Is your heart showing those weak signs?
By siliconindia   |   Friday, 22 July 2011, 00:37 IST
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Is your heart showing those weak signs?
Bangalore: In this generation, where time means money and the fast pace of life, people do not stop for a minute to think about how their stress filled life is affecting their body. By putting off their visit to the doctor or joining a gym, they seem to be ignoring what their body's telling. People usually ignore symptoms of heart related diseases wherein most of the warnings are mistaken for heart burns, gastritis or indigestion. Here are a few symptoms indicating an unhealthy heart and an immediate visit to the doctor. Shortness of breath -The most common sign of heart disease that need to be looked at immediately. Dyspnea, a medical term for shortness of breath maybe the earliest symptoms of cardiac or pulmonary (lung) diseases. It is normal for an individual to feel short of breath after heavy exertion such as running or climbing up a flight of stairs. It is irregular to experience it after walking a few steps, routine walking or while at rest. Chest pain (also medically known as angina) : One of the main symptoms of heart diseases. Any uneasiness or soreness, pressure, choking, numbness, squeezing in the neck, chest or upper abdomen is associated to heart diseases. The pain may fade away when you have rest or take angina medication. It may feel like indigestion. Angina does not produce any permanent damage to the heart muscle nor is it a heart attack, but if you have angina, your risk factor to a heart attack increases. Palpitations : Another common trait of cardiovascular disease is experiencing palpitations. Usually, people remain unaware of their heart beat. Palpitation is the odd attentiveness to one's heart beat and is often described as 'skips' in heartbeats, bird-like fluttering, flip-flopping, thumping or pounding in the neck or chest region. Mostly occurring during stressed or anxious situations, palpitations may not be extremely dangerous though on some occasions, it may be a symptom of heart arrhythmia. Light headedness/fainting or dizziness (also known as Syncope) : An unexpected and momentary loss of consciousness or dizziness is another common indication that an individual suffering from a heart disease complains about. Though fainting is a common warning of kidney, liver, viral illnesses, blood disorders, dehydration, diabetes, and gastrointestinal disturbances, neurological, metabolic, vasomotor and cardiac, only Cardiac Syncope usually leads to sudden death. Fatigue, lethargy or Somnolence (daytime sleep) : Though fatigue and lethargy are common symptoms of disorders of various organs, Somnolence is often caused by nocturnal sleep disorders. Fatigue and lethargy- an inability to continue functioning at one's normal level-is usually a recent onset. This is caused to the weakening of the heart muscle and inability to pump blood and oxygen for the body to function normally. Other bodily causes of exhaustion include anemia and other main chronic diseases, including hypothyroidism, diabetes mellitus, and lung disease. Other symptoms that one must not overlook include pain, numbness, weakness or coldness in limbs; swelling of ankles, feet and legs. Pale or bluish gray skin colour, also known as Cyanosis is also referred to as a symptom of a person suffering from a heart disease. Keep yourself safe from heart diseases by: Regularly checking blood pressure levels, Don't smoke, Get cholesterol and triglyceride levels tested, Get tested for diabetes, Maintain a healthy weight and Find healthy ways to deal with stress