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Heart disease is the number one cause of death both men and women in the United States. But fortunately, today there are superior treatments for heart attack that can rescue lives and forbid disabilities. Treatment is almost efficient when started within 1 minute of the start of symptoms. Many more people could recover from heart attacks if they got help faster. Of the people who die from heart attacks, about half die within an hour of the first symptoms and before they reach the hospital.
A heart attack occurs when the blood supply to part of the heart muscle itself - the myocardium - is severely reduced or stopped. The reduction or stoppage happens when one or more of the coronary arteries supplying blood to the heart muscle is blocked. This is usually caused by the buildup of plaque (deposits of fat-like substances), a process called atherosclerosis. The plaque can eventually burst, tear or rupture, creating a "snag" where a blood clot forms and blocks the artery. This leads to a heart attack.
If the blood supply is cut off for more than a few minutes, muscle cells suffer permanent injury and die. This can kill or disable someone, depending on how much heart muscle is damaged. The medical term for heart attack is myocardial infarction. A heart attack is also sometimes called a coronary thrombosis or coronary occlusion.
If you or someone that you're with is having a heart attack:
1. Call 9-1-1 within a few minutes.
2. Only take an ambulance to the hospital. Going in a private car can delay treatment.
3. Take a nitroglycerin pill if your doctor has prescribed this type of medicine.
4. Put an aspirin under your tongue. Aspirin reduces blood clotting and can help keep a heart attack from getting worse. But don't delay calling 9-1-1 to take an aspirin.
There are approximately a half million deaths a year from heart attacks, half of which are before they even arrive at the hospital. These heart attacks are generally from a blockage in an artery or vein, like a clot or plaque buildup. Heart attacks are not a sudden occurrence, but are built up over a 4 to 6 hour period of time. Usually you will start to get symptoms before you realize that you could indeed be having a heart attack.Heart attack warning signs, as designed by the AHA or American Heart Association are as follows:1) pressure or a squeezing feeling in the chest or around the heart that last more than a few minutes, many times feeling like "heartburn" or indigestion2) pain that moves to the shoulders, neck, or the arms3) fainting, dizziness, shortness of breath, and nausea. There may be sweating as well or a feeling of lightheadedness. There are different ways to try to prevent heart attacks without prescription drugs. Many take a baby aspirin a day to thin the blood and prevent heart attacks; however they may not understand how Omega 3 fatty acids can help in the prevention of heart attacks. Omega 3 fatty acids do three things specific to heart function, but have other benefits as well.Omega 3 fatty acids are essential to human health but aren't manufactured in the body. This means that one needs to eat or otherwise consume it to use it, usually via supplements or by eating foods rich in Omega 3. Omega 3 fatty acids do many things, such as:1) reduces inflammation2) lowers blood pressure3) slows plaque growthPlaque is a mix of fatty substances that will get into and inflame artery walls. It is this plaque buildup that can also close off an artery or vein just by the buildup. When these clusters of plaque burst they send clots throughout the body. These clots can contribute to heart attacks and strokes.To get Omega 3 fatty acids you can eat salmon or other oily cold water fish twice a week or you can take EPA / DHA supplements (850-1,000 mg a day). EPA / DHA supplements are essential fatty acids: eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid. Both ways are equally effective to get your beneficial affects of Omega 3 fatty acid and will reduce your chances of having a heart attack or stroke.