Overview \ Heart Disease \ Cancer \ Hypertension \ Stroke \ Osteoporosis \

Diabetes \ Obesity \ Alzheimer’s Disease

In an average adult heart beats 80 times a minute or 115,200 beats in 24 hours. Blood that is rich with oxygen and nutrients courses through the arteries, veins and capillaries to and from every cell in the body. It has also been estimated that the total length of arteries, veins and capillaries in the average adult ranges between 60 to 100 thousand miles. Obviously, any impairment to the heart’s operation will affect various systems and parts of the body – the brain, lungs and kidneys are just three. We all know what happens when the heart stops beating.

The heart is a muscle. The more it is exercised the more efficient it becomes. For example, one who does the right kind of exercises regularly may have a resting heart rate of 60 beats a minute. This works out to about 10 million fewer beats a year compared to one whose heart beats 80 times a minute.

Heart disease is the all-encompassing term for various illnesses affecting the heart, among them coronary artery disease, myocarditis and arrhythmia. Heart disease can arise from inadequate blood flow through the blood vessels of the heart muscle, high blood pressure, infection, and congenital defects, among others.

Damage to the heart could also be due to the hardening of the arteries supporting the heart muscle because of plaque build-up (atherosclerosis), blockage of blood flow by blood clots, and severe weakening of the heart muscles over time.

Complications from heart disease include heart failure, heart attack, stroke, peripheral artery disease, aneurysm (a bulge in the artery wall that may burst, causing internal bleeding), and sudden cardiac arrest. Symptoms of a heart disease will vary among individuals, and may include breathlessness, chest pains, palpitations, fatigue, lightheadedness and feeling faint.

People at risk are usually smokers and those suffering from hypertension, acute anxiety, high blood cholesterol, obesity and diabetes.