To have a healthier heart, we often don't need to change much in our lives. A cardiologist explains which heart problems are especially dangerous for women and why erectile dysfunction can be a warning sign for men.
“The peculiarity of cardiovascular diseases is that they usually take a relatively long time to resolve time before they lead to problems or, in the worst case, death,” says cardiologist Oleg Varfolomeev specifically for MedicForum.
However, there are currently well-studied risk factors.
If you know the most important ones for your heart health, you can target them specifically and reduce your personal risk of a heart attack:
- Blood pressure: Because high Blood pressure is a very common cause of cardiovascular disease.
“The earlier treatment begins, the easier it is to avoid damage to the cardiovascular system.”
- Atherogenic lipoproteins, namely certain forms cholesterol, namely LDL cholesterol:if the value is consistently too high, it can promote the formation of deposits in the blood vessels (plaques). It also makes sense to pay attention to lipoprotein.
- Genetic factors: it is important to know your family history, the cardiologist emphasizes. If there is anyone here who has had a heart attack at an early age, suffered a stroke, or has diabetes, you should pay attention to this.
- Diabetes:elevated blood sugar and metabolic changes associated with diabetes cause long-term damage to blood vessels.
“These are all risk factors that we can now do a good job of controlling. The sooner you take countermeasures, the better.”
Why erectile dysfunction is a warning sign
Risk factors that contribute to erectile dysfunction may also be risk factors for heart attack. What are they?
“Erectile dysfunction is often associated with vascular function in this area,” explains the cardiologist.
Accordingly, risk factors that damage the coronary arteries can also cause problems in men.
The heart professor cites well-known threats to the heart: high blood pressure, high LDL cholesterol, diabetes, as well as lifestyle factors such as smoking, too little exercise and sleep, or an unhealthy diet. Erectile dysfunction and heart attacks are not causally related, but often have common causes.
“Men experiencing erectile dysfunction should definitely get their cardiovascular risk factors checked. Therefore, you should check your risk of cardiovascular disease not only with a urologist, but also, for example, with your family doctor or cardiologist,” advises the doctor.
Even small changes can significantly reduce the risk of a heart attack
In the vast majority of cases, the cause of a heart attack is atherosclerosis of the coronary arteries. Their creation is a process that lasts many years, even decades. An expert reports that a third of people aged 30 to 40 already have plaque in their blood vessels.
“This means that if you have risk factors and recognize them early, even a small change is enough to reduce your lifetime risk of a heart attack or coronary artery disease by up to 90 percent—that's what genetic research suggests.”
This small change is again for LDL cholesterol
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Studies have shown that to achieve such a strong effect, it is necessary tomaintain the value at or below 100 milligrams per deciliter of blood.
“Those who check their blood pressure and LDL cholesterol levels early have very low risk of heart attack.”
To keep these values under control, small changes such as appropriate workouts or dietary changes are often sufficient – with an emphasis on whole grain foods rich in fibre, adequate amounts of potassium, plenty of unsaturated fatty acids and polyphenols such as those from fish. vegetables and fruits.
Why erectile dysfunction is a warning sign
Risk factors that contribute to erectile dysfunction may also be risk factors for heart attack. What are they?
“Erectile dysfunction is often associated with vascular function in this area,” explains the cardiologist.
Accordingly, risk factors that damage the coronary arteries can also cause problems in men.
The heart professor cites well-known threats to the heart: high blood pressure, high LDL cholesterol, diabetes, as well as lifestyle factors such as smoking, too little exercise and sleep, or an unhealthy diet. Erectile dysfunction and heart attacks are not causally related, but often have common causes.
“Men experiencing erectile dysfunction should definitely have their risk factors for heart disease checked. Therefore, you should check the risk of cardiovascular diseases not only with a urologist, but also, for example, with your family doctor or cardiologist,” advises Varfolomeev.
MedicForum previously wrote about the benefits of giving up alcohol.
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Important! Information is provided for reference purposes. Ask a specialist about contraindications and side effects and under no circumstances self-medicate. At the first signs of illness, consult a doctor.