Myths about Heart Disease

“I don’t have to worry about heart disease until I am older.”
“The sign of a heart attack is only chest pains.”
“My heart is beating really fast, so it must be a heart attack.”
All these statements are actually myths.

These are just a few of myths that I came across about heart disease. I find these myths an important issue to discuss because who knows how many people in the world, including you, thought that these statements were actually true, possibly putting you or your loved ones in danger.

MYTH: Cardiovascular Disease is an “adult” disease.
Typically heart disease is associated with adults, however it isn’t always the case. There is no certain age when a person can get heart disease, however heart disease can sprout at a young age if you happen to live an unhealthy lifestyle. According to the American Heart association, “how you live now affects your risk for cardiovascular diseases later in life. As early as childhood and adolescence, plaque can start accumulating in the arteries and later lead to clogged arteries.” It makes sense. If someone were to grow up eating junk food compared to someone who ate a healthy diet, the former would most likely have a higher risk of getting cardiovascular disease in the future. To be honest, I think that heart disease was more of an “adult” disease because it always seemed that it was adults who did end up with heart disease.

Researchers in Chicago did a study where they took pictures of what teens’ cardiovascular health was like. The researchers found was that the “health of 5,547 children, from ages 12 to 19, a number of them have high blood sugar levels, are obese or overweight, have a lousy diet, don’t get enough physical activity and even smoke.” Donald Lloyd-Jones, M.D., chair and associate professor of preventive medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and a physician at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, said that “We are all born with ideal cardiovascular health, but right now we are looking at the loss of that health in youth.” I find that interesting that our cardiovascular health is at its’ ideal state when we are born, so basically it all goes downhill from there. The chart below shows the percentage of kids ranging from ages 2-19 who are overweight.

Source: AHRQ

Additionally, author Christina Shay, who did the research while she was a postdoctoral fellow in preventive medicine at Northwestern’s Feinberg School and now is an assistant professor of epidemiology at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, stated that “What was most alarming about the findings of this study is that zero children or adolescents surveyed met the criteria for ideal cardiovascular health. These data indicate ideal cardiovascular health is being lost as early as, if not earlier than the teenage years.” Isn’t that crazy? None of the children that they tested had ideal cardiovascular health. However it does make sense. Most, not if all children in the United States, has probably come across a variety of junk food, whether it was from their parents/family/friends, that would affect their cardiovascular health.

MYTH: Chest pains are the only symptoms of a Heart Attack/Fast Heart Beats Means Heart Attack
It’s true that chest pains are a sign of a heart attack, usually the most common sign, and that rapid heart beats is also a sign, but it’s not exactly true. Chest pains or discomfort are usually the most common signs of heart disease, however it’s not the only way to indicate that you have/are having a heart attack. There are actually subtle symptoms that could also result in a heart attack. According to the American Heart association,subtle signs of a heart attack are “shortness of breath, nausea, feeling lightheaded, and pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the jaw, neck or back.” As for heart beats, you usually don’t have to worry about it because your heart tends to fluctuate,  since your heart beat would be different from you running compared to sitting down or sleeping. However, you should be concern if your heart has an abnormal or irregular heartbeat because it would be a sign of arrhythmia.

So, how many myths did you believe that could have cause your loved ones their lives?