Bryan Heart is encouraging everyone to keep their heart healthy over the Holidays. Research shows more cardiac-related deaths happen on December 25, 26 and January 1 than on any other days of the year.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, claiming almost 700,000 lives annually. Dr. Brock Cookman is an interventional cardiologist at Bryan Heart and says issues can arise for several reasons.
“It can be the stress of the holidays. Sometimes it’s a change in our diet or our activity level, maybe we have kind of laxed on our salt intake or maybe we’re indulging in more alcohol during the holiday season.”
Cookman says people are also less likely to seek medical care this time of year. “There is a notion for individuals to “tough it out” and visit their doctor after schedules calm down.”
It’s also more common for people to forget to take medications during this time period. Cookson says be on the look-out for symptoms of heart trouble. The most common is chest pain or pressure. Often times, patients describe the feeling as an elephant sitting on their chest. “Also, pain in the left arm, neck, jaw and shortness of breath could be signs of heart trouble,” Cookman says.
In women, nausea, lightheadedness, back pain and fatigue can also be indicators of a heart issue.