This month is very important to me. My mom passed away after having a major heart attack and we never knew she had heart problems. Get your heart checked and watch for the signs of a heart attack!

Heart Disease in Men

Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men in the United States, killing 307,225 men in 2009—that’s 1 in every 4 male deaths.  Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men of most racial/ethnic groups in the United States, including African Americans, American Indians or Alaska Natives, Hispanics, and whites. For Asian American or Pacific Islander men, heart disease is second only to cancer.  About 8.5% of all white men, 7.9% of black men, and 6.3% of Mexican American men have coronary heart disease. Half of the men who die suddenly of coronary heart disease have no previous symptoms. Even if you have no symptoms, you may still be at risk for heart disease. Between 70% and 89% of sudden cardiac events occur in men.

Risk Factors

High blood pressure, high LDL cholesterol, and smoking are key risk factors for heart disease. About half of Americans (49%) have at least one of these three risk factors.

Several other medical conditions and lifestyle choices can also put people at a higher risk for heart disease, including:

 Diabetes

 Overweight and obesity

 Poor diet

 Physical inactivity

 Excessive alcohol use CDC’s Public Health Efforts

CDC’s Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Program

Since 1998, CDC has funded state health departments’ efforts to reduce the number of people with heart disease or stroke. Health departments in 41 states and the District of Columbia currently receive funding. The program stresses policy and education to promote heart-healthy and stroke-free living and working conditions.

Million Hearts™ is a national, public-private initiative of the Department of Health and Human Services to prevent 1 million heart attacks and strokes by 2017. Co-led by CDC and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the initiative brings together communities, health care professionals, health systems, nonprofit organizations, federal agencies, and private-sector partners to improve care and empower Americans to make heart-healthy choices. For More Information

For more information on heart disease and among men, visit the following Web sites.

 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

 American Heart Association

 National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute References

For the facts.

Differences in Heart Attacks

Heart Attack vs Cardiac Arrest

 

 

Go Red-Symptoms of a Heart Attack in Women

Well-known heart attack symptoms can include chest pain and radiating discomfort in the left arm. But, as Dr. Suzanne Steinbaum explains, there are several other ways your body may tell you when something isn’t quite right, potentially with your heart.

Read on for details on four silent heart attack symptoms that women should most definitely be aware of.

Shortness of breath

According to Steinbaum, director of The Heart and Vascular Institute at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, women often struggle to breathe a few weeks before experiencing a heart attack.

“If you are used to doing a certain amount of activity and then, all of a sudden, you can’t get enough air, that is when I get concerned,” says Steinbaum.

Back pain

Irregular pain in the lower or upper back can indicate stress to the heart muscle, Steinbaum says.

Jaw pain

“I had one patient who would feel her jaw start to hurt every time she got on a treadmill,” Steinbaum says. “But once she stopped, her jaw pain would go away. She went to a dentist, but there wasn’t anything wrong with her teeth.”

This discomfort continued until the woman experienced a heart attack. When she came into Steinbaum’s office after the event, it was evident that the jaw pain was directly linked to what was happening in her heart.

“Sometimes the heart isn’t able to give a good signal and, instead, the pain can radiate to the neck, jaw and back,” she says.

Nausea

Flu-like symptoms are often reported weeks and days before a heart attack. In fact, as Steinbaum explains, TV personality Rosie O’Donnell reportedly regurgitated a few times before she experienced a heart attack in early 2012.

Advice: Trust Your Gut

If you aren’t feeling normal or are experiencing any of the symptoms above, head to you local emergency room. It is better to take care of yourself and prevent damage to your heart, in the event you are having a heart attack.

“A women’s intuition is a very strong thing; don’t ever discount it,” Steinbaum says.

“Ninety percent of my women patients who’ve just had a heart attack tell me that they knew it was their heart all along. That they just had a feeling.”

Learn more about your risk for heart disease as well as  factors that increase your risk on Go Red For Women.

February is Heart Month

Women and Warning Signs

Just a little Heart Attack

Inspired by the true stories of real women impacted by heart disease, the American Heart Association’s Go Red For Women movement and Emmy-nominated actress Elizabeth Banks created the short film, “Just a Little Heart Attack,” to educate women about the realities of heart disease and encourage them to put their health first. The short film, directed by and starring Ms. Banks, chronicles one woman’s experience ignoring her symptoms and putting herself last. Go Red For Women hopes the film, “Just a Little Heart Attack,” will engage and inspire women to put their health first and take care of their heart.

Check this out.