Risk of heart diseases is increasing among youth
According to the World Health Organization, cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the number 1 cause of death globally. An estimated crore of people lose their lives every year due to heart diseases, in which earlier the number of elderly people was more, but in recent years there has been a significant increase in the number of youth. CVD is a group of disorders of the heart and blood vessels that include conditions such as coronary artery disease, valvular heart disease, cardiomyopathy, arrhythmias, and heart attack. Or diseases are involved. The biggest fear among patients with heart problems is that the symptoms are not recognized quickly, due to which treatment cannot be done properly.
When a person suffers a heart attack, the following common symptoms appear: –
According to statistics, 60 percent of deaths in India are due to heart problems, of which coronary artery disease is the leading cause. People with a family history of heart disease are more likely to have high calcium build-up in their arteries. It is important for them to get the calcium levels in their coronary arteries checked at regular intervals, so that the gradually increasing risk can be identified in time and further danger can be averted.
The problem of heart attack has always been considered to be associated with older people. It used to be considered rare for someone under the age of 40 to have a heart attack. But now one in five heart attack patients is below 40 years of age. It is a disturbing fact but heart attacks in one’s 20s or 30s are now common. Between 2000-2016, heart attack rates in this young age group increased by 2 percent each year. The need of the hour is to increase awareness about the risk factors of this serious problem as well as take steps towards making lifestyle changes.
In today’s era, even young people are at greater risk of heart attack. The biggest reason for this is spoiled lifestyle and excessive stress. Smoking, alcohol, wrong eating habits and not doing any physical activity are also major causes of heart attack. A large number of youth consume supplements to build their body, which proves to be very dangerous for the heart. This increases the risk of heart attack and other cardiovascular diseases. Excessive exercise and dancing also increases the pressure on the heart, which can cause heart attack.
A heart attack occurs when blood flow in the heart vessels is blocked. One of the main reasons for this obstruction is cholesterol. The risk factors for heart attack today include poor diet and deteriorating lifestyle that the youth are leading today.
Elaborating on this, Dr Kapil Chhatri, Associate Director, Cardiology, Max Hospital, Mohali, says, “Young adults who have suffered a heart attack are more likely to be either obese or have diabetes. Or there are concomitant diseases like blood pressure. If you have diabetes, you are 2 to 4 times more likely to die from heart disease than adults who do not have diabetes. The problem develops when your blood sugar is not controlled well enough to keep it in a healthy range. High blood sugar damages your blood vessels, increasing the likelihood of fat building up in your arteries and causing atherosclerosis.
Dr. Gagandeep Singh, further adds that “Although it is rare, young women, especially during pregnancy, can experience this, which is called spontaneous coronary artery dissection or SCAD. This can often result in a heart attack. “Therefore there is a need to follow a preventive lifestyle from an early age and ensure that avoidable risk factors are managed.”
People with pre-existing risk factors and a weakened immune system are at higher risk. In such a situation, if you have recently been hit by the Corona epidemic, then your heart-related risk increases significantly. Immunity is strengthened by nutritious diet, regular physical activity and taking prescribed medicines in relation to any disease and there is a need to increase awareness regarding this.
CVD includes conditions affecting the heart or blood vessels. Heart disease is multifactorial which means there are many causes and ways that can lead to heart disease. Family history, comorbidities like blood pressure and diabetes, or a poor lifestyle, smoking and drinking are possible causes of heart disease and now people are well aware about it, but still people are not paying any attention towards it. Especially the youth.