By Zain Ahmad

February is designated as American Heart Month to raise awareness about heart related illnesses and measures to prevent them. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the US but often preventable. From the American Red Cross, here is important information about heart disease, and key points to protect yourself from it.

The main theme for this Heart Month is centered around shedding light on heart related illness among women. Symptoms of heart disease can be different for men and for women. Often women do not recognize that they have heart problems because they may not have typical signs of heart disease; for example they may not have chest pain for heart attack but instead have jaw or neck pain. Educating people about these differences can save their lives.

Cardiac Arrest and Heart Attack: The Difference

Among the most important terms to differentiate are cardiac arrest and heart attack. Many of us refer to them as the same thing. The main difference is that in cardiac arrest, the heart suddenly stops, and CPR is vital in saving a victim’s life. Cardiac arrest happens when the heart malfunctions and is not able to pump blood to the other crucial organs in the body.

A heart attack occurs when blood flow to the heart is blocked, and this may cause chest pain. Seeking immediate medical care can result in faster treatment and saving lives. Heart attack can be one of the reasons for cardiac arrest.

Red Cross CPR, AED and First Aid Training

Another very important aspect of American Heart Month is learning about CPR, AED and First Aid; all of these skills if performed on time in someone with cardiac arrest can help in life-or-death scenarios. The Red Cross has courses for all of these skills, which and can be accessed at redcross.org/takeaclass. The skills only takes a couple hours to learn and can save lives. Courses can be taken for Adult CPR, Child CPR, and more.

Risk Factors for Heart Disease

High blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart disease. Other factors include smoking, having diabetes or high cholesterol, being overweight, and not leading an active lifestyle. Seeing your doctor can help you manage these conditions.

Heart Healthy Tips

Here are some tips to prevent heart disease-

• Stop smoking.
• Eat healthy with less added sugar and fat in your food. This will help you maintain your weight.
• Stay physically active. The American Heart association recommends 2 hours and 30 seconds of moderate intensity exercise, like walking, every week.
• Get enough sleep for 8-9 hours every night.
• Manage your stress level.

Practicing the above habits will protect you against heart disease and will keep you healthy.