American Heart Health Month

Since 1964, the month of February has been recognized as American Heart Health Month, and for good reason. According to the CDC, Heart Disease is one of the leading causes of death for American men, women, and individuals of most racial and ethnic groups in the US. Heart disease is a general term that refers to a number of heart conditions. Let’s take this time to become educated on heart disease.

Here are some alarming facts that you may or may not have known about heart disease:

1.      According to the CDC, a heart attack occurs nearly every 40 seconds in the United States.

2.      It is possible to have a heart attack and not even know it. This is known as a ‘silent’ heart attack or Silent Myocardial Infarction (SMI), in which symptoms lack the intensity of classic heart attacks. Approximately 1 in 5 heart attacks are silent.

3.      Coronary Artery Disease or CAD is the most common type of heart disease.

4.      While we typically associate heart disease with older individuals, heart attacks are on the rise in individuals under the age of 50.

5.      Common heart attack symptoms include chest tightness and pain, however, these are not the only symptoms that can occur.  In addition to chest pain, other symptoms of a heart attack include:

-          Shortness of breath

-          Nausea and vomiting

-          Pain in the arms, back,  jaw, neck, or stomach

-          Sudden cold Sweats

-          Sudden weakness

-          Dizziness

-          Heart Palpitations

6.      Chewing aspirin at the onset of symptoms can help to prevent damage from a heart attack.

Heart disease can be prevented with healthy lifestyle changes such as not smoking, maintaining a healthy weight, moderate physical activity, among other things.

Sources:

https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/facts.htm

https://www.acvcare.com/blog/3-surprising-facts-about-heart-disease