Once we pass Thanksgiving, we officially enter the winter holiday season. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or other special occasions in the coming month, the joy of this time of year could be overshadowed by the tragedy of an increase in heart attack deaths. In fact, research shows that more people die from heart attacks during the last week of December than at any other time of the year.
The American Heart Association, the world’s leading voluntary organization focused on heart and brain health for all, says being aware of this annual phenomenon and taking a few important, heart-healthy steps may save lives.
Mitchell Elkind, M.D, M.S., FAHA, chief clinical science officer, American Heart Association says, “We see every year that during the winter months in general with the cold weather the rates of fatal cardiovascular events like heart attacks and cardiac arrests which is when the heart stops beating all together, you know big problem that goes up during the winter months but what we see is that during Christmas and New Year’s specifically that on that couple of days during that week there is an additional five percent increase in the rate of these fatal events. And there are probably many different reasons for it but we think one of the most important driving factors for it is that people are less likely to seek medical attention during the holidays and also to call 911 when there is an emergency because they don’t want to let somebody down, they don’t want to disturb a party or the holidays they don’t want to bother the people in the hospital perhaps, and so we think that is one of the main reasons for it and so that’s why it’s so really important that people know the signs and symptoms of a heart attack are so that they can take appropriate action and call 911 and why if someone is having a cardiac arrest, if you see a family member or somebody on the street collapse completely, they are fully unresponsive and you can’t get a pulse for example, then it’s time for to do CPR and now we recommend hands-only CPR. You don’t have to breath into the mouth. You just press on the chest at a rate of 60 times a minute, which is the rhythm for the song Staying Alive that many people may remember. and that people can learn how do by just watching a video on our website heart.org.”
What are some of the signs of a heart attack? Dr. Elkind the most common symptom of a heart attack that people know about is chest pain and it is often described as a pressing chest pain, and it feels like someone is sitting on the chest. Dr. Elkind says that happens most commonly but that is not the only one. People can also have pain in their arm, their neck and jaw.
There is also shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, and some people have more subtle symptoms like nausea or indigestion, breaking out in a cold sweat or feeling light-headed or dizzy.
In fact, Dr. Elkind says those subtle symptoms tend to occur more commonly in women so it’s important for women to know they may not have that crushing chest pain but have these other symptoms as well. And it’s hard to know initially is it is a heart attack, a panic attack, or I ate something that didn’t agree with me. He says it is always better to go to the emergency room and get it checked out and better safe than sorry because if you miss it and it progresses, it could be a disaster. He goes on to say you should speak up and get help because failing to do so it could turn into a cardiac arrest which is the most severe form which is when the heart stops beating all together and then the chances of survival after that are one in ten.
For more information go to heart.org
