Like any other part of your body, your heart can become injured or diseased.
Many heart conditions can be called ‘heart disease’. One condition you may hear about most often is called coronary artery disease (CDC: Coronary Artery Disease), which can lead to heart attacks.
Coronary artery disease occurs when there is a buildup of plaque (cholesterol and other substances) in the walls of the blood vessels (arteries) that carry blood to the heart. This plaque buildup causes the inside of these arteries to get narrower over time, and this can lead to a partial or total block of blood flow through the arteries.
If blood flow is blocked to a muscle, all the nutrition and oxygen the blood is carrying to that muscle does not get there. Then, the muscle becomes injured. The heart is a muscle. When blood flow does not get to the heart like it should, it can lead to a heart attack or heart failure.
Having the following conditions:
Making the following lifestyle choices:
Choose to make healthy, positive lifestyle changes!
Always consult your healthcare provider when starting an exercise program or a new diet program.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States. It is also the leading cause of death in African Americans in the U.S. Heart attacks, and heart disease may present differently in women versus men. Women need to be alert and not ignore warning signs.
Many women may not have any symptoms of heart disease, but some may have the following symptoms when they are moving around or even when they are resting.
Other symptoms that women may have include feeling nauseous, vomiting, excessive tiredness (fatigue) or tiredness that will not go away.
Watch this short but essential video from Dr. E. Sanchez, American Heart Association, on how women’s symptoms may differ from what men experience when having a heart attack: https://youtu.be/io4Ovh-Q2IA.
A stroke is a ‘brain attack’. Just like you can have a heart attack when the blood supply to your heart is blocked, you can suffer a stroke when the blood supply to your brain gets blocked. The brain does not get the oxygen and nutrients it needs from the blood. Brain cells die off within minutes when they do not get this oxygen. This leads to a stroke. Also, a stroke can occur when a blood vessel in the brain bursts.
High blood pressure: https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/high-blood-pressure
Diabetes: https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/diabetes
Stroke: https://www.cdc.gov/stroke/about.htm
Heart Disease: https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/
CDC Heart Disease
American Heart Association: Heart Attack, High Blood Pressure, Stroke
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