19 December 2023 , 22:35
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Heart disease is a major cause of death not just within the UK, but worldwide.
A number of factors can contribute to an individual’s likelihood of suffering from the possibly fatal condition. Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a sub-section that contains illnesses that affect the coronary arteries in the heart - the vital pathways that bring blood to the heart, and keep the body functioning.
However, these can become blocked. There are a number of symptoms that can forewarn of the illness, sometimes called ischaemic heart disease or coronary artery disease. However symptoms can vary greatly from person to person, and on some occasions, an individual may not have any before being diagnosed.
But one of the more common symptoms of the disease is linked to your breathing and could rear its head in a seemingly harmless way that some Brits may not take notice of. Amongst the symptoms of CHD is shortness of breath. This symptom could be confused with other conditions, like asthma, or may even be dismissed as nothing major - or a result of poor fitness.
CHD is caused when the coronary arteries are blocked, this could be by a build-up of fatty substances. Over time, the walls of arteries become furred with these fatty deposits - which can be caused by lifestyle factors like regularly drinking excessive amounts of alcohol and smoking.
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The other symptoms include:
- chest pain (angina)
- shortness of breath
- pain throughout the body
- feeling faint
- feeling sick (nausea)
There are a number of possible treatments that can be used to battle CHD. Due to it having some lifestyle causes, changes to your lifestyle can be used such as regular exercise or stopping smoking. Angioplasty, a surgery where balloons and stents are used to widen narrow heart arteries is a possibility as well and there are other invasive options too.
Prevention
There are several ways to reduce your risk of CHD, such as lowering your blood pressure and cholesterol levels. The NHS says: "A low-fat, high-fibre diet is recommended, which should include plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables (5 portions a day) and whole grains.
"You should limit the amount of salt you eat to no more than 6g (0.2oz) a day as too much salt will increase your blood pressure. 6g of salt is about 1 teaspoonful. There are 2 types of fat: saturated and unsaturated. You should avoid food containing saturated fats because these will increase the levels of bad cholesterol in your blood."
Foods that include saturated fats include butter, ghee, lard, cream, hard cheese, cakes and biscuits, foods that contain coconut or palm oil, meat pies, fatty cuts of meat and more.