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Ignoring the early signs??

Siddharth Shukla, KK, Raju Srivastav, A family member of mine - all were in their fifties. They were of different built, their lifestyles were different, their diet habits were different yet one thing in common - they died of Heart Attack or Cardiac Arrest.

In the last few months, we saw a sudden increase in the deaths by Cardiac Arrest/Heart Attack, especially people who are below 50 years of age. Social Media is flooded with posts about Heart Attack after workout, deaths on the dance floor, deaths while simply walking on the road. Cause? Cardiac Arrest or Heart Attack.

What is Cardiac Arrest and how is it different from Heart Attack?

As per #MedicalGuardian, "A Heart Attack occurs when one of the coronary arteries—the arteries which deliver oxygenated blood to the heart muscle—becomes blocked and the portion of the heart muscle it supplies is damaged. This usually occurs when a cholesterol plaque breaks open and platelets rush to the site of the damaged artery and form a clot that compromises blood flow. This can result in severe chest pain, heart failure (fluid backup in the lungs) or an electrical disturbance that can result in loss of consciousness or cardiac arrest. 

Cardiac Arrest is a broad term that essentially means that the heart stops pumping as the result of an electrical disturbance or arrhythmia. As we have seen above, this can be caused by a heart attack (this is actually the most common cause); however, it can result from a number of other issues that have nothing to do with the coronary arteries. For example, patients with Dilated Cardiomyopathy (a condition where the heart becomes unusually large and weak for any number of reasons) are at risk for cardiac arrest and often receive implantable defibrillators (ICDs) to monitor their heartbeats and deliver a shock if a dangerous heart rhythm is detected."

A study (published in LiveMint), which provides the first-of-its-kind nationally representative estimates of cardiovascular mortality in India, shows that heart ailments caused more than 2.1 million deaths in India in 2015 at all ages. That is 21 Lakh Human beings.

Siddharth was a model; hence he regularly went to the gym, took good food, enough of protein (probably) yet got the heart attack. KK looked fit, very energetic and yet got cardiac arrest. Raju Srivastav and the family member I was quoting above both looked very composed yet got artery blockages and died.

In the age of information, you can research articles, read journals, attend expert sessions and consult doctors at the click of a button - so you know what symptoms you currently have and what course corrections do you need to do so You do not get into the state of no return.

Just answer honestly, when was the last full body check-up (specially lipid profile) that costs mere ₹599 or ₹999 did you go through? If you already have irregular blood pressure or diabetes or low levels of hemoglobin - what course corrections have you done so far? Medicines that doctors give may give you immediate relief but what happens when you skip a day or two? Does your blood pressure fluctuate? Do you feel weak in case you skip the iron tablets? Does your energy level fade away if you skip your medicines for diabetes?

Read - Reasearch - Learn that You must do some real changes on your food habits, lifestyle and thought process to remain fit. Organs, unlike our outer body parts, do not look beautiful, they need to be kept healthy. I can help learn a thing or two, if you at all interested.

You should not take symptoms lightly. Irregular blood pressure levels are indications that if you do not do enough, you are moving toward an early demise. 

Therefore, be proactive and not reactive. 

Eat Healthy, Be Healthy, Live Better.

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