Signs and Symptoms of a heart attack
Unhealthy lifestyles combined with a ton of stress
are making more and more people vulnerable to heart attacks. Here’s a low-down
on signs and symptoms of a heart attack.
What happens during a heart attack?
During a heart attack, the blood flow to the heart muscle is either reduced or completely stops. This typically happens because of a blood clot that is blocking an artery. When the heart muscle does not get oxygen-rich blood, it ceases to work.
Some common heart attack symptoms:
- A heart attack often causes chest pain.
- There is a feeling of fullness or a clasping pain in the centre of the chest. Most victims describe the pain as akin to an elephant standing on the chest (extreme pain). It usually lasts for about 15 minutes.
- One also experiences shooting pain in the shoulders, neck, arm, back and sometimes even the teeth and jaw.
- One finds increasing episodes of chest pain.
- Prolonged pain in the upper abdomen.
- Shortness of breath.
- The victim might experience heavy sweating.
- Since the heart’s pumping action is severely impaired during a severe heart attack, the victim might lose his/her consciousness.
- Nausea and vomiting
- In rare cases, as in patients who are diabetic, the heart attack may not be very painful, and sometimes can even be entirely painless.
Other heart attack
symptoms
The elderly, diabetics,
people on steroids as well as women are less likely to have obvious symptoms
like severe chest pain (as often seen in men). These are some symptoms they are
likely to have:
- Pain in the abdomen
- Heart burn
- Sweaty skin
- Unusual tiredness
- Dizziness or light-headedness
- Nausea
- Tightness or pain in the neck, shoulder or upper back
Heart attack symptoms are not the same for all…
Not everyone who has a heart attack has the same symptoms. Many a time,
we also tend to ignore a heart attack thinking it might be mere abdominal
discomfort due to gas pains or indigestion. If you have more than a few
symptoms listed above, then you are likely to be having an attack. Get emergency
help immediately.
What to do in case of a heart attack?
- Rush to a hospital: If you recognise that you or someone around is having a heart attack, get immediate medical help.
- Give Disprin (Asprin): As soon as you recognise it is an attack, crush a disprin, dissolve it in water and make the person drink it.
- Emergency numbers: Every office and home must keep a list of emergency numbers like that of an ambulance service, hospital.
A heart attack is
different from a cardiac arrest. Do not confuse a heart attack with cardiac
arrest. In the case of a cardiac arrest, the heart suddenly stops. It occurs
due to an electrical disturbance that obstructs the heart’s pumping function,
which results in stopping blood flow to the rest of the body.
Heart Disease Prevention
8 Simple Ways You Can Do Immediately
In principle, all
people can take these 8 simple ways towards heart disease prevention.
Prevent and control
high blood cholesterol
High blood cholesterol
is a major risk factor for heart disease. Preventing and treating high blood
cholesterol includes eating a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol and
high in fiber, keeping a healthy weight, and getting regular exercise. All
adults should have their cholesterol levels checked once every five years. If
yours is high, your doctor may prescribe medicines to help lower it.
Prevent and control
high blood pressure
Lifestyle actions such
as healthy diet, regular physical activity, not smoking, and healthy weight
will help you to keep normal blood pressure levels and all adults should have
their blood pressure checked on a regular basis. Blood pressure is easily
checked. If your blood pressure is high, you can work with your doctor to treat
it and bring it down to the normal range. A high blood pressure can usually be
controlled with lifestyle changes and with medicines when needed.
Prevent and control
diabetes
People with diabetes
have an increased risk of heart disease but can reduce their risk. Also, people
can take steps to reduce their risk for diabetes in the first place, through
weight loss and regular physical activity.
No
tobacco
Smoking increases the
risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke. Never smoking is one of
the best things a person can do to lower their risk. And, quitting smoking will
also help lower a person’s risk of heart disease. A person's risk of heart
attack decreases soon after quitting. If you smoke, your doctor can suggest
programs to help you quit smoking.
Moderate alcohol use
Excessive alcohol use
increases the risk of high blood pressure, heart attack, and stroke. People who
drink should do so only in moderation and always responsibly.
Maintain a healthy
weight
Healthy weight status
in adults is usually assessed by using weight and height to compute a number
called the "body mass index" (BMI). BMI usually indicates the amount
of body fat. An adult who has a BMI of 30 or higher is considered obese.
Overweight is a BMI between 25 and 29.9. Normal weight is a BMI of 18 to 24.9.
Proper diet and regular physical activity can help to maintain a healthy
weight.
Regular physical
activity
Adults should engage in
moderate level physical activities for at least 30 minutes on most days of the
week.
Diet and nutrition
Along with healthy
weight and regular physical activity, an overall healthy diet can help to lower
blood pressure and cholesterol levels and prevent obesity, diabetes, heart
disease, and stroke. This includes eating lots of fresh fruits and vegetables,
lowering or cutting out added salt or sodium, and eating less saturated fat and
cholesterol to lower these risks.
