Kathmandu, January 26: It has been found that people who use tobacco products are three times more likely to suffer a heart attack. It has been found that people who use tobacco products are three times more likely to suffer a heart attack compared to those who do not use tobacco products.
Heart attacks are more common in people who smoke, have diabetes, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure. Among them, smokers are more likely to suffer from heart attacks, said Dr. Chandramani Adhikari, senior cardiologist at the Shahid Ganglal Heart National Center.
With the increase in smoking among young people, heart attacks are also increasing. According to him, those under 50 who smoke are eight times more likely to have a heart attack, those between 50 and 65 are five times more likely to have a heart attack, and those over 65 are three times more likely to have a heart attack. Similarly, women under 49 who smoke are 13 times more likely to have a heart attack than those who do not smoke.
According to the study, 48.6 percent of men and 15.3 percent of women in Nepal smoke cigarettes. Young people smoke more in winter. He says that if you quit smoking, the chances of heart attacks will also be reduced. According to him, within 20 minutes of quitting smoking, a person’s high blood pressure will normalize, breathing will become easier in three days, and the chances of heart attacks will be reduced by half in a year. Similarly, within 15 years of quitting smoking, people will have heart attacks like normal people.
According to a recent study conducted by Gangalal Hospital among 1,660 people who suffered heart attacks in 2018, 11.8 percent of those under the age of 45 were reported to have heart attacks due to smoking. Similarly, 36.6 percent had high blood pressure, 25.3 percent had diabetes, and 7.8 percent had high cholesterol. He said that according to studies conducted at different times, heart attacks have been found to be increasing among people under the age of 45 who smoke cigarettes.
Heart attacks are on the rise in Nepal. Along with smoking, unhealthy diet, high blood pressure, diabetes, and cholesterol are the main causes of heart disease. According to senior cardiologist Dr. Adhikari, heart disease has increased by 60 percent in 2017 compared to 1990. In 1990, 67 people died due to heart attacks, while in 2017, 100 people died.
Shahid Ganglal Heart National Center, Kathmandu, Nepal
Another senior cardiologist, Dr. Anil Bhattarai, said that heart attacks are increasing due to tobacco consumption. “Heart disease is increasing among young people due to tobacco products like cigarettes and hookah,” he said. “Fried and fried meat also increase the risk of heart attacks.” He said that cigarettes and hookah cause blood clotting. “People take hookah for granted. They smoke it because it has a flavor,” he said. “But hookah affects the walls of blood vessels. And heart attacks are possible.”
More than 27,000 people die every year in Nepal due to tobacco use. Smoking and tobacco use by parents increases health risks for children and other family members, including respiratory problems, heart disease, and cancer.
Lifestyle changes can also cause heart attacks
The number of heart attack patients is also increasing in Nepal due to changes in people’s lifestyle. According to Dr. Bhattarai, the number of heart attack patients is increasing due to inactive lifestyle, anxiety, smoking cigarettes, tobacco and khaini at a young age, and eating fatty foods. Doctors have said that the number of heart attack patients is also increasing due to unhealthy eating outside the home.
According to Gangalal Hospital, four people suffer from heart attacks every day. Unhealthy diet, stress, external pollution and genetic factors cause heart attacks due to premature closure of the heart vessels. “People with smoking, diabetes and high blood pressure have thickened heart vessels and are prone to heart attacks. Similarly, cholesterol, lack of physical exercise, increased belly fat, lack of sweating, stress, external pollution and genetic factors cause heart attacks due to premature closure of the heart vessels,” said Dr. Adhikari. “Adopting a healthy lifestyle, not eating too much, eating clean, doing physical exercise, not smoking, and exercising regularly can prevent heart attacks.” Heart diseases can also occur due to congenital heart defects, diseases that start with a sore throat and later damage the heart valves (rheumatic fever).
Life can be saved within 12 hours of a heart attack
Senior cardiologist Dr. Adhikari says that heart attack patients can be saved if they reach the hospital within 12 hours. The center saves heart attack patients by performing angioplasty within 24 hours. He says that the center performs angioplasty on patients within an hour of the heart attack. It costs Rs. 150,000 to perform an angioplasty. The center performs angioplasty free of charge for the poor and helpless who cannot afford that amount.
There are three types of heart attacks in the world: STEMI, ANESTIMA, and UNSTALABLE ANKINA. STEMI (heart attack caused by blockage of the blood vessel in the heart), ANESTIMA (heart attack caused by partial blockage of the blood vessel), and UNSTALABLE ANKINA (heart attack caused by blockage of the heart artery but not the death of the heart muscle). Among the three heart attacks, STEMI is the most common type, which can be saved if the person is taken to the hospital in time. Another type of unstable angina is also seen in Nepal. “A person with a heart attack starts to hurt when the blood supply to the heart is stopped. The chest hurts until the heart muscle dies. If the patient is taken to the hospital while the heart is hurting, it can be saved,” he said. “The patient can be saved by performing primary angioplasty (heart artery opening technique) within 12 hours of arrival and opening the artery.”
Patients who have a heart attack without anesthesia are treated only after some time. Such patients can be saved by surgery after a few days of admission. The center sends patients who have undergone primary angioplasty home from the hospital within four to five days. He says that the center saves 50 heart attack patients by performing primary angioplasty every month. The center has been performing angioplasty since 2006.
More in winter
The center’s director, Dr. Ravi Malla, says that heart attacks are more common in winter. People stay at home in winter, do not exercise, and do not go for morning walks, which can lead to heart problems. Similarly, consuming cigarettes and alcohol during winter also increases the risk of heart attacks. He says that the risk of heart attacks increases due to the constriction of blood vessels in winter, which does not provide easy blood supply to the heart.
How does a heart attack happen?
The heart needs oxygen to function, which is provided by blood. The heart has blood vessels that supply blood to the heart. If the blood supply is blocked, a heart attack occurs. As we age, the blood vessels in the heart narrow and eventually close, causing the heart to stop. Nowadays, heart attacks are more common due to narrowing of the vessels and heart failure.
When the blood supply is cut off, a person’s chest starts to hurt. Most people stay home even when they have chest pain. And they come late. When the blood supply is cut off and the chest pain continues, the heart muscle dies. When the muscle dies, the heart stops working and the person dies.
