#1 Congenital heart disease
There is a
fallacy of thinking that many people do when they believe that all
heart diseases are brought about by outside factors or that it needs
some periods of time for the disease to build up. This is, of course,
not true as one of the most common types is congenital heart disease.
The
term congenital or hereditary heart disease refers to heart disease
which is passed down through the family, and this is considered as
being a congenital type as it is principally inevitable and
unpreventable. If you have an account of early heart problem in your
family then you also are at danger for congenital heart disease.
The
most first-degree family members that you have who have endured from
heart problem, such as your mother, father, brother, sister and so on,
in particular those who experienced it at a younger age, the higher
your risk of getting it as well.
Although congenital heart
disease can be caused by many factors, some of them are actually
preventable. For example if heart problem is clustering in your family,
then it may just be because of the way that your family lives,
including unhealthy practices such as poor diet, little or no exercise,
and smoking. All of these aspects can contribute to heart problem and
can create the sequence of congenital heart disease.
# 2 Congestive heart failure
Congestive
heart failure is when the heart does not pump adequate blood to the
other organs in the body. Congestive heart failure can often result
from heart problem and constricted arteries. Congestive heart failure
results in a heart which works a lot less efficiently than it should
and can make further problems. Symptoms regularly consist of swelling
and edema, shortness of breath, and kidney problems which in turn can
lead to mysterious weight gain. Even elevated blood pressure and
alcohol abuse can lead to congestive heart failure.
A patient may
be examined for congestive heart failure if they have suffered from
heart problem in the past, are alcoholic, have a family history of
heart problems or show one or all of the symptoms that are caused by
congestive heart failure. There are choices of examinations that aid a
doctor in diagnosing this heart crisis. Treatment should begin without
delay, starting with changes to diet and exercise, as patients should
abolish salt from the diet altogether and sternly limit their fluid
intake. Further treatment should be done by a professional.
#3 Coronary heart disease
Coronary
heart disease is the most frequent type of heart problem of all, and is
also the leading reason of heart attacks. Coronary heart disease is a
term that refers to damage to the heart that happens because its blood
supply is decreased, and what happens here is that fatty deposits build
up on the linings of the blood vessels that provide the heart muscles
with blood, resulting in them narrowing. This narrowing decreases the
blood supply to the heart muscles and causes pain that is identified as
angina.
There are a few factors which are considered as being
responsible causes of coronary heart disease. One in particular is high
cholesterol that can increase fat concentration in your blood and
create the building up of fatty deposits. Another one of the major
factors of coronary heart disease is cigarette and tobacco smoke, as a
smoker's risk of getting heart problem is two times that of a
nonsmoker, and studies have actually revealed that after five years of
quitting smoking, the risk of developing heart problem is the same as
that of someone who had never smoked in their life.
#4 Pulmonary heart disease
Pulmonary
heart disease is a disease that comes from a lung, or pulmonary,
disorder, or a complication of lung problems where the blood flow into
the lungs is slowed or even totally blocked, resulting in increased
pressure on the lungs. There are a number of different symptoms that
typically come with pulmonary heart disease, such as shortness of
breath, syncope, dyspnoea, and chest pain.
It is a state which is
often misdiagnosed, and has frequently progressed to late stages by the
time that it is actually correctly diagnosed. It has been previously
chronic and untreatable with a poor survival rate. However, there are
now numerous new treatments which are accessible which have extensively
improved the overall prognosis of this disease.
#5 Rheumatic heart disease
Rheumatic
heart disease frequently derives from strep throat infections. This can
be a reason for alarm for many because strep throat, while often
preventable, is a quite common condition that affects many people who
do not treat a minor sore throat infection in time. However, there is
no reason to be because rheumatic heart disease that comes from strep
throat is fairly rare. Actually, the sheer volume of cases of rheumatic
heart disease has decreased considerably since the 1960's.
If
rheumatic fever, which happens due to chronic strep throat, is
contracted and leads to rheumatic heart disease, the situation can be
treated in a way that is much easier than the common treatments for
other types of heart problem. This treatment usually involves taking
cortisteroid anti-inflammatory medication to reverse any possible
cardiac problems the fever might make. This does not rule out the risk
for the requirement for more advanced treatment such as surgery, but it
does signify the probability for a simple, yet effective treatment.
Risk factors for heart disease are generally divided into two different categories: major risk factors and contributing risk factors. Major risk factors have been proven to increase your chances of developing heart disease, whereas contributing factors MAY affect heart disease, but no direct correlation has been made. Symptoms can include angina (the achy, burning and painful sensation in the chest), arrhythmia (abnormal heart rhythm), and atrial fibrillation (a type of arrhythmia.)
The American Heritage Dictionary defines a risk factor as, "a
characteristic, condition, or behavior, such as high blood pressure or
smoking, that increases the possibility of disease or injury."
Basically the more heart disease risk factors you have, the more likely
you are to develop a health condition like coronary heart disease.
While the list of risks is long, we will be discussing three of the top
major risk factors which include: high cholesterol, high blood
pressure, and tobacco smoke.
Higher
cholesterol levels increase the risk of developing cardiovascular heart
disease. One of the strongest drawbacks of having high cholesterol is
that having other risk factors such as hypertension or smoking doesn't
just add to the risk, it multiplies it. Your cholesterol level is
affected mostly by heredity and diet while age and sex also have
influence.
High blood pressure is
harder on the heart which can cause it to condense and harden. Not only
does it contribute to heart disease risk, but it also causes other
diseases and problems like congestive heart failure and even stroke or
kidney failure. Once against, hypertension also multiplies when
combined with other risk factors.
While
tobacco smoke is normally associated with lung cancer and other
problems, it still poses a major threat to cardiac health. In fact, the
assessment of the American Heart Association is that it increases the
risk by 2 to 4 times over nonsmokers. After you calculate that, you
might be wondering why anyone would want to risk so much for just a
cigarette.
Fortunately, there are numerous ways of treating heart disease. If you think you are having a heart attack, dial 911 immediately and inform someone in the vicinity. If you can chew up some aspirin right away, it is recommended. There are preventative measures you can take in order to stave off heart disease and subsequent heart attacks. Taking aspirin regularly, quitting smoking, lowering your cholesterol and watching caloric intake are all advised practices. There are also medical treatments, as well as surgeries if heart disease gets too advanced.
Women need to be especially mindful of heart disease, especially minority women. Some statistics have shown that more women die every year of heart disease than all of the cancers combined. As women age, they are more likely to develop heart disease, but women of all ages need to be aware of the symptoms. Both men and women are susceptible to heart attacks, but women are more likely to die from them. Treatments must be given as soon as possible after a heart attack in order to minimize damage to the heart.
One of the primary ways you can stave off heart disease is by maintaining a healthy diet and adding an exercise regime of some sort to your schedule. Two of the biggest risk factors for heart disease are high blood pressure and high cholesterol. You can keep your blood pressure down by eliminating smoking if you smoke, eating healthy foods, exercising regularly, and reducing stress. Similarly, cholesterol can be lowered by a meticulous diet low in saturated fats and trans fats, lots of exercise, and the consumption of appropriate medication, if necessary.
