iHaveNet.com
Health Ailments - Key Factors Related to Heart Attack Risk | Health
Your Single Source to Current Events, News Analysis & Reviews.
  • HOME
  • WORLD
    • Africa
    • Asia Pacific
    • Balkans
    • Caucasas
    • Central Asia
    • Eastern Europe
    • Europe
    • Indian Subcontinent
    • Latin America
    • Middle East
    • North Africa
    • Scandinavia
    • Southeast Asia
    • United Kingdom
    • United States
    • Argentina
    • Australia
    • Austria
    • Benelux
    • Brazil
    • Canada
    • China
    • France
    • Germany
    • Greece
    • Hungary
    • India
    • Indonesia
    • Ireland
    • Israel
    • Italy
    • Japan
    • Korea
    • Mexico
    • New Zealand
    • Pakistan
    • Philippines
    • Poland
    • Russia
    • South Africa
    • Spain
    • Taiwan
    • Turkey
    • United States
  • USA
    • ECONOMICS
    • EDUCATION
    • ENVIRONMENT
    • FOREIGN POLICY
    • POLITICS
    • OPINION
    • TRADE
    • Atlanta
    • Baltimore
    • Bay Area
    • Boston
    • Chicago
    • Cleveland
    • DC Area
    • Dallas
    • Denver
    • Detroit
    • Houston
    • Los Angeles
    • Miami
    • New York
    • Philadelphia
    • Phoenix
    • Pittsburgh
    • Portland
    • San Diego
    • Seattle
    • Silicon Valley
    • Saint Louis
    • Tampa
    • Twin Cities
  • BUSINESS
    • FEATURES
    • eBUSINESS
    • HUMAN RESOURCES
    • MANAGEMENT
    • MARKETING
    • ENTREPRENEUR
    • SMALL BUSINESS
    • STOCK MARKETS
    • Agriculture
    • Airline
    • Auto
    • Beverage
    • Biotech
    • Book
    • Broadcast
    • Cable
    • Chemical
    • Clothing
    • Construction
    • Defense
    • Durable
    • Engineering
    • Electronics
    • Firearms
    • Food
    • Gaming
    • Healthcare
    • Hospitality
    • Leisure
    • Logistics
    • Metals
    • Mining
    • Movie
    • Music
    • Newspaper
    • Nondurable
    • Oil & Gas
    • Packaging
    • Pharmaceutic
    • Plastics
    • Real Estate
    • Retail
    • Shipping
    • Sports
    • Steelmaking
    • Textiles
    • Tobacco
    • Transportation
    • Travel
    • Utilities
  • WEALTH
    • CAREERS
    • INVESTING
    • PERSONAL FINANCE
    • REAL ESTATE
    • MARKETS
    • BUSINESS
  • STOCKS
    • ECONOMY
    • EMERGING MARKETS
    • STOCKS
    • FED WATCH
    • TECH STOCKS
    • BIOTECHS
    • COMMODITIES
    • MUTUAL FUNDS / ETFs
    • MERGERS / ACQUISITIONS
    • IPOs
    • 3M (MMM)
    • AT&T (T)
    • AIG (AIG)
    • Alcoa (AA)
    • Altria (MO)
    • American Express (AXP)
    • Apple (AAPL)
    • Bank of America (BAC)
    • Boeing (BA)
    • Caterpillar (CAT)
    • Chevron (CVX)
    • Cisco (CSCO)
    • Citigroup (C)
    • Coca Cola (KO)
    • Dell (DELL)
    • DuPont (DD)
    • Eastman Kodak (EK)
    • ExxonMobil (XOM)
    • FedEx (FDX)
    • General Electric (GE)
    • General Motors (GM)
    • Google (GOOG)
    • Hewlett-Packard (HPQ)
    • Home Depot (HD)
    • Honeywell (HON)
    • IBM (IBM)
    • Intel (INTC)
    • Int'l Paper (IP)
    • JP Morgan Chase (JPM)
    • J & J (JNJ)
    • McDonalds (MCD)
    • Merck (MRK)
    • Microsoft (MSFT)
    • P & G (PG)
    • United Tech (UTX)
    • Wal-Mart (WMT)
    • Walt Disney (DIS)
  • TECH
    • ADVANCED
    • FEATURES
    • INTERNET
    • INTERNET FEATURES
    • CYBERCULTURE
    • eCOMMERCE
    • mp3
    • SECURITY
    • GAMES
    • HANDHELD
    • SOFTWARE
    • PERSONAL
    • WIRELESS
  • HEALTH
    • AGING
    • ALTERNATIVE
    • AILMENTS
    • DRUGS
    • FITNESS
    • GENETICS
    • CHILDREN'S
    • MEN'S
    • WOMEN'S
  • LIFESTYLE
    • AUTOS
    • HOBBIES
    • EDUCATION
    • FAMILY
    • FASHION
    • FOOD
    • HOME DECOR
    • RELATIONSHIPS
    • PARENTING
    • PETS
    • TRAVEL
    • WOMEN
  • ENTERTAINMENT
    • BOOKS
    • TELEVISION
    • MUSIC
    • THE ARTS
    • MOVIES
    • CULTURE
  • SPORTS
    • BASEBALL
    • BASKETBALL
    • COLLEGES
    • FOOTBALL
    • GOLF
    • HOCKEY
    • OLYMPICS
    • SOCCER
    • TENNIS
  • Subscribe to RSS Feeds EMAIL ALERT Subscriptions from iHaveNet.com RSS
    • RSS | Politics
    • RSS | Recipes
    • RSS | NFL Football
    • RSS | Movie Reviews

Key Factors Related to Heart Attack Risk
Mary Pickett, MD

HOME > HEALTH

 

Q: I take so many medications and still had a heart attack. How much of a role do obesity, physical fitness and nutrition play in causing a heart attack?

A: Obesity, physical fitness and nutrition each play a large role in causing a heart attack (myocardial infarction).

Obesity. Heart attacks are more likely to occur in obese people. This is partly due to the way obesity contributes to high blood pressure and makes diabetes and cholesterol problems more likely.

Obesity also increases heart attack risk by causing a thickening (hypertrophy) of the heart muscle and by increasing the chance that you will have sleep apnea. People with sleep apnea are more likely to develop heart disease.

Several studies have estimated the risk for obese people compared with people of normal weight. One example is the Nurses' Health Study. It found that non-smoking women who had a body mass index (BMI) at or above 32 had a quadrupled risk for dying of a heart attack compared to thin women with a BMI below 19.

Physical fitness. Exercise improves blood pressure, cholesterol, and weight. Even in modest amounts, exercise protects against heart attacks. Experts have blamed poor exercise for about 12 percent of the total risk for heart attack across the world.

Physical fitness, as determined by the degree of peak exercise you can perform, has a direct relationship to heart attack risk. The measurement of fitness most commonly used is called metabolic equivalents (METs). According to one study, every increase of one MET in exercise capacity was linked to a 12 percent improvement in longevity.

Nutrition. A diet low in salt and high in fruits and vegetables can reduce your risk for a heart attack.

The amount of salt in the diet may play a bigger than expected role in heart attack and stroke risk than we expected. Most Americans eat about two teaspoons of salt in a day. If all American adults over age 35 cut their salt intake in half, a computer simulation predicts that during the next decade we would see 54,000 to 99,000 fewer heart attacks per year, and 32,000 to 66,000 fewer strokes per year.

Available at Amazon.com:

Calm Energy: How People Regulate Mood with Food and Exercise

 

 

  • Can Acid Reflux Damage my Esophagus
  • Secrets to Breathing Better With Allergies
  • Take the Work Out of Workout
  • Bounce Back From Spring Break
  • Cultivate a Nutrient-Rich Approach to Eating for Life
  • What's the Right Amount of Vitamin C
  • Treadmill Test Can Reveal Hidden Problems in Heart
  • Suffering From Allergies? Tailor Treatment to Your Symptoms
  • Researchers Break Through to Unconscious Patients
  • Key Factors Related to Heart Attack Risk
  • Type 2 Diabetes Increases Risk for Cardiovascular Problems
  • Middle-Age Spread and How to Avoid It
  • Fiber and Weight Loss: Learn the Secrets
  • Treadmill Test Can Reveal Hidden Problems in Heart
  • Could Hot Flashes Only Occur at Night?
  • Relationship Between RSV and Asthma in Children Unclear
  • Hypochondria: The Impossible Illness
  • Get the Lead Out: The Less Exposure to This Toxic Metal the Better
  • Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Sugar
  • Omega-3 Rich Diet
  • Omega-3 Enriched Eggs an 'Eggs-traordinary' Choice for Heart Health
  • Quinoa: Nutritious Mother Grain of the Incas
  • 14 Things You Might Not Know About Aspirin
  • Cultivate a Healthy Brain Lifestyle As You Age
  • Regular Exercise Helps Protect Aging Brains
  • Surgeries Can be Combined But May Not be Necessary
  • Get the Lead Out: The Less Exposure to This Toxic Metal the Better
  • Hypochondria: The Impossible Illness
  • Guide to Cold and Allergy Symptoms
  • Is Heartburn Surgery the Answer?
  • Best Cooking Methods for Heartburn Sufferers
  • 14 Things You Might Not Know About Aspirin

 

Copyright © 2010 Mary Pickett, MD, Harvard Health

 

Search Powered By Google

Google Search   

advertisement

Advertisement

Healthcare Jobs

Healthcare Jobs

Medical Jobs

Advertisement

Advertisement

  • HOME
  • WORLD
  • USA
  • BUSINESS
  • WEALTH
  • STOCKS
  • TECH
  • HEALTH
  • LIFESTYLE
  • ENTERTAINMENT
  • SPORTS

 

Health Ailments - Key Factors Related to Heart Attack Risk

  • Services:
  • RSS Feeds
  • Shopping
  • Email Alerts
  • Site Map
  • Privacy