Heart Health and Prevention of Disease February, 2019

Risk Factors Obesity and Sedentary Lifestyle Tobacco, and Drug use Vaping High Cholesterol and High Blood Pressure Risk Factors

Tobacco Tobacco use in Young adults Death Directly related to Tobacco Nearly 25% of all high school students use a tobacco product. Nearly 9/10 smokers began smoking in high school, meaning that if the habit does not start in high school there is a much higher chance of not using tobacco products later in life. Tobacco Death Directly related to Tobacco Nearly 90,000 people die each year due to cigarette smoke related heart attacks.  The longer your use tobacco product the harder it is to quit.

Tobacco Nicotine Addiction The addictive agent in tobacco is called nicotine. Nicotine causes narrowing of the heart vessels putting strain on the heart muscles.  Nicotine also raises your heartrate, tightens arteries, and causes irregular heartbeats. Tobacco Addiction According to the Surgeon General, the majority of teens who smoke are addicted to nicotine. When trying to quit smoking teens go through the same type of withdrawals that adults go through making it very hard to break the habit. 

Cocaine Increase in Heart Attack factors Cardiac related deaths 30-35% increased stiffing of the aorta 8mmhg higher systolic blood pressure 18% thicker heart vessels These factors stick with the individual long after the immediate effects of the drug have worn off.   Cocaine Cardiac related deaths One study called cocaine "the perfect heart attack drug". Cocaine is the illegal drug that most commonly causes trips to the emergency room in the United States. 

Study One WVU researcher became concerned when physicians began recommending vaping as an alternative to smoking, so he began to study its effects.  While E-cigarettes do not contain "smoke", the vapor still contains nicotine which as we've discussed is related to heart problems.  Vaping Effects This study exposed mice to the same inhalation as vaping and found that just after 5 minutes, blood vessels were already damaged.   The effects of vaping caused the heart to respond more slowly and could cause it to weaken over time. 

Obesity Causal Factors Obesity related deaths Obesity in children causes an increase in the number of actual fat cells that we have. Dieting in adulthood can shrink the size of the fat cell but not actually get rid of the fat cell. This is displayed in weight gain after dramatic weight loss and difficulty losing weight in obese individuals. Obesity Obesity related deaths 110,000 people die each year with obesity related deaths. 1 out of every 3 adult Americans is considered obese. 16-33% of children have childhood obesity.

Obesity High blood pressure High cholesterol Obesity and stress are common causes of High blood pressure. High blood pressure causes the heart to work harder and puts you at more risk for heart problems. Obesity High cholesterol High cholesterol levels can cause a fatty buildup in the arteries increasing the risk for heart disease. Cholesterol can be better managed by diet and exercise. 

Prevention of Heart Disease Don’t use tobacco products Don’t use drugs Exercise Regularly Eat a healthy balanced diet Reduce salt intake Implement stress reduction techniques Prevention of Heart Disease

https://www. texasheart https://www.texasheart.org/heart-health/heart- information-center/topics/heart-disease-risk-factors- for-children-and-teenagers/ https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/consumer- healthcare/illegal-drugs-and-heart-disease https://www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/vapin g-may-stiffen-heart-and-blood-vessels References