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The heart, when you think about it, is a
miraculous thing. It works unceasingly and tirelessly to supply blood to the
whole body. Working in combination with the lungs it plays a major role in the
process of respiration, sending rich oxygenated blood to every cell and
eliminating wastes with exceptional efficiency.
The heart is an engine that is geared to cover
a wide range of situations from complete rest to running at high speed. Its
comforting lub-dub soothes babies in the womb. No wonder the ancient considered
it the source of all emotion and the center of life.
Sadly, when the heart fails or falters, life is
threatened. Heart disease is the world’s leading killer, annually claiming 17
million lives worldwide. One in every three deaths is due to heart disease. It
afflicts men, women, and children of all ages, and across all geographic and
economic lines.
That is why today, September 25, 2005, the
World Heart Federation, working with cardiovascular associations in over 100
countries, will hold the sixth annual World Heart Day. This year’s theme, Healthy
Weight, Healthy Shape emphasizes the close correlation with body weight and
the risk of heart disease.
Correlation Between Size and Heart Disease
Throughout the world there are now more
overweight than underfed women. And this is not necessarily a matter of pride.
In fact, it is a matter of serious concern. Larger sizes bring larger risks for
cardiovascular illness and death.
Being overweight or obese, particularly if
weight is carried around the abdomen, is a leading risk factor for heart disease
and stroke, reducing the likely age of a first heart attack by between four and
eight years. Keeping a healthy weight and body shape dramatically reduces this
risk.
Excess abdominal fat is more resistant to the
actions of insulin. As a result, body shape and specifically a large waist
relative to hip size (apple shape) raises the risk of diabetes, high blood
pressure, and heart disease.
According to Dr Sidney Smith, chairman of the
World Heart Federation’s Scientific Advisory Board, waist size is a critical
measure. “Waist size,” he said, “is associated with increased levels of
risk even in children, and worsens the outcome of patients already with heart
disease. Waist size is like blood pressure and cholesterol level, another one of
those numbers that we should all know, understand, and watch closely.”
Controlling Weight for a Healthy Heart
How can you tell if you’re overweight?
Measure your waist just above your navel to measure your risk. If you are over
94 cm (37 inches) for a man and over 80 cm (32 inches) for a woman, you are
considered at risk. 102 cm (40 inches) for a man and 88 cm (35 inches) for a
woman means you are at even higher risk.
Having extra weight to carry around means that
your heart has to work harder to supply blood and move you around from place to
place. The spare tire you have significantly increases your risk of heart
disease and stroke.
Excess weight also increases your likelihood of
developing other problems which contribute to the risk of heart disease and
stroke. An overweight person has a 2-6 times greater risk of developing high
blood pressure, while 80 percent of people with diabetes are overweight. High
cholesterol is a well-known risk factor associated with being overweight.
Maintaining a healthy weight consists of a
balance of energy in (calories consumed) and energy out (calories burned). Being
overweight is because more calories are consumed than used. Obviously then, to
lose weight, your calorie intake must be less than the calories you burn. All
nutritionists advise avoiding fad diets or those that encourage eating (or not
eating) specific foods. Adopting a balanced diet including plenty of fruits
and vegetables, whole grain products, low-fat and fat-free products,
unsaturated soft margarines and oils, lean meat, and fish is best. Remember, if
you lose weight gradually you are more likely to keep it off.
Adding regular exercise helps burn more
calories as well as keeping your heart fit. For adults, at least 30 minutes of
brisk walking or other exercise per day will help reduce the risk of
cardiovascular disease.
Parents are powerful role models for their
children. Studies have shown that children with excess weight are three to five
times more likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke before they reach 65. As a
parent, you are in a position to save their lives. Parents who eat more fruits
and vegetables have children who eat more fruits and vegetables, and live longer
healthier lives. Children should have 60 minutes of physical activity per
day—so drag them from in front of the TV sets and video game consoles out into
the sun and fresh air.
While heart attacks can be dramatic, other
heart conditions, such as a coronary artery disease, are often insidious and the
result of a cascade of risk factors in an otherwise seemingly healthy person.
Among these conditions is coronary artery disease.
Coronary Artery Disease
Abdullah thinks of himself as the average 48
year old. At 190 cm he’s quite tall and is proud of the fact that while he’s
put on a few kilos since college, he’s not as fat as many of his friends. He
makes a conscious effort to eat well, though he admits to himself that he
probably should cut back more on the sugar and the fat in his diet.
He’s not sedentary. He walks to the office
from the car park and a couple of times a week strolls around the neighborhood.
Occasionally he plays football with friends or his children.
While he once smoked heavily, Abdullah heeded
health warnings and quit smoking a few years ago. The doctors have told him his
blood pressure is fine and he’s not diabetic. His cholesterol and lipid levels
are a bit high, but nothing to get excited about.
If asked about stress, Abdullah would have said
“Who doesn’t have it?” His work is interesting but sometimes the
frustration gets to him. Family life is rewarding, but demands placed on him
leave him feeling like things are getting out of control.
While walking up the hill to his office
Abdullah starts to feel some pain and a burning sensation in the center of his
chest. He stops, the pain subsides. Heartburn, he concludes, and makes it to the
office, ignoring the pain. A couple of hours later the pain returns, he feels
nauseous, short of breath and a bit clammy. His co-workers notice his distress.
“Call emergency” he hears one of them shout through the haze of the
unyielding pain, “we need a …” Abdullah doesn’t hear the rest of the
sentence.
While the Abdullah above is fictional, what
happened is not. A seemingly vigorous man in his late forties, he was suffering
from coronary artery disease (CAD). CAD is the most common type of heart disease
and is one of the leading causes of death for both men and women in the world;
the sort of condition that excess weight can be a significant contributor to.
CAD occurs when the arteries that supply blood
to the heart muscle become narrowed from a buildup of plaque on the inner walls
or lining of the arteries; a condition called arthrosclerosis. Blood flow to the
heart is reduced as plaque narrows the coronary arteries. With the blood flow
and oxygen supply reduced or cut off, a person can develop either angina (a
chest pain or discomfort that occurs when your heart is not getting enough
blood), or a heart attack.
A heart attack happens when a blood clot
suddenly cuts off most or all blood supply to part of the heart. Cells in the
heart muscle that do not receive enough oxygen-carrying blood begin to die. This
can cause permanent damage to the heart muscle. If allowed to run untreated, CAD
can also lead to heart failure, which means that the heart isn’t pumping blood
the way it should. Also, arrhythmias, changes in the normal rhythm of the
heartbeats, can sometimes be quite serious.
Preventing CAD, or any heart disease, begins
with knowing which risk factors you have and taking action. The key risk factors
are gender (males are at greater risk than women), a history of CAD in your
parents or siblings, hypertension, diabetes, increased cholesterol (especially
Low-Density Lipoproteins) and smoking. Your chance of developing CAD increases
with the number of risk factors you have. Excess weight has been shown to be a
major contributor to CAD as well.
When Abdullah regained consciousness, he saw a
man in a white coat looking down at him. “Abdullah, I’m your doctor. You
just suffered a severe angina attack. You almost certainly have a blockage in
one of the arteries to your heart. But don’t worry, we’ve caught it in time.
You’re going to be all right…”
A Generational Legacy
The heart is a wondrous organ; a muscle without
peer. How we treat our heart has a great deal to do with how we live our lives
and how long we have lives to live.
You can look at World Heart Day as just
“another of those days,” or you can seize the opportunity it presents to
take charge of your lives and do something about the excess weight that is
straining your heart and leading you to a premature grave.
Take this chance to start a healthier lifestyle
with more physical exercise, smoke-free living, good nutrition, and weight
control. At the same time start your children on the path to a healthy
lifestyle. The habits you instill in yourself and the rest of your family now
will last them a lifetime. And they will pass these heart healthy habits of diet
and exercise and minimizing risk factors on to their children as well. A
generational legacy beyond measurable value.
Isn’t the chance to see healthier, happier
grandchildren worth the time and effort?
**
David W. Tschanz is
a medical/military historian, an epidemiologist, an editor and a
demographer. You may contact him by sending your emails to: Desertwriter1121@yahoo.com.
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