Fit & Well: Chapter 11

Cardiovascular Health and Diabetes

Cardiovascular disease definition and examples

Cardiovascular disease: collective term for various diseases of the heart and blood vessels (heart disease, heart attack, stroke, angina, blood vessel diseases, arrhythmias, congenital heart defects, other conditions), leading cause of death in the US

Atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis: inner layers of artery walls are made thick by plaque, leading to the arteries narrowing and the blood supply being reduced

Plaque

Plaque: a deposit of fatty substances on the inner wall of an artery

Coronary heart disease

Coronary heart disease: heart diseases caused by atherosclerosis in the arteries that supply blood to the heart muscle, also called coronary artery disease

Heart attack

Heart attack: damage to, or the death of, the heart muscle resulting from a failure of the coronary arteries to deliver enough blood to the heart, aka myocardial infarction, symptoms include pain/pressure in the chest, arm, neck, or jaw, difficulty breathing, excessive sweating, nausea and vomiting, and loss of consciousness

Angina pectoris

Angina pectoris: a condition in which the heart muscle doesn’t receive enough blood, causing severe pain in the chest and often in the arm and shoulder

Arrhythmia

Arrhythmia: electrical impulses that control heartbeat are disrupted, leading to the heart beating too quickly

Sudden cardiac death

Sudden cardiac death: a nontraumatic, unexpected death from sudden cardiac arrest, most often due to arrhythmia

Treating a heart attack

Treating a heart attack: get immediate medical care if symptoms occur, diagnostic tools include stress tests, and cardiograms, patients are advised lifestyle changes and a low-dose aspirin tablet, treatments include stents and surgery

Stroke

Stroke: an impeded blood supply to some part of the brain resulting in destruction of brain cells, also called a cerebrovascular accident

Thrombotic stroke

Thrombotic stroke: caused by a blood clot in an artery that has been narrowed or damaged by atherosclerosis

Embolic stroke

Embolic stroke: caused by an embolus, a wandering blood clot that may become wedged in a cerebral artery

Hemorrhagic stroke

Hemorrhagic stroke: occurs when a blood vessel in the brain bursts, spilling blood into the surrounding tissue, may be caused by a head injury or an aneurysm

Effects of a stroke

Stroke effects: may cause paralysis, walking disability, speech impairment, memory loss, and behavior changes

Silent strokes

Silent strokes: someone has a stroke without knowing it, leaves victims at higher risk for subsequent and more serious strokes

Transient ischemic attack

Transient ischemic attack: a ministroke that occurs days, weeks, or months before a full-blown stroke

Congestive heart failure

Congestive heart failure: a condition resulting from the heart’s inability to pump out all the blood that returns to it, leading blood to back up in the veins in the heart and throughout the body (pulmonary edema)

Smoking as a risk factor

Smoking: twice the risk of heart attack, 2-3x more likely to die, smoking damages arteries, reduces HDL, raises triglycerides and LDL, increases blood pressure and heart rate, reduces the oxygen available, and causes platelets to clot; e-cigarettes and secondhand smoke also carry similar risks

Tobacco: avoid it, smoking is the number one risk factor, take steps to prevent exposure to smoke

High blood pressure as a risk factor

High blood pressure: hypertension (sustained abnormally high blood pressure) occurs when too much force is exerted against the walls of arteries, is a CVD itself and a risk factor for more severe forms, has no symptoms and is a silent killer

Sphygmomanometer

Sphygmomanometer: used to measure blood pressure

Cholesterol

Cholesterol: excess cholesterol can clog arteries and increase the risk of CVD, risk increases with higher LDL levels

Exercise and CVD

Physical inactivity: 1 in 3 Americans are sedentary, and exercise is very helpful against heart disease

Exercise: you can significantly reduce your CVD risk with a moderate amount of physical activity

Obesity and CVD

Obesity: risk of death from CVD is 2-3x higher, and even moderate weight reduction can reduce CVD risk

Diabetes mellitus

Diabetes mellitus: a disease that disrupts normal metabolism, interfering with cells’ ability to take in glucose for energy production

Triglycerides

Triglycerides: blood fats absorbed from food and manufactured by the body, high levels are a reliable predictor of heart disease

Insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome

Insulin resistance and metabolic system: greatly increase CVD risk, condition in which muscles, fat, and liver become less sensitive to insulin so people gain more weight

Other risk factors for CVD

Other factors: psychological and social factors like anger, anxiety, depression, and stress or alcohol and drugs can increase cardiac risk

Unchangeable factors that increase risk

Unchangeable factors: being 65 or older, being a male, being African American, American Indian, or a Hispanic women

Possible risk factors currently being studied

Possible factors: currently being studied, includes elevated blood levels of homocysteine, infectious agents, and gum disease

Eating a heart healthy diet

Eat a heart-healthy diet: saturated fat should be limited to 7% of total calories, no trans fats, a high fiber diet with whole grains, fruits, vegetables, reduce sodium to no more than 2,300mg a day, increase potassium, moderate alcohol use

Factors to know and manage

Other: know and manage your blood pressure, cholesterol levels, stress, and anger

Basics of diabetes

Basics: major CVD risk factor and leading cause of death among Americans, process of metabolism is disrupted, causing a buildup of glucose in the bloodstream, about 30 million have one of two major forms (~9.3% of Americans)

Type 1 diabetes

Type 1: 5 to 10% of that group have this, more serious, body’s immune system destroys the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, daily insulin doses are required, usually is unrelated to obesity and begins in childhood or adolescence

Type 2 diabetes

Type 2: develops slowly, 25% are unaware, pancreas fails to produce enough insulin or cells are resistant to insulin, linked to age, obesity, physical inactivity, family history, and lifestyle

Gestational diabetes

Gestational diabetes: occurs in 2-10% of women during pregnancy, giving them up to a 60% chance of developing diabetes within 10 to 20 years

Prediabetes

Prediabetes: blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not enough for a full-blown diagnosis, will develop into type 2 without preventative lifestyle measures

Warning signs of diabetes

Warning signs: frequent urination, extreme hunger or thirst, unexplained weight loss, extreme fatigue, blurred vision, frequent infections, cuts and bruises are slow to heal, tingling or numbness in hands/feet, itching with no rash

Testing for diabetes

Testing: routine screening is recommended for those over the age of 45 and anyone younger who is at high risk

Treating diabetes

Treatment: there is no cure, but diabetes can be managed by keeping blood sugar levels within safe limits through diet, exercise, and even medication

Preventing diabetes

Prevention: about 90% of T2D cases could’ve been prevented with regular physical activity, moderate diet, modest weight loss, and quitting smoking

Which are women less likely to die of: cardiovascular disease, or cancer?

Cancer

On average, how much earlier does heart disease develop in people who don’t exercise regularly than in people who do?

10 years

Of whole grains, salmon, and bananas, which is a good choice for promoting heart health?

All three: whole grains provide fiber, salmon provides many nutrients, and bananas provide potassium