Our favorite pets, cats and dogs, also suffer heart disease just like we do. Luckily, they don't develop fatty lesions in the blood vesicles of their heart which means they do not get heart attacks. Like all mammals, like cats and dogs, have a four-chambered heart consisting of a left and right atrium and a left and right ventricle. The left and right atria receive blood from the lungs and body; whereas the left ventricle is responsible for pumping blood throughout the body while the right ventricle pumps the blood to the lungs for oxygen. Valves situated between the atria, ventricles, and the two vessels leading to the heart, prevent the blood from flowing in the right direction.
The common symptoms of dog and cat disease may include weakness, poor appetite, difficulty breathing, coughing, enlarged abdomen, pale bluish gums, rapid or weak heart rate, and heart murmurs. Heart murmurs because of heart disease are different from heart murmurs due to thin blood viscosity or anemia. Some pets with the disease develop obvious venous pulse and may have an abnormal pulse rhythm. As the circulatory system fails, the kidneys and liver flood with blood and work inefficiently. But, cats most commonly develop one of the three different types of such disease such as dialated cardiomyopathy (DCM), restrictive cardiomyopathy (RCM), and hypertrophy cardiomyopathy (HCM).
Cat heart disease usually involves the entire heart muscle and not just the valves. Sadly, we are usually unaware of it until the heart is well on its way to failing. All the forms have similar signs and can't be used to separate one form of heart disease from another. Normally, the only signs are weight loss and difficulty breathing, and cats with these forms of disease will not survive for long.
The most common cause cat heart disease is a deficiency in the amino acid, taurine. Taurine deficiency can cause the muscles of the heart to loose their strength, this is called Dialated Cardiomyopathy. In addition, it can also cause degeneration of the retinas of the eye. Cats with such disease are weak and lost weight; they have difficulty breathing and may gasp for air. But, one common symptom is the clots that form within the heart and break loose blocking the flow of blood to the rear legs. If your cat has this condition, you may notice that they seem paralyzed.
RCM is a form similar to HCM and is usually seen in older cats. It reveals itself in gradually poorer health function with reduced ability to pump. RCM leads to an accumulation of blood in the heart and an enlargement of the atrium. So far, the most common type is the HCM, or hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. HCM is a heart disorder in which the left wall of the heart grows and thickens.
A veterinarian can treat your cat for the symptoms and suffering which has been cause by HCH. The vet will treat the actual cat heart disease by giving your cat beta-blockers to slow down the heart beat. Plus, it also gives the blood enough time to fill the heart chamber and increase the pumping action. If your cat is diagnosed earlier and treated, it can survive for a quite long time.
Heart disease has become the number one cause of premature death in the United States and many other parts of the world. Heart disease is also a debilitating malady that disables many people. Heart disease treatment methods are thus vital for improving the quality of life of people suffering from these illnesses. The number one killer in America today is a disease that can often be prevented.
According to the American Heart Association, heart disease is the nation's single leading cause of death for both men and women. At least 58.8 million people in this country suffer from some form of heart disease. It involves the blocking, either partial or total, of the arteries that lead to the human heart. But, you can help to protect yourself from heart disease by following these simple health tips:
Maintain a healthy weight
As you put on weight in adulthood, you gain mostly fatty tissue. This excess weight can lead to conditions that increase your chances of heart disease ? high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.
How do you know if your weight is healthy? One way is to calculate your body mass index (BMI), which considers your height and weight in determining whether you have a healthy or unhealthy percentage of body fat.
BMI numbers 25 and higher are associated with higher blood fats, higher blood pressure, and an increased risk of heart disease and stroke.
Exercise
Exercise has an effect on every other risk factor for heart disease except smoking. When you exercise regularly, your heart, which is muscle, gets stronger. Stronger hearts require fewer beats to pump blood and oxygen throughout your body. Your blood pressure can be reduced as you become more physically fit. And if you burn more calories than you eat, you'll lose body fat and weight, too.
Exercise also affects the blood itself, increasing circulation, producing more HDL (the "good" cholesterol) lowering blood sugar levels, helping prevent the formation of harmful blood clots and lowering the amount of adrenaline that your body needs.
Best of all, exercise makes you feel better. Walking is one of the best ways to control stress and prevent depression ? for heart patients and everyone else, too.
Lose weight if you're overweight. Your doctor can advise you about the best ways to lose weight.
Eat right. Lower or eliminate your intake of red meat and fats in your diet. This includes fatty foods such as whole milk, dairy products, potato chips, rich gravies, and the like. These foods can and do raise your bad cholesterol level. Switch to skim milk, eat lean meats, and just do without the chips and the other junk foods that you just do not need for good health. Put more fresh vegetables and fresh fruit into your daily diet. Eat plenty of fiber which has been shown to help in reducing the bad blood cholesterol level.
Tobacco Smoke
A smoker's risk of heart attack is more than twice that of nonsmokers. The nicotine and carbon monoxide in tobacco smoke reduce the amount of oxygen in the blood. They also damage blood vessel walls and may trigger the formation of blood clots. Smoking also reduces "good" cholesterol, which promotes heart disease. If you do smoke, get help to quit now! There are many effective programs to help you quit. Once you stop smoking your risk of heart disease starts to drop and over time will be about the same as if you'd never smoked.
Niacin is the closest thing available to a perfect treatment that corrects most causes of coronary heart disease. Niacin blocks the release of fatty acids from fat cells. Niacin plays a critical role in energy production, gene expression, and hormone synthesis. You cannot live without it. Niacin also tends to shift LDL particle distribution to larger particle size and improve HDL functioning. The intake of 3 grams Niacin for as little as two weeks can reduce serum cholesterol by 26 percent.
Pectin limits the amount of cholesterol the body can absorb. High pectin count in apples may be why "One a day keeps the doctor away".
Both Joann Cheong & Fred are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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