What can I do to prevent heart disease

You can reduce your chances of getting heart disease by taking these steps:

•  Know your blood pressure. Years of high blood pressure can lead to heart disease. People with high blood pressure often have no symptoms, so have your blood pressure checked every 1 to 2 years and get treatment if you need it.

  

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Do women need to worry about heart disease?

Yes. Among all U.S. women who die each year, one in four dies of heart dis-ease. In 2004, nearly 60 percent more women died of cardiovascular disease
(both heart disease and stroke) than from all cancers combined. The older a woman gets, the more likely she is to get heart disease. But women of all ages should be concerned about heart disease. All women should take steps to prevent heart disease.
Both men and women have heart attacks, but more women who have heart attacks die from them. Treatments can limit heart damage but they must be given as soon as possible after a heart attack starts. Ideally, treatment should start within one hour of the first symptoms.
If you think you’re having a heart attack, call 911 right away. Tell the operator your symptoms and that you think you're having a heart attack.

What is heart disease?

Heart disease includes a number of problems affecting the heart and the blood vessels in the heart. Types of heart disease include:

•  Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the most common type and is the leading cause of heart attacks. When you have CAD, your arteries become hard and narrow. Blood has a hard time getting to the heart, so the heart does not get all the blood it needs. CAD can lead to:

•  Angina (an-JEYE-nuh). Angina is chest pain or discom-fort that happens when the heart does not get enough blood. It may feel like a pressing or squeez-ing pain, often in the chest, but sometimes the pain is in the shoulders, arms, neck, jaw, orback. It can also feel like indiges-tion (upset stomach). Angina is not a heart attack, but having angina means you are more likely to have a heart attack. 

•   Heart attack. A heart attack occurs when an artery is severely or completely blocked, and the heart does not get the blood it needs for more than 20 minutes. 

•  Heart failure occurs when the heart is not able to pump blood through the body as well as it should. This means that other organs, which nor-mally get blood from the heart, do not get enough blood. It does not mean that the heart stops. Signs of heart failure include:

1.   Shortness of breath (feeling like you can't get enough air)

    2. Swelling in feet, ankles, and legs

    3. Extreme tiredness

•  Heart arrhythmias (uh-RITH-mee-uhz) are changes in the beat of the heart. Most people have felt dizzy, faint, out of breath or had chest pains at one time. These changes in heartbeat are harmless for most people. As you get older, you are more likely to have arrhythmias. Don't panic if you have a few flut-ters or if your heart races once in a while. If you have flutters and other symptoms such as dizzi-ness or shortness of breath, call 911 right away.