Heart disease
Heart disease is that disease which affects your heart. These diseases include:
- Blood vessel diseases (coronary heart disease)
- Arrhythmias
- Congenital heart disease
Symptoms
Symptoms of heart disease depend on what type of heart disease you have
Atherosclerotic disease
- Chest pain, chest discomfort, chest pressure
- Shortness of breath
- Pain, numbness of legs or arms
- Pain in the neck, jaw, throat, back or upper abdomen.
Cardiovascular or heart diseases cannot be diagnosed in most cases, until you have a heart attack. It is always advisable to discuss any symptoms which you face with your doctor.
Heart arrhythmias
- Fluttering in the chest
- Racing heart beat
- Slow heartbeat
- Chest pain
- Shortness of breath
- Light headedness
- Dizziness
- Fainting or near fainting
Heart defects
- Gray or blue skin color (cyanosis)
- Swelling in legs, abdomen, area around the eyes
- In infants, shortness of breath during feeds; poor weight gain
Less serious congenital heart diseases are not diagnosed until later in childhood or when the children reach adulthood. Symptoms of congenital heart defect which are not serious immediately include:
- Easily getting shortness of breath during physical activity
- Easily tiring during physical activity
- Swelling in hands, feet or ankles
When to consult a doctor?
If you feel that you have a heart disease as you feel the symptoms more often, regardless of how you are feeling at this time, you should book an appointment and consult your doctor about your condition.
Causes
The most common heart diseases which prevail in the world currently is Arthrosclerosis. It can be caused by the obstruction of blood vessels by fatty plaques. This can restrict the blood flow to your heart. The habits and causes which lead to the disease are:
- Smoking
- Unhealthy diet
- Overweight
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
- Excessive use of caffeine or alcohol
Prevention
Heart diseases can be prevented in certain cases. Heart defects are something which can be taken care of by surgery or a healthy heart transplant. Otherwise, the preventive measures can be taken which are listed as follows:
- Quit smoking
- Include cardiovascular exercise once a day for about 30 minutes on an average
- Control health conditions like high blood pressure, high sugar levels, and high cholesterol.
- Take a diet which is low in salt and saturated fats
- Keep a check at your weight and maintain a healthy one
- Reduce stress and the factors that cause stress
- Practice good hygiene
- Take things easy and indulge in social activities: these are very good for your heart
Heart diseases are best treated by a qualified cardiologist, but problems such as hypertension can be easily treated by a general physician. Your diet plays a vital role in maintaining the health of your heart and so does your stress levels. If you face anxiety and stress regularly, take help for that. You can take help from a family member who can make you feel better in such situations or even a psychologist.
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