About 1.1 million Americans suffer a heart attack each year, about half of which is fatal. Learning the signs of heart attack and what to do during it can save your life.
The first thing to do when you or someone around you experience the warning signs of a heart attack is to call 9-1-1 fast. Simple as that.
What are the warning signs?
Every person's signs can be different but usually there is:
1) Chest discomfort: Usually happens in the center of the chest and lasts more than a few minutes or goes away and comes back. The discomfort can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain.
2) Discomfort in arm(s), back, neck, jaw or stomach
3) Shortness of breath: Often accompanies chest discomfort, but may occur before it as well.
4) Cold sweat, nausea or light-headedness
Most heart attacks are not sudden, they start slowly with only mild discomfort or pain. Therefore, it might not be clear if you are having an attack at the beginning. Don't wait longer than 5 minutes and call 9-1-1 as treatments to restore blood flow to the heart are most effective if given within 1 hour of the start of the symptoms.
And the best prevention for coronary heart disease is to eat low cholesterol foods and reduce blood pressure (if hypertension is a factor) by exercising and following a low sodium diet!
Reference: Hypertension Sourcebook, First Edition edited by Dawn Matthews and Karen Bellenir
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