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Heart Attacks

Heart Attacks


    Heart attacks are the leading cause of death in the United States.
Everyday approximately 1,500 people die from heart attacks.   Thousands more
suffer crippling effects of some form, and remain disabled for the rest of their
lives.   A simple definition of a heart attack is a sudden failure of the heart
resulting from an occlusion or obstruction of a coronary artery.   Basically,
this means the heart is no longer receiving the blood supply it needs to
function properly.   A person having a heart attack experiences severe pain in
the chest extending to the left shoulder and arm.   Heart attacks occur for a
variety of reasons.   Diet, genetics, obesity, and lack of exercise are all
contributors to heart attacks.   Smoking and stress are the most widespread
causes however, affecting 2.5 million people every year.   Therefore, smoking and
stress are two major causes of heart attacks.
    Smoking causes heart attacks.   The tobacco in cigarettes and cigars contain
a chemical called nicotine.   When inhaled into the lungs, nicotine causes the
release of hormones in the body.   These hormones raise the blood pressure.
Consequently, a person's heart rate increases 15 to 25 beats per minute.
Nicotine also causes the blood vessels to contract.   People who smoke have a
harder time keeping their hands and feet warm because their blood does not
circulate as well as it does in non-smokers.   When the heart rate increases and
the blood vessels remain constricted for an extended period of time, ten or more
years, arteries begin to close up.   When an artery feeding blood to the heart
closes up, the heart can no longer function.   This results in a heart attack.
    Stress is another cause of heart attacks.   The causes of stress vary from
person to person, although there are many stressors.   Anger, fear, deadlines,
work, conflict, and school can all be stressors.   When an individual perceives a
situation to be stressful, it is stressful.   The body physically reacts to...