2023-06-21 14:58:00
The heart works 24 hours a day without a break, beating day and night and supplying all organs with the vital nutrients and sufficient oxygen around the clock. In order for all functions to run smoothly, we need a healthy heart. However, this is not so self-evident, because Cardiovascular diseases are among the most widespread diseases. We have summarized for you how a heart works, which diseases are possible and how you can only 12 steps Find out if you are at increased risk of a heart attack.
Heart Health: How Does Our Heart Work?
The human heart is a complex, fist-sized hollow organ. With its rhythmic movement, the heartbeat, it acts as a pumping station for the vital blood flow in the body.
At a healthy adults the heart beats quietly between 60 and 80 times per minute. The entire volume of blood, five to six liters in adults, is pumped through the body once every minute. With the uninterrupted transport of blood through the circulatory system, the heart supplies the organs with vital oxygen and nutrients. In order to fulfill this important task, the heart is ingeniously constructed. The heart consists of ventricles and valves and a branching system of veins and arteries. Three short facts about the engine of life:
Top performers: 60 to 80 beats per minute, more than 100,000 beats a day and 42 million heartbeats a year.
Lightweight: The average heart is about the size of a fist and weighs around 300 grams. For comparison: That’s as much as a mango in the supermarket.
Transportmeister: The heart pumps around 7000 liters of blood through our body in 24 hours.
These are the most common cardiovascular diseases
Cardiovascular diseases are still the leading cause of death. In Germany alone, 340,000 people die from it every year. People over the age of 50 are particularly susceptible to these and other diseases. This is a collective term that covers many different ailments. A uniform definition is difficult, because one disease often causes the other. For example, cardiac arrhythmias can be triggered by heart valve disease. The most common diseases are:
Hypertension (high blood pressure): Blood pressure at rest is several times over 140/90 mmHg.
cardiac arrhythmia: Due to a disturbance, the heart no longer beats in time, but irregularly. It may race or beat significantly too slowly.
Coronary heart desease: The coronary arteries are narrowed. This can result in a circulatory disorder.
heart muscle inflammation: Heart muscle cells are inflamed. Often occurring after a viral infection.
heart valve disease: The heart valve is narrowed or no longer closes properly.
heart failure: The heart is too weak to pump the blood needed to supply the body.
Cardiomyopathy: The heart muscle is thickened and/or the heart cavities are dilated.
Peripheral Arterial Disease: The arteries in the arms and legs are narrowed. There is an irregular supply of blood.
The signs of sick people are often misinterpreted or underestimated. Women in particular initially have more unspecific, different symptoms than men and do not immediately conclude that it is such a serious illness. For example, after a heart attack, women often experience shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, and upper abdominal discomfort. Men, on the other hand, suddenly have a very strong pain that mainly occurs in the chest.
Symptoms: How to recognize a heart attack
You can tell Heart attacks can manifest themselves in different ways. You can recognize a heart attack by the following typical signs:
You can find a selection of blood pressure monitors here. You have typical pain in your chest and especially behind your breastbone. In addition, there is pain in the back or upper abdomen. This can easily be confused with stomach pain. The pain lasts more than five minutes. The pain is widespread, burning, pressing and is accompanied by a feeling of tightness in the chest.
The older the person, the less pronounced the typical chest pain can be. There may also be other symptoms that are more common in women than in men. These are shortness of breath, dizziness, sweating, lightheadedness, nausea and vomiting, and unexplained tiredness.
12-point check: how healthy is your heart?
The 12-point check based on the heart attack risk test of the German Heart Foundation. We have shortened it for you. These questions can be used to assess the risk to your heart health and that of those around you. The risk is higher the more often you answer questions with “yes”:
Has your first-degree family (father, mother, siblings and children) ever had a heart attack or stroke? Do you smoke? Do you exercise less than once a month for at least 20 minutes? are you overweight Do you rarely eat vegetables, salad, fruit, legumes, whole grains, fiber, olive and canola oil, and fish rather than meat? Do you often eat meat, fast food, cakes, sweets and drink sugary drinks? Are you often under a lot of stress? Do you suffer from high blood pressure? Do you have an elevated LDL cholesterol level? Do you have high blood sugar levels? Is there diabetes? Do you have occasional chest pain or chest pressure for more than 5 minutes? Have you ever suspected a heart attack?
Clicking here will take you to the full test. Many of the factors can promote cardiovascular disease. It is therefore important to pay attention to health in every area of life, because a healthy lifestyle can prevent cardiovascular diseases.
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