Cardiology – Harbor These 5 Healthy Habits for a Healthy Heart
Practice makes one perfect, but habit plays a crucial role in shaping our lives as well. What done once in a while, if becomes a habit, creates a series of complications. Today we will decode 5 habits that will change your heart forever. It will literally restore your heart to its former health and will keep cardiac emergencies at bay.
So, let’s begin the countdown
1. Take good care of your dental health
Though it may sound very irrelevant, but healthy teeth and gums will help you to have an overall healthy self, that includes your heart as well. It has been found that those having periodontal diseases are at more risk of having heart ailments too. The bacteria that causes gum diseases can travel through the bloodstream and causes complications to the heart as well.
To keep it at bay, brush and floss your teeth regularly.
2. Avoid trans-fat at all cost
It is often not possible (or even recommended) to completely eliminate the fat from the diet, but be sure to watch out for the hidden trans-fat in the everyday grocery list. Trans-fat can clog your arteries, which leads to rising of the bad cholesterol and lowering of the good cholesterol in the bloodstream.
Before buying snacks such as fries and crisps, read the label, ensure it has 0% trans-fat.
3. Have adequate sleep
One factor that often skips our mind is the quality and quantity of sleep we have. Insufficient sleep has been linked with the pressure build-up and inflammation in the heart. Special care should be practiced in case you are dealing with loud snoring and sleep apnea, as these might be an early sign for arrhythmias.
Have a sound sleep for six to eight hours a day to keep your body relaxed and disease free.
4. Avert any second hand smoke
Though sharing has been encouraged since childhood to imprint healthy social and emotional impact, sharing second hand smoke can bring catastrophic results. Even if you are not smoking directly, being present on the site or with the person can harm your heart directly by building up plaque in the bloodstream. It can lead to a cardiac emergency.
Avoid hanging out with people who are chain smokers and be firm about your resolution.
5. Increase mobility while sitting or travelling for hours
Sitting idle for long hours at a stretch can be extremely harmful for your health. This is more likely to happen if you are either involved in sitting jobs or often travel to long distance for it. Immobilization for long hours can cause deep vein thrombosis blood clot in the blood vessels.
Try to take a short break every couple of hours during the work and move around to mobilize your muscles.
Heart Attack vs. Stroke – What’s the Difference & How to Spot?
There are many diseases that give quality time for diagnosis and treatment. On the other hand, there are some diseases that need immediate medical attention. According to the doctors practicing in the ILS Hospitals, two of the most encountered medical emergencies are – heart attack and stroke. These diseases are very closely related, as both occur due to blocked arteries, but they are not the same thing.
Perceiving the symptoms in time is very crucial for saving a life.
So what actually happens during the two?
- Heart attack– When the coronary artery (the blood vessel that supplies blood to the heart) narrows to a limit when the blood flow gets restricted or blocked completely, it initiates a heart attack. The plague or cholesterol build up are the main causes for the same.
- Stroke– When the carotid artery (the blood vessel that carries blood to the brain) bursts or gets blocked, it causes a stroke.
It is mainly of two types.
a. Ischemic stroke (the most encountered one) occurs when the blood supply to the brain cuts off due to blockage or plaque buildup.
b. Hemorrhagic stroke, in which the blood vessel bursts and releases in the nearby tissues.
What are the symptoms?
The onset of the symptoms can be very rapid, usually without any prior warning. Some of their symptoms are similar while the rest is quite different. It varies significantly based on the severity of its occurrence, age, gender and the overall health condition.
Symptoms of Heart Attack
- Chest congestion or pressure that can spread to neck, jaws, back and arms
- Pain in the upper abdominal cavity
- Fatigue and nausea
- Excessive sweating
Symptoms of Stroke
- Numb sensation on one side of the body (usually left side), especially face
- Difficulty seeing, speaking/ understanding
- Sharp headache
- Loss of balance and body coordination
- Confusion
The Risk Factors
Since both the conditions are related to blocked arteries, they share several common risk factors such as-
- High blood pressure
- High cholesterol
- Family history
- Smoking
- Aging
High blood pressure is closely related to both of these diseases. The prime reason is persistent high blood pressure that exerts force on the blood vessel, which in turn strains them. This results in its rigidity and thus causes poor circulation, leading to heart attack and stroke.
Diagnosis
The doctors operating in ILS Hospitals primarily gather family history and personal medical history as it plays a crucial role in it.
A possible stroke can be diagnosed by carrying out a CT scan, which can depict the area of poor blood circulation or rupture and bleeding. Depending upon the situation, an MRI can also be advised.
A possible heart attack can be diagnosed by an electrocardiogram, which evaluates the health of the heart muscles.
All About Arrhythmia And Its Diagnosis
Cardiac arrhythmia is a group of medical conditions, in which the heartbeat becomes either too fast or too slow. The normal heartbeat rate is between 60 to 90. If the heartbeat falls below 60, it is called bradycardia and if it raises above 100, it is called tachycardia.