shooting pain, this could be signs of a heart attack.
Another sign of a heart attack can be a shortness of breath. If you are a very active person, you know what it will feel like when you are unable to catch your breath or take in a deep breath. The signs of a heart attack include not being able to take a breath, or a deep breath which can in turn leave you feeling dizzy and feeling as if you need to sit down for a while. A heart attack symptom is not one that you should ignore. If you are feeling combinations of symptoms it can be vital to get to your doctor as soon as possible.
If you feel pains or discomfort in your arms, legs or in the chest, and you feel as if your neck or jaw are hurting uncontrollably, these could be additional signs of a heart attack. Heart attack symptoms will vary from person to person, but pain that is not normal, that you dont usually feel, in combination with shortness of breath and or a tightness in your chest could be a huge sign that you are heading towards a heart attack.
About the Author:
Vigdis Tange Andersen’s http://www.heartattacksymptom.org
Written By: Vigdis Tange Andersen
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Your Dentist Might Stop Your Next Heart Attack
As the Webmaster for a site dedicated to helping people save money when they go to the dentist, I find myself having to consistently fight two different and distinct battles; one against the average Americans reluctance to pay the high cost of modern dental care and the other is the same Americans belief that seeing a dentist regularly just isn’t that important.
The first battle I have a decent chance of winning but the second battle I’ve had to throw my hands up in surrender; I mean if someone doesn’t care about their teeth enough to have them taken care of by a dentist, what can I possibly say to convince them otherwise?
How about this; “Did you know that your next visit to the dentist could prevent a heart attack?”
Medical researchers have known for years now that there’s a definite link between gum disease (i.e. gingivitis) and persons’ risk for a heart disease (see http://discountdental4u.net/gumdisease.htm). Evidence is mounting, however, that information gleaned from a routine panoramic dental X-rays-wide-angle frontal images – taken to establish the baseline condition of teeth and surrounding bone – may serve as an accurate early-warning system of risk of dying from heart attack or stroke.
According to researchers at the University of Buffalo School of Dental medicine, a study of 818 teeth and jaw x-rays of Pima Indians in Arizona found that those who had a build-up of calcified plaque in the carotid arteries were twice as likely to die from heart attack or stroke. Normally, calcified plaque is present in only about 3 percent of the general population.
An earlier study of 2,700 dental patients showed calcium deposits on each side of the carotid arteries can be spotted in x-rays of the teeth and jaw bone.
It makes sense that the dental x-rays would see the carotid artery -which carries blood from the heart to the brain and back – so dentists should be aware that it is screening tool for cardiovascular disease. If they see signs of calcification in dental x-rays, they tell the patient to see his or her doctor ASAP.
BOTTOM LINE: Most dental insurance plans allow you a yearly dental exam at little or no cost so schedule a complete check-up, including x-rays, with your dentist ASAP. If you don’t have dental insurance, consider enrolling in a discount dental plan that fits your budget and then go see a dentist ASAP.
Kenneth Kowalsky is the webmaster of DiscountDental4U.net, a web site devoted to helping people to save money on dental care, including advice on choosing the best dental plan for you, inexpensive tips on easing toothache pain, little-known ways to lower your dentist bills, etc. You can contact him via e-mail at DiscountDental4U@yahoo.com or via this toll-free number 1-877-534-4808.
discountdental4u@yahoo.com
Written By: Ken Kowalsky
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High-dose statins lower heart attack risk
If you suffer from stable heart disease, a higher dose of the class of cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins might decrease the risk of heart attacks and strokes for you, a new study shows.
The study, funded by Pfizer, and called Treating New Targets, or TNT, showed that the top dose of Atorvastatin calcium decreased the risk of heart attacks and strokes in people with stable heart disease, compared to the lowest dose of the same drug.
“Atorvastatin calcium is a prescription medicine used with diet to lower cholesterol,” said Dr Graham Jackson, a British-based consultant cardiologist, who was in Kuala Lumpur last week. “Lowering cholesterol levels is a proven strategy in reducing the risk of heart attack and heart disease but it is not certain what the appropriate target for lowering cholesterol should be in individuals with known heart disease. This study helped determine that. The results could potentially change the standard of care for patients with CHD.”
The five-year Treating to New Targets Trial (TNT) involved 10,000 patients with established coronary heart disease and elevated LDL, or “bad” cholesterol levels. The study assessed whether patients on high-dose Atorvastatin calcium who aggressively lowered their LDL-cholesterol levels to well below the current guidelines (100 mg/dL) would experience additional cardiovascular benefits compared to Atorvastatin calcium patients who maintained their LDL-cholesterol at recommended levels.
Patients who received 80 ma doses of Atorvastatin calcium had 22 per cent fewer cardiovascular events, including CHD death, non-fatal heart attacks, resuscitated cardiac arrest, and fatal or non-fatal strokes compared to patients who took 10 mg of Atorvastatin calcium. In addition, patients treated with high- dose Atorvastatin calcium had 25 per cent fewer fatal or non-fatal strokes compared to those treated with just 10 mg of Atorvastatin calcium.
Dr Sim Kui-Hian, head of both the department of Cardiology and the Clinical Research Centre at the Sarawak General Hospital, said that the average cholesterol levels of the Malaysian population have been increasing since 1961 and the majority of Malaysians with elevated cholesterol are not at their recommended goal levels.
“This is despite the fact that coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death in Malaysia,” said Dr Sim.
“Everyone hates taking medicine,” he said. “But this drug is generally well tolerated. Adverse reactions usually have been mild and transient, with the most frequent adverse effects of atorvastatin being constipation, flatulence, dyspepsia and abdominal pain.”
“The mainstay of treatment; besides medication, is exercise, diet and maintaining a healthy body weight,” said Dr Sim. If patients are on a higher dosage of atorvastatin coupled with exercises, not smoking, maintaining correct blood pressure and controlling diabetes, coronary vascular diseases can be remarkably reduced by 80 per cent.
About the Author
www.medical-explorer.com
Written By: Anonymous
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Heart Attack: Are You At Risk?
If you’re male and you lead an inactive lifestyle you probably have at least 3 risk factors associated with heart disease. I know, I know, you feel fine but so do most people before they have a heart attack. Unfortunately, most people find out they have heart disease the day they are admitted in to hospital, and they are the lucky ones!
Ladies, don’t think this is just something for men to worry about (as it has been in the past). Women, as well as men, are more likely to die of heart disease than of any type of cancer.
This is because of our modern lifestyle. We are working longer hours, so we eat fast food, and there’s no time for exercise. To make matters worse, machines are taking the ‘work’ out of work. We are less active and it’s killing us!
So what are the risk factors for heart disease?
Firstly, there are two types of risk factors: those that can be changed, and those that can’t be changed. It’s important to know that you only need to have 3 of these to be at risk. Each extra risk factor that you have increases your chance of having a heart attack substantially.
Risk factors that can’t be changed:
Heredity: You are at greater risk if your parents, grandparents, brothers, or sisters, have heart disease.
Gender: Men are at greater risk than women, though the risk for women increases after menopause.
Age: As you increase in age, so do your chances of having a heart attack. Once you reach 40 you should have regular check-ups.
Risk factors that can be changed:
Smoking: A smoker is twice as likely than a non-smoker to have a heart attack. It not only places extra strain on the heart and lungs but also makes blood cholesterol stickier, making it easier to block arteries.
High Blood Cholesterol: Cholesterol is produced naturally by the body and is essential to our health. The problem comes when we consume too much in our diet.
High Blood Pressure: Just like with high cholesterol there are no early symptoms. The first most people learn they have this is when it’s at a dangerous level.
Physical Inactivity: If you are inactive, you are more likely to have a heart attack. Even a 10 minute walk each day can make all the difference.
Obesity: If you are obese, you are placing your heart under a great deal of strain even at rest.
I might be at risk, what should I do?
If you think you could be at risk, the first thing you should do is visit your doctor. Secondly, you need to modify your lifestyle. Exercise for at least 10 minutes per day (30 minutes is better but anything is better than nothing!). You also need to eat foods that are low in fat. If you smoke you need to give up.
Even if you don’t have many risk factors it’s a good idea to visit your doctor each year. Some risk factors can change within a short period of time and getting on to them early can make all the difference.
About the Author
Ray Kelly is an Exercise Scientist with 15 years experience in the health and fitness industry. Sign up for his free 7 Day Weight Loss Course at Symptoms of Heart Attacks and Diabetes
Written By: Ray Kelly
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Are You On A Bullet Train To Heart Attack City?
“It just can’t be true!” I said. “Why have they been telling us this? You can’t believe anyone anymore.” Here’s the story. For more than two decades we’ve had it drummed into our heads that high cholesterol causes heart attacks and of course the major cause of the high cholesterol has been the high saturated fat that most of us love so much.
Drug companies spend millions to convince us (and our doctors) that if we lower our cholesterol…with Lipitor, Zocor, Crestor or Vytorin of course, then we’ll live happily ever after.
If high cholesterol is the villain then why do half of all heart attacks happen to people with normal or low cholesterol–and two out of three occur without major artery blockages? You can have cholesterol below 200, LDLs under 100 and still have dangerous “silent” plaque deposits growing day-by-day inside artery walls.
Cholesterol and saturated fat have gotten a bad rap. New research is showing that the primary cause of heart disease is NOT too much “bad” cholesterol. There are several more dangerous risk factors for a heart attack. One of these is the smoldering inflammation that causes the cholesterol in our arteries to turn rancid and clog our arteries.
Dr. Nicholas Perricone says this in The Perricone Prescription. “I was always eager to challenge traditional thinking and I noticed that every time I looked at disease under a microscope–everything from arthritis to heart disease–inflammation was a component.”
Perricone’s research focused on finding the causes of this inflammation and how to stop it. What he discovered might surprise you as it did me.
Simple carbohydrates such as sugar and white flour (as a sweet-o-holic it pains me greatly to write this) are very inflammatory–and there is also strong evidence that they are the underlying cause of weight gain.
How can we tell if our bodies are full of inflammation? A simple blood test measures the amount of C-reactive protein (CRP) in our blood. More than a dozen clinical studies have shown that people with high levels of CRP are at greater risk of having a heart attack or a stroke.
How can we stop this inflammation? We need to cut way back on the sugar and other refined products and eat more cold-water fish, omega-3 oils and extra virgin olive oil. We also need a high quality natural vitamin with optimum amount of antioxidants. A one-a-day vitamin just doesn’t do the job.
Exercise also dramatically reduces the amount of inflammation in the blood. A study at the Cooper Clinic in Dallas compared the amount of CRP in people with varying levels of fitness. Those with the highest fitness levels had nearly a 300% lower risk of having a heart attack than those at the lowest fitness levels.
Do you want to live a vigorous, healthy and mentally sharp life? Most of us know what to do but just don’t do it. Now is the time to make those changes we’ve been putting off. A heart attack isn’t as much fun as you might think.
About the Author
Written By: Gene Millen – www.VitalHeart.Info
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What do the French know to help your heart?
Does red wine protect against heart disease? Maybe. Many studies investigated the benefits of red wine suggested that moderate amount of red wine (one drink a day for women and two drinks a day for men) lowers the risk of heart attack for people in middle age by 30 to 50 percent. It is also suggested that alcohol such as red wine may prevent additional heart attacks if you already have suffered from one. The compounds found in red wine that are responsible for its healing powers are antioxidants. Red wines contain several antioxidants beneficial to good health. Different antioxidants have different functions, but the key feature of all these antioxidants appears to be one of protection and prevention of disease.
Other studies also indicated that red wine can raise HDL cholesterol (the Good cholesterol) and prevent LDL cholesterol (the Bad cholesterol) from forming. Red wine may help prevent blood clots and reduce the blood vessel damage caused by fat deposits. Indeed, studies showed that people from the Mediterranean region who regularly drank red wine have lower risks of heart disease.
Here is something very interesting. The French seem to know something about the health benefits of red wine. In a study that compared French and German red wines, the French red wines delivered a greater health benefit due to their higher level of antioxidants. This may partially account for the French paradox, where studies show that in areas of France where the diet is high in fat those who drink red wine with meals have a lower incidence of heart attack than other parts of the world. Due to vast differences in diets, the evidence is inconclusive, but experts believe that red wine contains certain compounds that help protect the heart. This has opened the door for other researchers to study the components in red wine that may be responsible for its health benefits.
Researchers at Northwestern University Medical School have found that a chemical in red wine believed to help reduce risk for heart disease is a form of estrogen. The substance, resveratrol, is highly concentrated in the skin of grapes and is abundant in red wine. Resveratrol protects grapes and some other plants against fungal infections. It has been shown previously to have a number of potentially beneficial properties, including antioxidant, anticoagulant, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer effects.
Should I start drinking more red wine now? The answer is no. Studies showed that alcohol drinking may increase triglycerides (another bad blood lipids) and result in weight gain due to its empty calories. Other studies also suggested that alcohol consumption is associated with cancer risk. The American Heart Association cautions people NOT to start drinking if they do not already drink alcohol.
Interested on this subject? Try this link for more of the same
About the author:
Written By: Dennis Miller
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Congenital Heart Disease – A Conundrum
To reduce your chances of heart disease, you can eat a low fat diet high in Omega 3, take regular exercise, lose weight and do all those other things the doctors tell us BUT..
Consider my family.
Paternal Grandfather first heart attack in his fifties, eventually died of a stroke at the unripe age of 67.
Maternal Grandfather first heart attack in his forties and died of a heart attack again aged 67.
Father died very suddenly at the tender age of 65 you guessed it – from a massive heart attack having never shown any sign of heart trouble until that point.
Mother suffered from acute angina since her late forties. She is now 60 and takes a cocktail of drugs daily to control the symptoms
Maternal Uncle suffered a heart attack at the age of forty and has been effectively disabled ever since.
Nothing I can do about any of these factors and yet hereditary factors are thought to play a significant part in the development of the disease. After the death of my father in 2002, I really began to question my lifestyle and turned into a health obsessed freak. The stress of this took my blood pressure to 140 over 90 and I was doing more harm to my body than good. I had to re-examine the whole situation.
The big question is this: should I eat ultra sensibly, exercise rigorously, cut out the alcohol (fortunately I have not smoked for nearly 8 years) and eat my way through a forest of plant sterols and generally be miserable, or bow to the inevitable and enjoy whatever time I have left before my heart packs in?
All the doctors and my head would say I should be sensible and do the former, whilst my heart(!) is telling me to live life to the full because as I know all too painfully due to the death of my father, that life is short and every minute should be savoured not wasted.
Well the good news is this at the moment my blood pressure is normal, my cholesterol level is 4.8 (below 5 is considered good) and I take regular walks and play competitive sport every week at the ripe old age of 38 years. OK Im a few pounds heavier than I should be and I have a fairly stressful job. I will continue to ensure I am checked regularly (every 2 years is optimal I am told) by the doctors in the hope that any problem will be caught early and be treated, and perhaps I can approach the dreaded four-oh with optimism instead of dread.
May anyone worried about hereditary heart disease take strength from these ramblings and stop stressing themselves (literally to death) by the worry of achieving the ultimate healthy lifestyle.
Take heart! Be sensible not obsessive. Get checked regularly.
About the Author
Copyright 2005 Daniel Morris Beat-Heart-Disease.com
This article is free please use it as you see fit in its entire form. Please email me at contact@health-info-online.com and let me know where it is being posted and be sure to use a live link to the web site. Thank you.Written By: Daniel Morris
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Know Your Heart Health
We all know that keeping up with our heart health is an important thing to do. We all know that there are a wide variety of factors that cause heart problems, and we should know by now that there are some basic ways to help protect the health of our hearts. What many people do not realize, however, is that keys to their heart health may be different than keys to the heart health of others.
There are almost as many strategies and tips for having good heart health as there are people with hearts in the world. It is important that each person takes the time to learn about his or her own heart health and to learn about the possible methods of ensuring heart health for years to come.
One of the best ways for anyone to become familiar with the needs of their heart is to see a physician. Schedule a visit to see your doctor and plan to discuss your heart health with him or her. If you can think of any questions or concerns you have regarding your heart health, write them down and bring them along. It will also be very helpful if you have a record of your extended family’s heart health history. It is likely that your physician will want to discuss more than just your own heart health. He or she will want to look for patterns or trends that have affected other people you’re related to.
A physician can help you determine not only the current health of your heart, but also give you a better understanding of specific things you can do to help prevent heart attack or heart disease. For some people, the most significant factor in achieving and maintaining heart health is to change their diet. The foods we choose to put into our bodies affect our heart health in more ways than we know. Eating large amounts of sugar, carbohydrates or processed foods will eventually take their toll on our heart health. Your physician can set you up with a dietician who specializes in creating unique diet plans that promote heart health.
For other people, it is their exercise and physical fitness habits that a physician will address. Heart health can be significantly altered based upon a person’s level of exercise. Your physician will be able to help you create a fitness plan that will be effective for you and your heart health needs.
It is never too late to take your heart health seriously. Make an appointment to see your physician today.
About the Author:
Denton Krypps has been consulting people to take their heart health seriously ever since battling back from a nearly fatal heart attack ten years ago. Check out www.hearthealthgroup.info for the sake of your heart.
Written By: Denton Krypps
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