Lack of a healthy lifestyle a key factor for rising heart attacks among youngsters, say doctors

Medical experts stress importance of diet, exercise, stress management, and regular check-ups for a healthy heart.

Incorporating more fruits and vegetables in one’s diet, good stress management, exercising, keeping sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol levels down are important to keep a heart healthy, said medical experts.

Speaking at an awareness camp organised by The Hindu FIC in association with Andhra Hospitals (AH), Vijayawada, on the occasion of World Heart Day on September 29, Sunday, at the Brain and Heart Institute, Chief Cardiologist at AH J. Srimannarayana said the primary reason why we are seeing increasing cases of heart attacks among youngsters was because of not following one or more of the above-mentioned points.

“One in every three persons in the world dies of heart attack. In India, the situation is worse, because Indians are genetically more prone to developing heart diseases. The recent lifestyle changes also play a big role,” Dr. Srimannarayana said, adding that if anyone develops chest pain, they should visit a doctor and get an ECG test done. However, ECG tests do not reveal the full picture, he said.

“Heart attack symptoms present differently in people. Chest pain is often confused with pain due to gas. People often delay visiting a doctor by taking medicines to relieve gas pains, and they get worried only when pain does not subside. By the time they reach the hospital, damage to heart muscles would have happened already,” he said, highlighting the importance of time in treating patients with heart attacks.

Dispelling misconceptions that children with heart diseases cannot have a normal life, Paediatric Cardiologist K. Vikram said 98% of heart problems are treatable. “Those with congenital or acquired heart disease can go to school, get married and have children like anyone else. But it is important to identify symptoms of heart disease in children immediately,” Dr. Vikram said. The symptoms can be panting while playing, struggling to gain weight or falling unconscious while running, frequent infections such as cold and fever, etc.

“There will be no scars after treatments,” added J. Nageswara Rao, Cardio-Thoracic Surgeon. He said with advancements in the medical field, we have minimally invasive surgeries.

Andhra Hospitals Group Director P. Ramarao and MD P.V. Ramana Murthy said that they have established 750 beds in six centres with 25 specialities and super specialities offering services like trauma, critical care, super speciality services, mother and child care. He added that the hospital has successfully completed 4,000 heart surgeries in children in the past nine years.