When you catch a bad cold, you know it, and so does everyone around you. Heart disease, however, can be much subtler. It’s possible to go for years without noticing you have clogged arteries that could lead to a heart attack. Heart disease may have no symptoms in its early stages. By the time symptoms occur, they might not set off a warning bell. Even in a full-blown heart attack, your symptoms may seem so mild that you mistake them for something minor, like indigestion.
Key Symptoms
Symptoms of chronic heart disease include:
• Angina. You feel this discomfort (also called angina pectoris) when the heart isn’t getting enough blood. Angina usually crops up when there’s an increased demand for blood to the heart. That can take place during physical exertion, stress or digestion, for instance. You may feel angina as pressure or squeezing pain in the chest, sometimes radiating to the arms, shoulders, neck, jaw or back. It may come and go. If you have such symptoms, see a doctor right away, especially if you have chest pain at rest. That could signal a heart attack.
• Shortness of breath. Among other things, this symptom can warn of heart disease, a heart attack or heart failure, in which the heart fails to pump enough blood to the body. If you feel unusually out of breath during physical activity –or especially while at rest or in combination with chest pain—don’t hesitate to seek medical aid.
• Arrhthymia. If you regularly experience skipped or quickened heartbeats or a fluttering feeling in your chest, talk with your doctor.
Are you at Risk?
Lifestyle risks you can’t control include:
• Age. More than 80 percent of deaths from coronary heart disease happen at age 65 or older.
• Gender. Men are at higher risk for a heart attack than women. • Family history. Having a parent with heart disease ups your risk.
• Ethnicity. African-Americans and Mexican Americans are at a higher risk.
Lifestyle risks you can control include:
• Smoking tobacco
• Being physically inactive
• Being overweight or obese
Then there are “hidden” risk factors. A medical checkup can help determine if you have:
• High cholesterol
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes, which is strongly linked to cardiovascular disease
If you have a hunch that something might be wrong, don’t second-guess your symptoms or your risks. Ease your mind by getting the prompt medical care you need.
Source: Good Neighbor Pharmacy Connection, February 2013
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