Take Heart
BY SUSAN B. MCDONALD, M.D.,
Cardiac Anesthesiologist, St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Stockton
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It is easy to ignore the symptoms of heart disease. My mother did.
We were celebrating my parents’ 50th wedding anniversary in Las Vegas, and as we wandered the Strip, nobody was concerned that my mother would stop as we walked to play random slot machines.
She did not worry about her need to rest either – she was feeling heaviness in her chest and a little out of breath, blaming her symptoms on the thick cloud of cigarette smoke that blankets casinos. While she didn’t share this with us, she was intuitive enough to tell her physician back home in Florida, who then scheduled her for a stress test.
One month later, she had quintuple coronary artery bypass surgery here at St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Stockton.
“Chest pain” is a bit misleading, because many people do not describe the sensation that they feel with their heart disease as “pain.”
Better descriptive terms are “heaviness” or “tightness” across the chest. Sometimes this ache radiates to the arms or to the jaw or neck. Some patients feel nothing but “a little winded,” or “out of breath.” For others, it feels like heartburn or acid reflux. It is easy for patients to explain away these symptoms, like my mother did.
This is especially true for women who, as natural caregivers, often ignore their own discomforts as they are busy caring for others. But recognizing the symptoms early, before a heart attack happens, could save your life.
Alarmingly, the American Heart Association reports that 64% of women who die suddenly from heart disease have no previous symptoms.
That is why women must also recognize the risk factors: menopause, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, smoking, and family history of heart attacks or stroke. Check your cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and screen for diabetes and hypertension.
Live a healthy lifestyle – eat right, exercise regularly, quit smoking, and lose weight. We have all heard this before, and taking control to make that lifestyle change is much easier to say than to do.
Again, this is especially true for women, who tend to take care of others better than they take care of themselves. Talk with your doctor about your risk factors and what you can do to reduce your chances of suffering from heart disease.
More women than men die from cardiovascular disease. It is a surprising statistic for most people. Also shocking to most: a woman is much more likely to die from cardiovascular disease than from cancer. Surveys repeatedly show that most women – especially younger women – mistakenly believe cancer is their greatest risk for death.
This is why it is imperative to inform women of the risk factors for heart disease and of its symptoms, and to encourage women to take better care of themselves. The American Heart Association’s “Go Red For Women” is a national campaign of information and prevention aimed at fighting cardiovascular disease, including heart disease and stroke, among women.
For more information, check out the campaign’s website at www.GoRedForWomen.org.
We were celebrating my parents’ 50th wedding anniversary in Las Vegas, and as we wandered the Strip, nobody was concerned that my mother would stop as we walked to play random slot machines.
She did not worry about her need to rest either – she was feeling heaviness in her chest and a little out of breath, blaming her symptoms on the thick cloud of cigarette smoke that blankets casinos. While she didn’t share this with us, she was intuitive enough to tell her physician back home in Florida, who then scheduled her for a stress test.
One month later, she had quintuple coronary artery bypass surgery here at St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Stockton.
“Chest pain” is a bit misleading, because many people do not describe the sensation that they feel with their heart disease as “pain.”
Better descriptive terms are “heaviness” or “tightness” across the chest. Sometimes this ache radiates to the arms or to the jaw or neck. Some patients feel nothing but “a little winded,” or “out of breath.” For others, it feels like heartburn or acid reflux. It is easy for patients to explain away these symptoms, like my mother did.
This is especially true for women who, as natural caregivers, often ignore their own discomforts as they are busy caring for others. But recognizing the symptoms early, before a heart attack happens, could save your life.
Alarmingly, the American Heart Association reports that 64% of women who die suddenly from heart disease have no previous symptoms.
That is why women must also recognize the risk factors: menopause, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, smoking, and family history of heart attacks or stroke. Check your cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and screen for diabetes and hypertension.
Live a healthy lifestyle – eat right, exercise regularly, quit smoking, and lose weight. We have all heard this before, and taking control to make that lifestyle change is much easier to say than to do.
Again, this is especially true for women, who tend to take care of others better than they take care of themselves. Talk with your doctor about your risk factors and what you can do to reduce your chances of suffering from heart disease.
More women than men die from cardiovascular disease. It is a surprising statistic for most people. Also shocking to most: a woman is much more likely to die from cardiovascular disease than from cancer. Surveys repeatedly show that most women – especially younger women – mistakenly believe cancer is their greatest risk for death.
This is why it is imperative to inform women of the risk factors for heart disease and of its symptoms, and to encourage women to take better care of themselves. The American Heart Association’s “Go Red For Women” is a national campaign of information and prevention aimed at fighting cardiovascular disease, including heart disease and stroke, among women.
For more information, check out the campaign’s website at www.GoRedForWomen.org.