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By Hope Gillette, Saludify

Hispanics are one of the fastest growing minorities in the United States, representing more than 16 percent of the country’s population, according to the most recent U.S. census data. In fact, Hispanics account for more than 52 million residents of the nation, a number which is expected to grow to 132.8 million by the year 2050.

A 2009 Gallup poll found that 41.7 percent of Hispanics in the country, age 18 and over, lacked health insurance, compared to the national average of 16 percent and 11.6 percent of non-Hispanic whites, though numbers from the most recent census data indicate about 30.7 percent of Hispanics under the age of 65 currently lack health insurance, a number which is down from 31.6 percent in 2009.

With approximately 3 in 10 Latinos being uninsured, this translates into bigger challenges when it comes to health prevention and intervention, which in turn lead to higher prevalence of chronic diseases.

The most common conditions affecting Hispanics in the U.S. are: cancer, heart disease, unintentional injuries, stroke, diabetes, chronic liver disease, chronic lower respiratory disease, homicide, perinatal conditions, and influenza/pneumonia.

Cancer and Hispanics

Cancer replaced heart disease as the number one killer of Hispanics in the United States during 2012. Within that year alone, the American Cancer Society estimated 112,800 Hispanics were diagnosed with cancer, and more than 33,000 will die from the disease.Cancer can affect almost any part of the body, and is classified by the National Library of Medicine as uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the body. No one is certain what causes cancer, though genetics and exposure to external factors are likely to be the combining link.

The most common cancers among Hispanics living in the U.S. include breast, colon/rectum, liver, lung, melanoma, prostate, stomach, and uterine/cervix. Of those, the leading cause of cancer deaths for Hispanic men is lung cancer (18 percent), with breast cancer topping the list for Latinas (15 percent).

Overall, cancer deaths are responsible for approximately 21.1 percent of deaths in the U.S. Hispanic community annually.

While there is no way to completely prevent certain forms of cancer, some conditions, such as melanomas, can see a decreased incidence through the use of preventative methods such as diet, sunscreen and tanning salon avoidance. Diet rich in antioxidants and an active lifestyle have also been found to help prevent major diseases such as cancer.

Heart disease and Hispanics

Heart disease is the board phrase used to describe an array of diseases and conditions affecting the heart. The Mayo Clinic states the phrase is often used interchangeably with cardiovascular disease; however, cardiovascular disease tends to refer more to conditions affecting blood vessels.According to the most recent information from HHS, Hispanics are 20 percent less likely to suffer from heart disease than non-Hispanic whites; however, high rates of obesity, hypertension, high cholesterol, and tobacco use keep heart disease as a leading killer among the Hispanic population.

Approximately 21 percent of Hispanic deaths per year are related to heart disease. The American Heart Association indicates among Mexican Americans age 20 and older, 6.7 percent of men and 5.3 percent of women have coronary heart disease, and 3.6 percent of men and 1.7 percent of women have had a heart attack.

Prevention for heart disease means maintaining a healthy weight and eating a well-balanced diet, though at-risk individuals should consult with their doctor about individual health.

Unintentional injuries and Hispanics

Unintentional injuries are classified as those related to uncontrollable circumstances such as fires or car accidents. While both adults and children are affected, Hispanic adolescents are one of the groups most at risk.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) report 67 percent of all deaths in children between the ages of 5 and 19 were considered unintentional injuries, with 68 percent of those deaths related to motor vehicle accidents. What’s more, the Child Trends Data Bank indicates in 2010, approximately 9 million unintentional injuries sent children to the emergency room. Of those, more than 8,000 were fatal.Decreasing driver distraction and never driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs are all advised since the majority of unintentional injuries occur from motor vehicle accidents.

“Unintended injuries are the leading cause of death and disability for children and adolescents in the U.S. Among people ages 1-19 years, they account for more than a third (37 percent) of all deaths; for newborns and infants under the age of one year, they are the fifth leading cause,” stated the Data Bank. “…rates for white and black children (11.6 and 11.5 per 100, 000, respectively), and Hispanic children (7.5 per 100,000),” are between the two groups with the highest unintentional injury mortality rates: Indian American and Native Alaskan.

Stroke and Hispanics

A stroke occurs when blood flow to the brain is suddenly interrupted or reduced. Without proper oxygen flow, brain tissue begins to die in what is known as a stroke.

Strokes are considered largely preventable because decreased blood flow is related to a build-up of plague in the blood vessels. Obesity, high cholesterol and smoking are significant risk factors for this condition.While the risk of stroke for Hispanics is between that of African-Americans and non-Hispanic whites, Hispanics are more likely to die following a stroke due to increased risk factors such as inactivity, diabetes, smoking, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and obesity, which complicate the condition.

According to the most recent data from the American Stroke Association, 2.8 percent of Hispanic adults have had a stroke. Mexican Americans have higher cumulative incidence for ischemic stroke at younger ages compared to other demographic sub-groups and ethnicities, and also have a higher incidence of intracerebral hemorrhage and subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Stroke prevention includes eating a healthy diet, exercising, and closely monitoring blood pressure and illnesses like diabetes. Studies have shown 80 percent of strokes are preventable.

Diabetes and Hispanics

Diabetes can be used to describe a group of diseases that affect the glucose level in the blood. In every type of diabetes, too much glucose is present in the blood, though the reasons behind the surplus are what defines one form of diabetes or another.Hispanics in the United States are disproportionately affected by diabetes, with Latinas having a 52.5 percent risk of developing diabetes during their lifetimes and a 45.4 percent risk for Hispanic men.

“As of 2010, 3.2 million Hispanic adults, 18 years and older, 13.2 percent of that population, have diabetes,” states the Office of Minority Health. “Diabetes is more prevalent in older Hispanics with the highest rates in Hispanics 65 and older. On average, Hispanics are 1.7 times as likely to have diabetes as Whites.

“Mexican Americans, the largest Hispanic subgroup, are almost twice as likely to have diagnosed diabetes than U.S. non-Hispanic whites. And, in 2008 the death rate from diabetes in Hispanics was 50 percent higher than the death rate of non-Hispanic Whites”

Chronic liver disease and Hispanics

Chronic liver disease and cirrhosis, also known as scarring of the liver, can be caused by many different issues, including various form of hepatitis. Alcohol abuse, certain medications and genetics can all lead to chronic liver disease.Hispanic men are 1.7 times more likely to die from liver disease than are non-Hispanic white men, and Hispanic women are 1.8 times more likely to die from the condition than are non-Hispanic white women.

To lower the risk of liver disease, alcohol use should be limited along with the inclusion of a healthy diet and exercise routines. Safe sex practices will help avoid the contraction of some types of hepatitis, which can aid in liver scarring.

Chronic lower respiratory disease and Hispanics

Chronic lower respiratory disease is composed primarily of three major respiratory ailments: asthma, emphysema and chronic bronchitis.

Tobacco smoke is one of the primary factors contributing to these diseases, accounting for 80 percent of emphysema cases alone.

In the case of asthma, genetics tend to play an important role in approximately 30-50 percent of cases, with external irritants complicating the condition.

While people of all ethnicities live in polluted areas, minorities and individuals with low incomes are more likely to be exposed to high concentrations of dangerous particles in air pollution.According to a study published in the journalEnvironmental Health News, Latinos in the U.S. were the most likely to be exposed to dangerous levels of air pollution, especially of compounds such as vanadium, nitrates and zinc.

Approximately 26 million people in the United States live with asthma, a condition where the airways swell due to exposure to an irritant, and according to the Office of Minority Health, Hispanics are 30 percent more likely to visit a hospital because of asthma when compared to non-Hispanic whites.

Hispanic children are also disproportionately affected, being 40 percent more likely to die from asthma compared to non-Hispanic whites.

Homicide and Hispanics

Homicide is defined as the killing of one person by another person.

Although not a health condition, for Hispanics in the U.S., homicide is the second leading cause of death for young adults between the ages of 10 and 24, though a 2012 report from the Washington Post indicates homicide deaths are at their lowest numbers in the last 50 years.

Perinatal conditions and Hispanics

Perinatal conditions are circumstances at the time of birth which affect the baby. The phrase does not encompass health issues related to complications during birth related to the mother, but rather issues experienced by the baby shortly after or just before the event.Infant mortality in the Hispanic population is among the highest in the nation.  Among Hispanics in the United States, there are 4.8 to 7.3 deaths out of every 1,000 live births.

The Office of Minority Health indicates Hispanics are twice as likely to begin prenatal care later during pregnancy or not at all, when compared to non-Hispanic whites.

A study from the Utah Department of Health showed a high number of Hispanics skipped prenatal care due mostly to language and cultural barriers and lack of knowledge of the health care system.

Influenza/pneumonia and Hispanics

Influenza (flu) is a contagious respiratory condition spread by multiple strains of influenza viruses. While many people recover from the flu after a few days, serious complications, such as pneumonia, can make the condition deadly.

During 2011, an estimated 9 million Hispanics in the United States contracted the flu virus. This demographic is at a higher risk, says the CDC, because of low vaccination rates and complicating medical conditions such as asthma and diabetes. That being said, during the 2011-2012 flu season, the CDC indicates Hispanic children had higher vaccination status when compared to non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic black children.The 2012 flu season saw only 38.8 percent of Hispanic adults vaccinated against the illness.

The best way to prevent the flu is to receive the vaccination and practice good hygiene and hand washing. Keeping the immune system strong is also recommended and that can be achieved by cutting on sugars, including fresh vegetables and fruits and having an active lifestyle.

Other issues affecting Hispanics

While the above conditions are the leading causes of death among Hispanics, a number of other major health issues have been cited by the CDC.

Those issues include:

• HIV/AIDS
• Tuberculosis
• Obesity
• Suicide
• Mental issues
• COPD (Chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases)
• Chagas disease

This article was first published in Saludify.

Hope Gillette is an award winning author and novelist. She has been active in the veterinary industry for over 10 years, and her experience extends from exotic animal care to equine sports massage.

[Photo by Bread for the World]

By Dania Zarate, La Beauty Pie

It’s officially February! Aside from celebrating Valentine’s Day on the 14, we get an extra day at the end of the month for leap year, and it’s also Black History Month and American Heart Month.

Now, don’t associate heart disease with only older folks or just men. It’s estimated that 1 out 3 women will likely die of heart disease, so that means everyone should be taking care of themselves.  Parents, take note that you can also start helping your child prevent many types of heart disease now.

Additionally, as a woman concerned with my health and appearance, I understand that staying beautiful on the outside also includes taking care of what’s on the inside.

There are many things that you can do to prevent heart disease, along with eating certain foods that can also help. Here are some tips to help prevent heart disease:

1. Don’t smoke. Cigarettes and tobacco products can contribute to the risk of heart disease.  If you don’t smoke, don’t start! And if you do smoke, find a way to quit.
2. Maintain a healthy weight. This includes exercising regularly and eating healthy.
3. If you have diabetes take extra care. Manage your diabetes. Follow your doctor’s recommendations, take your medicine, and monitor your blood pressure and blood sugar levels.
4. Get regular health screenings.

There are also different types of food that can help keep your heart healthy, including:

• Salmon and Tuna
• Whole grains
• Berries
• Olive oil
• Beans (a staple in my home)
• Nuts like almonds or walnuts
• Oatmeal
• Red wine
• Dark chocolate
• Eating a rainbow of fruits and vegetables

References:

Centers For Disease Control and Prevention

WebMD: 25 Top Heart-Healthy Foods

Dania is La Beauty Pie, for more beauty tips visit her Facebook page or website.

[Photo By CDC.gov]

If I told you that, every year, about the same number of women under the age of 55 die from heart attacks as from breast cancer, would you be surprised?

If you are, you’re not alone; most women and many of the doctors who care for them are clueless that a woman’s heart can pose such a huge health risk. Young women with heart disease account for nearly 40,000 hospitalizations and 16,000 deaths each year — ranking it as the leading cause of death in this age group. Overall, one in four women die from cardiovascular disease, compared to one in 30 from breast cancer. But I haven’t seen any ribbons or car magnets highlighting this cause.

If you have a family history of heart disease, if you smoke, have high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol levels,  or diabetes, or if you are obese, you are at increased risk for heart attack. Also, if you have had pre-eclampsia during pregnancy, your chance of a heart attack more than doubles later in life.

Heart attacks don’t just happen to post-menopausal women. Women in their 30s and 40s are increasingly developing heart disease, so be on the lookout for these risk factors and get screened and treated. Also, many physicians fail to recognize the importance of these risk factors in young people, so we, as patients, must be proactive when it comes to our health. The longer these risk factors wreak havoc on our bodies, the worse our heart and vascular health will be.

Have your blood pressure checked every two years, beginning at 18 years of age. High blood pressure is 140/90 or higher and, if left untreated, can cause stroke, heart attack, kidney and eye problems and heart failure. Know your numbers! Blood pressure can be managed with medications.

And, beginning at age 20, have your cholesterol checked regularly if:

• You use tobacco.
• You are obese.
• You have diabetes or high blood pressure.
• You have a personal history of heart disease or blocked arteries.
• A man in your family had a heart attack before age 50 or a woman, before age 60.

High cholesterol can be managed by lifestyle changes, like eating healthier and exercise, or medication.

Be aware of the symptoms of a heart attack. Many of us expect the stereotypical signs: clutching chest, gasping for air and screaming out in pain while dropping to a knee. Although chest pain is the most common symptom of heart attack, women are more likely than men to experience other symptoms such as shortness of breath, unusual fatigue, abdominal discomfort, nausea and pain in the back or jaw. Patients and doctors sometimes mistake these symptoms as panic attacks, fatigue, sweating, indigestion and over-exertion and often wait until it’s too late to get treatment. Because of this, twice as many women than men die in the hospital following a heart attack.

Many women don’t seek treatment with these symptoms because they question whether they’re real, or they are embarrassed by their symptoms, they are not taken seriously by their doctor, they don’t have the time due to family demands or they fear they’re symptoms are real and don’t want to know they have a life-threatening condition.

These symptoms won’t just go away on their own. You know best when you’re not feeling well, so listen to your body and get the proper treatment. Ignoring them may cost you your life.

[Photo By Yampy Yankee High Dynamic Ranger]

By Jeff Kreisberg

Earlier this week National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute issued new guidelines for testing cholesterol levels in children. They recommended all children ages 9 to 11 should be screened at least once for high cholesterol.

The new recommendations were spurred by the increase in childhood obesity which is accompanied by high cholesterol and heart disease later in life. The early testing is intended to prevent heart disease in adulthood-children don’t have heart attacks.

This recommendation makes no sense to me, because unless the kids have a genetic predisposition to high cholesterol — such as familial hyperlipidemia — we’re not going to put children on cholesterol-lowering medicines, are we? We’re going to tell their parents that their kids need to loose weight-why do we need cholesterol levels to do this. Fat kids leads to fat adults which results in hear disease and diabetes.

What we should be doing instead of measuring cholesterol is promoting lifestyle changes to reduce childhood obesity. A study published this week in the New England Journal of Medicine reported that obese children who lost weight as adults lowered their risk of heart disease and diabetes to the levels observed in adults who never had problems with their weight.The key is a healthy lifestyle. Reduce calories consumed and increase calories expended!

So, if we can all get on the same page and, for example, serve children healthier school lunches (which our congressmen don’t believe they deserve since they rejected a proposal by the Department of Agriculture to replace starchy foods on school lunch menus with fruits and vegetables), and make sure they exercise 30 minutes a day, they’ll stay healthy and not be at increased risk for developing heart disease later in life.

There’s no magic pill to replace living a healthy lifestyle.

[Photo By Gilabrand]

The “Million Hearts” initiative aims to prevent 1 million deaths from cardiovascular disease over the next five years. In addition to costing Americans $444 billion a year in medical costs and lost productivity, more than 2 million Americans have a heart attack or stroke, and more than 800,000 of them die each year from cardiovascular disease, making it the leading cause of death in the United States.

In response to this epidemic, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced a new initiative called Million Hearts, which aims to prevent 1 million cases of heart attack and stroke over the next five years.

Million Hearts has two goals:

1.) Empowering Americans to make healthy choices such as preventing tobacco use and reducing sodium and trans fat consumption. Achieving this goal can reduce the number of people who need medical treatment such as blood pressure or cholesterol medication to prevent heart attack or stroke.

2.) Improving care for people who need treatment by encouraging a targeted focus on the ABCS, the major risk factors for cardiovascular disease:

• Aspirin for people at risk
• Blood pressure control
• Cholesterol management
• Smoking cessation

By empowering Americans to make healthy choices and improving care, Million Hearts strives to achieve the following benchmarks by 2017:

• Increase the rate of aspirin use for people with ischemic heart disease.
• Increase the rate of successful blood pressure control for people with hypertension.
• Increase the rate of effective treatment of high blood cholesterol.
• Decrease smoking prevalence.
• Decrease average salt intake.
• Decrease artificial trans fat consumption by 50%.

HHS has allocated more than $200 million in new and refocused investments to achieve the goal of Million Hearts. For example, the Centers for Disease Control announced $40 million for chronic disease prevention programs to health departments across the country. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will announce the awarding of $85 million in Medicaid incentives to10 states for prevention of chronic diseases, like cardiovascular disease.

However, no matter how much money is thrown at this project it won’t work unless all of us are committed to living healthier lives. And I certainly have my doubts, given that 30% of children’s hospitals in America have a McDonald’s restaurant in them!

References:

• http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1110421
• http://news.nurse.com/article/20110913/NATIONAL02/109190023/-1/frontpage

[Photo By qthomasbower]

More than 40% of women still don’t realize that heart disease is the number one female killer. One in 30 women’s deaths in 2007 was from breast cancer, compared to about 1 in 3 from cardiovascular disease, according to the American Heart Association. And, Latinas may be more at risk of heart disease 10 years earlier than other women.

According to Cardiothoracic Surgeon Dr. Kathy Magliato,”The most common way women present with heart disease is dead, dead on arrival. Women tend to downplay their symptoms, and they tend to wait longer to come to the hospital, and that’s why they die at home.” Nearly two-thirds of women who die suddenly of heart disease report no previous symptoms, for example, compared with half of men.

Since 1984 more women than men have died from heart disease and half of them never had chest pain.

The top 5 symptoms of heart disease in women:

1. A persistent, unexplainable fatigue is heart disease in women until proven otherwise.

2. Shortness of breath

3. Indigestion, upper abdominal pain or nausea

4. Jaw or throat pain

5. Arm pain (especially the left arm)

Unfortunately, many doctors misdiagnose women with these symptoms as panic attacks or indigestion. By the time there’s obvious distress, the heart gives out.

Heart-related studies still don’t focus enough on women — especially minority women.

While the overall deaths have been dropping in recent years, that improvement has been slower for women who face some unique issues, says a report from the non-profit Society for Women’s Health Research and WomenHeart: The National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease. There has been too little progress in tackling the sex differences in heart disease. Scientists must find the best ways to treat women’s hearts and protect them in the first place.

The report also says part of the lack of understanding about gender issues is because heart-related studies still don’t focus enough on women, especially minority women. The report urged direct comparisons of which treatments work best in women, and improved diagnostic tests.

Legislation pending in Congress would require better study of gender differences, and would expand a government program that currently screens poor women in 20 states for high cholesterol and other heart risks, offering smoking cessation and nutrition education to help lower those risks.

Know the symptoms.

The best precautionary step women can take against heart disease, in addition to eating well and becoming active, is knowing the symptoms. Women need to listen to their bodies, and if they have one or more of the top symptoms, they should see a doctor immediately and get pushy about their symptoms.

References:

• http://abcnews.go.com/Health/HeartDiseaseNews/top-symptoms-heart-disease-women/t/story?id=14009993
• http://abcnews.go.com/Health/t/story?id=13997183
• http://womenheart.org/

[Photo By Mykl Roventine]

Mr. Delgado had no idea that his recent diabetes diagnosis puts him at an increased risk for a stroke. But, as a matter of fact, stroke is the third leading cause of death in the U.S. And the number one cause of disability. And, it’s even worse in the Latino community, where one in 10 Latinos over the age of 65 has suffered a stroke.

What is really scary is that the incidence of stroke in Latinos is expected to rise 350% in the next 40 years!

Unfortunately, Latinos suffer more suffer more from strokes and have more strokes than non-Latino whites. High blood pressure (hypertension) is the number one cause of stroke — two out of three adults with diabetes have high blood pressure. The good news is half of all strokes could be prevented if patients controlled their blood pressure, and many others could be prevented by controlling other risk factors like smoking and sedentary lifestyles.

This sounds like an easy task, but studies report that no more than half the people with high blood pressure have it under control. The National Stroke Association recommends that you get your blood pressure tested at least once a year; more if you have a family history of high blood pressure, have had a heart attack, diabetes, or a weight problem.

To survive a stroke, know its symptoms. You may have numbness or weakness in the face, arm, or leg especially on one side of the body, confusion or trouble speaking, trouble seeing in one or both eyes, trouble walking, or a severe headache of unknown cause.

If you suspect someone of having a stroke, there’s a great way to remember what to do: act FAST.

Face – Ask the person to smile.  Does one side of the face drop?
Arm – Ask the person to raise both arms.  Does one arm drift downward?
Speech – Ask the person to repeat a simple sentence.  Does their speech sound slurred or strange?
Time – act quickly. Time is not on your side, you only have 3 hours to prevent brain cells from dying.

If you believe you’re having a stroke, you must get care immediately! Brain cells die during a stroke and they never come back! Strokes occur when the brain is deprived of blood due to a blockage of a blood vessel or a blood vessel leaks. Their onset is usually sudden and can happen to anyone at any age. The brain damage from a stroke can sometimes be halted by medications that dissolve clots blocking blood flow to the brain or surgery to repair leaky blood vessels. Minutes count and therapy is successful only if you get to the hospital within 3 hours of onset of symptoms.

To put the urgency into perspective stroke is treated as if the patient was shot in the head.

Most hospitals cannot provide the care you need to diagnose and treat a stroke because it’s not a big revenue generator for most hospitals, thus, there’s no financial incentive to buy the expensive equipment or hire the expert personnel to treat patients with stroke. In an effort to bring stoke care to communities across the country, regional “stroke centers” have been established in selected hospitals. The Joint Commission has provided a list of “stroke centers” which have the equipment and the expertise to diagnose and treat strokes.

Two out of three people who have a stroke either die or are brain damaged. Don’t become a casualty of stroke. Manage your diabetes. Take all your medications to manage your blood pressure. If you suspect you or a loved one is having a stroke, call 911 immediately and ask the ambulance driver to take you to a stroke center. This is a matter of life or death.

[Photo By dierk schaefer]

Jeff Kreisberg is a patient advocate, educator, scientist author of the book “Taking Control of Your Healthcare,” and, until his retirement, a professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Texas. Jeff also blogs regularly on health issues on his website, Taking Control of Your Healthcare. Follow him on Twitter: @kreisberg.

References:

http://www.stroke.org/site/PageServer?pagename=diabetes

http://latinopm.com/health-fitness/health/latinos-lag-in-stroke-detection-prevention-3976

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0CE3D71730F93BA15756C0A9619C8B63&pagewanted=1

People often have the Hollywood image of a heart attack: a man clutching his chest, grimacing in pain and collapsing to the floor. The reality is quite different. Having diabetes puts you at an increased risk for a heart attack. Heart disease and stroke are the leading causes of death in the Latino community, according to the American Heart Association.

These diseases account for a third of the deaths among Latino women and more than 27% of deaths among Latino men. Unfortunately, Latinos in the U.S. — particularly women — are much less aware of heart disease than other ethnic groups, and this lack of awareness puts them at increased risk, since they are less likely to take any steps to prevent heart disease.

Another major risk factor for heart disease is diabetes, and the risk of diabetes for Latino men and women is almost twice that for whites. The American Heart Association estimates that among Latinos ages 20 and older, 8.1% of men and 11.4% of women have diabetes – compared to 5.5& of white men and women.

Despite the high percentage of Latinos diagnosed as diabetic, only one in four Latino Americans with diabetes know they are at risk for heart disease, according to the National Diabetes Education Program.

Heart disease is the leading killer of Latinos with diabetes.

Half a million Americans die from heart disease each year. People can reduce their risk of heart disease by learning to control their blood pressure and cholesterol levels in addition to blood sugar levels and learning to lead healthier lifestyles. If you suffer a heart attack, you have to get to the hospital as quickly as possible.

But recognizing the signs of heart attacks can be tricky. It’s not so much pain, but pressure or a feeling of heaviness and shortness of breath. If you have diabetes, the symptoms may not be obvious; you may just feel sudden, extreme fatigue. If, for example, you take a daily walk to your mailbox and then one day you can literally make it only halfway, you should tell your doctor — you may be having a heart attack!

If you have any of these symptoms, you need to call 911 immediately! The single biggest delay in getting treatment is between the onset of symptoms and dialing 911. The average time for the past 10 years has been 111 minutes. But that’s not all, not every hospital may have the proper equipment to treat you, so, before you need to visit a hospital, figure out which ones near to you have the proper heart attack equipment.

Finally, if you suffered a heart attack you are at increased risk of having another one. The doctor will give you medications to prevent another heart attack. Disturbingly, many patients stop taking these drugs in a matter of months. These drugs must be taken for the rest of your lives. If you stop taking them, you are at increased risk of having another heart attack!

We all know someone affected by this deadly disease. Please, make an effort to educate your family and friends about heart disease and what can be done to reduce these risks. Remember, heart disease is preventable!

[Photo by aldenchadwick]

Jeff Kreisberg is a patient advocate, educator, scientist author of the book “Taking Control of Your Healthcare,” and, until his retirement, a professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Texas. Jeff also blogs regularly on health issues on his website, Taking Control of Your Healthcare. Follow him on Twitter: @kreisberg.

References:

http://www.stjohns.org/body.cfm?id=82

http://www.hhs.state.ne.us/menshealth/Latinos_Diabetes.pdf

http://latinopm.com/health-fitness/health/a-message-from-the-american-heart-association-6282

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/08/health/08heart.html

Heart disease is not just for men. Heart disease is the leading cause of death among women — and one of the most preventable. In a survey conducted by the American Heart Association, about half of the women interviewed knew that heart disease is the leading cause of death in women, yet only 13% said it was their greatest personal health risk.

Breast Cancer Trumps Heart Concerns

Other survey data suggest that on a day-to-day basis, women still worry more about getting breast cancer — even though heart disease kills six times as many women every year. Many women say their physicians never talk to them about heart risk and sometimes they don’t even recognize the symptoms, mistaking them instead for signs of panic disorder, stress, and even hypochondria. The Million Women’s Heart Project intends to change this perception by increasing awareness and urging women to get tested.

April is Million Women’s Heart Project month.

Celebrities like Eva Longoria and Donna Karan and leaders in business, medicine, technology and education have teamed up to encourage and empower women to learn their personal risk for heart disease by getting screened for high blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar, and to urge their friends and family to be tested, too.

Risks you can change

Family history and increasing age are among heart disease risks you can’t change, but risks that can be changed include smoking, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, obesity or overweight, physical inactivity and diabetes.

Out of every 1,000 women tested, 750 will have risk factors, such as obesity, smoking, high cholesterol, diabetes or high blood pressure, and, armed with that information, most women will be able to take steps to protect themselves. To determine whether you are at increased risk for heart disease, take an interactive online assessment of your heart health here.

Women should not only be aware they can develop heart disease, but they also should know that symptoms of the disease can be very different than what is typically seen in men.

Symptoms

The symptoms of heart disease include feeling woozy, nausea or vomiting, and experiencing pain and discomfort in the arms, jaw, stomach, neck and the back. Because these symptoms are so vague, they are often mistaken for signs of panic disorder, stress, and even hypochondria. The Million Women’s Heart Project will educate and empower women so they can participate in their care and receive the right care.

The Million Women’s Heart Project is teaming up with hospitals and U.S. Wellness, which manages health education and screening events, to offer tests free to women, with costs paid by sponsors. The project intends to collect data on the test results, along with women’s stories about their lives and health. For more information about The Project click here.

[Photo by snarky_momma]

Jeff Kreisberg is a patient advocate, educator, scientist author of the book “Taking Control of Your Healthcare,” and, until his retirement, a professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Texas. Jeff also blogs regularly on health issues on his website, Taking Control of Your Healthcare. Follow him on Twitter: @kreisberg.

References:

http://www.millionwomensheartproject.com/

http://yourlife.usatoday.com/health/medical/heartdisease/story/2011/03/New-initiative-is-a-million-women-strong-for-heart-testing/45554754/1

http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/educational/hearttruth/about/message.htm