Unlike what you see on television, a heart attack is not usually sudden or even obvious. In fact, many heart attacks can happen without a person even knowing they’ve had one. True heart attack symptoms often come on slowly. There may be a tightening sensation around the chest area, or it could feel as if you have a heavy weight on your chest instead.
Before menopause men and women have an equal chance at having a heart attack. After menopause a woman’s chances exceeds a mans.
The most common signs of a heart attack are–
- Severe pressure, fullness, squeezing, pain and/or discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts for more than a few minutes
- pain or discomfort that spreads to the shoulders, neck, arms, or jaw
- chest pain that increases in intensity
- chest pain that is not relieved by rest or by taking cardiac prescription medication
For women, the symptoms can be very different from those of men–
- Shortness of breath
- Heartburn or indigestion
- Discomfort in other areas, including pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, between the shoulder blades, neck, jaw or stomach
Women may also present with atypical or unusual symptoms and should pay attention to the new onset of–
- fatigue
- sleep disturbances
- palpitations
- nausea
- light headedness
- flu-like symptoms including chills and cold sweats
Having pain that spreads outwards from your left shoulder, arm or jaw, particularly combined with chest tightness, pain, or heavy weight feelings. Also shortness of breath and sweating or vomiting, particularly when combined with the other symptoms noted here, are all signs that a heart attack is in progress.
Not everyone has pain when they have a heart attack unfortunately, and some people don’t even have these common symptoms. Women in fact, often have pain between their shoulder blades on their back but nowhere else when they have a heart attack, and this makes diagnosis difficult sometimes.
Other types of heart disease and problems can include hardening of the arteries. This disease progresses slowly over time, when you haven’t been taking care of your health properly. The veins and arteries in our circulatory system are supposed to be flexible, strong, and elastic. Over time however, these veins can start to become thick and lose their elasticity. When this happens, clots and obstructions can form in the arteries, from combinations of cholesterol, plaque, and other debris.
These obstructions grow over time to create blockages of the arteries. When blockages occur, depending upon which artery they’re blocking, various areas of the body can become non functional. Blood flow may be blocked to the brain for instance, or the heart, or one of the other major organs. Sometimes blood flow is blocked to various muscles or extremeties too.
Who is most at risk for a heart attack?
High blood pressure is a major contributing factor to heart related problems, as is obesity, diabetes, lack of exercise, and poor eating habits. The following people have increased risk of heart attack–
- persons with hypertension (high blood pressure)
- persons with low levels of HDL (high-density lipoprotein) or high levels of LDL (low-density lipoprotein) blood cholesterol
- cigarette smokers
- people who are under a lot of stress
- individuals who lead a sedentary lifestyle
- persons overweight by 30 percent or more
Learn which risk factors apply to you specifically and take steps to eliminate or reduce them.
Reference: Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease
It is actually great to know how to notice signs of a heart attack before it occurs.
mikes last blog post..Plant-based Natural Heartburn Cures
You need to write more about the specific cures for this. To many people focus on the symptoms and signs instead of preventing it. I think you should go into detail with this subject.
Heartburn Natural Cures last blog post..Natural cures for Excessive Burping
What is odd about infarctions and heart attacks is that you might just not feel well and are having the heart attack or infarction for days !
It would be nice if everyone knew this information I know of a man that died just recently, because he did not know he was having a heart attack .
Heart attack is a silent killer. There would be no cure for heart attack so the best we can do is to prevent it. For people who already have it, the only thing you can do is to be extra carefully to what you eat and be healthy. In that way, you can reduce the risk of experiencing it.
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A clinical research study is being conducted world-wide to assess the effectiveness of an orally administered, investigational medication in patients who have recently suffered a heart attack.
.-= Eye Care´s last blog ..Who Can Treat Diabetic Retinopathy =-.
my dad was going to china from Singapore. when he got inside the plane his said his heart felt weird. then he got off,sensing something wrong. then after a few tests, the doctors confirmed that he got a mild heart attack. he is smoker, and finally now is determined to quit.
.-= Eye Care´s last blog ..Who Can Treat Diabetic Retinopathy =-.
I was aware with some of points. But this article summed up all the information i need to carry regarding heart attack.
This isnt necessarily for spotting when you are having a heart attack, but for spotting when someone else is – you could potentially save their life!
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I think you made a mistake in the 2nd paragraph, or Im confused, as to whether males or females or more likely to have a heart attack.
-Jack
Thanks, corrected it.
Heartburn is actually not of the heart but of an acid attack from your guts. When it climbs all the way up to your esophagus, you feel as if you have some heart problems or not. Anyway, it’s good to read articles like this. At least, you are very much aware what you’re going to do when these things happen, right? Thanks for sharing!
My mother had chronic acid reflux, and it turns out she had heart troubles as well. I’m not sure if the acid reflux was necessarily a sign, as the doctor didn’t mention it, but it was interesting to hear from you that it may have been a warning sign.
Many times people are confused when they experience heartburn for the first time as they sometimes believe they are having a heart attack. It is always better to be safe and go see a doctor immediately!
.-= Steven@Get Rid of Heartburn´s last blog ..Acid Reflux Help – To Get Rid of Heartburn Look No Further Than Your Refrigerator =-.
heart attacks run in my family so these are great tips. this is something i wish no one had to deal with.
.-= Angie @ Chiropractic Colleges´s last blog ..What To Expect In Chiropractic College =-.