BOISE — February is heart health month and as I have grown older, (56 now... jeesh!) I've noticed pains and difficulty in my chest that I just never noticed before. So, I wanted to talk to a doctor about the little signs that might indicate a bigger issue. What I learned was eyeopening and it was a conversation that led me to call my doctor ... just in case.
- Heart disease is the number one killer in the US
- Doctors have a variety of tests to determine your risk and whether your heart has suffered any trauma
- consistent exercise is vital to heart health. Just 30 minutes a day can make a huge difference
- eating right, limiting stress, getting proper sleep are also keys to heart health
(Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)
It’s February and that means it’s time to have a heart to heart…. about the heart. It's heart month and the older you get, typical aches or pains could be more serious than you think.
“Pain radiating to your neck, radiating down your arm, those are the easy ones. Most people know those things. It’s the less common ones we’re worried about.” says cardiac specialist Dr. Dan Noonan.
Dr. Noonan says there’s lots of people who’ve had minor heart attacks and didn’t even know it. What we think might be a chest cramp or indigestion could be a warning sign.
“Isn’t that just growing old?" I asked.
"No and unfortunately that's a fault. Sometimes it may be. Sometimes it might be just aches and pains, but I think the thing we have to remember at the end of the day is that cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of morbidity and mortality not just in the United State, but worldwide.“ replied Noonan.
And in case you're wondering if a doctor can tell after the fact if you've had a minor heart attack, they can.
"So if one part of the heart has better blood flow than the other, we can look at that difference and say hmmm there’s either something that has happened or something that could potentially happen." said Noonan.
