World Heart Day is celebrated every year on 29th September!
In May 2012, world leaders committed to reducing global mortality from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) by 25% by 2025. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is accountable for nearly half of all NCD deaths making it the world’s number one killer. World Heart Day is, therefore, the perfect platform for the CVD community to unite in the fight against CVD and reduce the global disease burden.
Created by the World Heart Federation, World Heart Day informs people around the globe that CVD, including heart disease and stroke, is the world’s leading cause of death claiming 17.9 million lives each year, and highlights the actions that individuals can take to prevent and control CVD. It aims to drive action to educate people that by controlling risk factors such as tobacco use, unhealthy diet and physical inactivity, at least 80% of premature deaths from heart disease and stroke could be avoided.
World Heart Day is a global campaign during which individuals, families, communities, and governments around the world participate in activities to take charge of their heart health and that of others. Through this campaign, the World Heart Federation unites people from all countries and backgrounds in the fight against the CVD burden and inspires and drives international action to encourage heart-healthy living across the world. We and our members believe in a world where heart health for everyone is a fundamental human right and a crucial element of global health justice.
Cardiovascular disease is the world’s number one killer, causing over 17.9 million deaths per year.
The term ‘cardiovascular disease’ (CVD) refers to any disease of the heart, vascular disease of the brain, or disease of the blood vessel. More people die from CVDs worldwide than from any other cause: over 17.9 million every year, according to the World Health Organization. Of these deaths, 80% are due to coronary heart diseases (e.g. heart attack) and cerebrovascular diseases (e.g. strokes) and mostly affect low- and middle-income countries.
Did you know that your heart is the size of your fist and the strongest muscle in your body? It started beating about three weeks after you were conceived. If you live to be 70, it will have beaten two and a half billion times. However, although impressive and strong, your heart can also become vulnerable from habitual risk factors like smoking, eating an unhealthy diet or putting it under stress. Controlling these key risk factors and monitoring your blood pressure regularly may reduce an individual’s risk of CVD.
The system can also be weakened from a pre-existing heart condition and other physiological factors, including hypertension or high blood cholesterol. When your heart’s functions become compromised, this is known as cardiovascular disease, a broad term that covers any disorder to the system that has the heart at its centre.
CVD Risk factors
There are many risk factors associated with coronary heart disease and stroke. Some risk factors, such as family history, cannot be modified, while other risk factors, like high blood pressure, can be modified with treatment.
You will not necessarily develop cardiovascular disease if you have a risk factor. But the more risk factors you have, the greater the likelihood that you will, unless you take action to modify your risk factors and work to prevent them compromising your heart health.
Modifiable risk factors include:
- Physical inactivity
- Unhealthy diet
- Raised blood pressure
- Tobacco use
- Cholesterol
- Obesity and being overweight
Non-modifiable risk factors include:
- Family history
- Diabetes
Other common non-modifiable risk factors include:
- Age: simply getting old is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease; risk of stroke doubles every decade after age 55.
- Gender: your gender is significant: as a man you are at greater risk of heart disease than a pre-menopausal woman. But once past the menopause, a woman’s risk is similar to a man’s. Risk of stroke is similar for men and women.
- Ethnicity: your ethnic origin plays a role. People with African or Asian ancestry are at higher risks of developing cardiovascular disease than other racial groups.
- Socioeconomic status: being poor, no matter where in the globe, increases your risk of heart disease and stroke. A chronically stressful life, social isolation, anxiety and depression also increase the risk.
Heart attack warning signs
Some heart attacks are sudden and intense, where no one doubts what’s happening. But most heart attacks start slowly, with mild pain or discomfort. Often people affected aren’t sure what’s wrong and wait too long before getting help. Here are some signs that can mean a heart attack is happening:
- Chest discomfort. Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the centre of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes, or that goes away and comes back. It can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain.
- Discomfort in other areas of the upper body. Symptoms can include pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw, or stomach.
- Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort.
- Other signs may include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea, or light-headedness.
Heart attacks often manifest themselves differently in women than in men. As with men, women’s most common heart attack symptom is chest pain or discomfort. But women are somewhat more likely than men to experience some of the other common symptoms, particularly shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting, and back or jaw pain.
Stroke warning signs
A stroke is a medical emergency. If any of these symptoms appear, do not delay – get medical help immediately!
- Sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm, or leg, especially on one side of the body
- Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding
- Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes
- Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
- Sudden severe headache with no known cause
If experiencing any of these signs, which could come and go, call your emergency services/ambulance on 000 immediately.
The above information has been sourced from https://www.world-heart-federation.org/world-heart-day
This article is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice and should not be relied on as health or personal advice. Always seek the guidance of your doctor or other qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition.
Any advice in this publication is of a general nature only and has not been tailored to your personal circumstances. Please seek personal advice prior to acting on this information.
