By: Vinod Chandrashekhar Dixit
29th September is celebrated as World Heart Day to spread awareness about heart disease and stroke prevention. This is the great day to quit smoking, get exercising and start eating healthy food and improving the health and well being of people the world over. Heart disease and stroke are the world’s leading causes of death. The increasing incidents of heart disease and stroke claims 17.3 million lives every year. A study has shown that 2 out of 4 Indian women are at risk of heart problems due to increasing weight. Heart failure can result in poor quality of life and early death. Early diagnosis is a key. Heart failure patients need to power their heart muscle first for longevity and better quality of life. The ever increasing burden of cardiovascular ailments among the population can only be controlled by taking preventive measures.
There are many who think heart disease occurs mostly in older people, but numerous deaths from this condition happen well before people reach the age of 75.The heart starts pounding until the time of death; it may beat more than 3.5 billion times. The center of the circulatory system is the heart. The average heart beats 100,000 times each day, pushing around 2,000 gallons of blood throughout your body. With a life span of 70-90, the heart will beat two to three billion times and circulate 50-65 million gallons of blood.
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Heart disease was once considered an old-age ailment but has now become a common lifestyle concern. Statistics show that the rate of heart diseases in India is double that of the national averages of western countries. Any imbalance or blockage will manifest as dysfunctional relationships, feeling isolated, skin conditions, asthma, circulatory problems, low or high blood pressure, heart palpitations, chest pains and, in extreme cases, heart attack. A heart-healthy environment can help persons make healthy choices to reduce their risk for heart disease. Creating a heart healthy environment where you live, learn, work, and play is one way you can reduce your risk for heart disease and stroke.
Heart disease can take many forms. Stroke or heart attack is the number one cause of mortality, especially among young Indians. According the Indian Heart Association, 50% of all heart attacks in Indian men occur under 50 years of age and 25% of all heart attacks in Indian men occur under 40 years of age.
Every citizen must make their own heart health a priority and take the vital steps necessary to reduce their risk. Keeping in mind the hectic lives we lead, we need to adopt healthy weight management as one of the key ways to improve heart health. It’s the small things that make a difference. If we make time to walk together daily for 30 minutes, it’ll go a long way in protecting our hearts.
When we see the World Heart Day as an ideal opportunity to scale up efforts at the country level within a globally led initiative, let us encourage everyone to take the road that leads to a heart healthy life. (The author is a freelance journalist & cartoonist. He can be reached at dixitpatrakar@yahoo.in)
