The
Menace of Heart Disease
Agwu Justina
The rate at
which people are dying from heart disease in
A healthy
heart works in an organized pattern, triggered by electrical signals. The heart
is a fist-sized mass of muscle that pumps blood first through the lungs to pick
up oxygen, then on through the rest of the body to deliver that oxygen to the
body's cells.
What can cause a heart to malfunction?
Any thing that can poison
the heart; mercury from dental amalgams, fish and paint; cadmium from exhaust, cigarette
smoke, shellfish, incinerator pollution, and industrial pollution in air, food
and water. We cannot escape heavy metals
or other environmental pollutants.
According to researches, homocysteine is an amino acid that occurs
naturally in your body as it processes protein. When there is too much homocysteine in
the blood, arteries are damaged and plaques form. The result is
arteriosclerosis and heart disease. This happens when we don’t get enough of
certain vitamins—namely B6, B12, and folic acid. These B vitamins are
missing in our diets because processing and refining foods (think white flour,
sugar, and canning) destroys these sensitive vitamins. Other
factors, of course, can increase homocysteine in our blood, including our
genetic background, certain drugs, aging, hormonal changes such as menopause,
smoking, how little we exercise, diabetes, and high blood pressure.
How do you know?
One of the common
symptoms of heart disease is chest pain. When a part of the heart muscle
(myocardium) is not getting enough blood (usually due to a blockage in one of
the coronary arteries), chest pain can result. Chest pain from heart disease
usually feels like a tightness, pressure or squeezing sensation. It is usually
located in the center of the chest but can also be located off to the side. Usually
it is brought on by exertion and relieved by rest.
Angina is chest pain. Angina is like a squeezing pain or a pressing feeling in
the chest. This pain may come from blockages in the arteries that supply blood
to the heart. This condition is called coronary artery disease (sometimes
simply called "heart disease."). Angina can bother us when we are
doing activities like walking, climbing stairs, exercising or cleaning. The
pain of angina may make us sweat or make it hard to catch your breath. You may
feel pain in your arm or neck as well as in your chest. If the pain is mild, it
may go away after a minute or so of rest. If the pain is more severe, we have
to seek expert help.
Some people have angina
that comes on with a certain level of activity and goes away easily. They may
have this kind of angina for a long time. This is called stable angina.
When the pattern of angina
changes a lot, it's called unstable angina. This is a sign of danger. Angina in
someone who hasn't had it before, more episodes of angina with less exertion,
and angina that comes on while you're resting are also danger signs.
Unstable angina may be the
first sign of a heart attack. If you get angina, you should call your doctor or
go to the nearest emergency room right away. Another sign of danger is chest
pain that doesn't go away with rest or after taking medicine. If you have chest
pain that doesn't go away, go to the emergency room right away.
Risk Factors for Coronary Artery Disease
• high
cholesterol
• high blood pressure
• obesity
• inactive lifestyle
• smoking
• diabetes
• family history of heart disease
Common Signs of a heart attack
• Chest pain or discomfort
that ranges from mild to severe; excruciating pain, often with profuse
sweating.
• Unexplained fatigue/illness (especially in the elderly)
• Unexplained shortness of breath
• Unexplained new stomach fullness
• Nagging indigestion or heartburn
• Nausea and vomiting
• Unexplained jaw, neck, back or arm discomfort
• Tingling sensation or pain radiating to shoulder, arm, neck or jaw
• Treatment: Call 911 or go immediately to the nearest emergency room,
preferably by ambulance. Getting medical treatment within the first few hours
of a heart attack can result in better outcomes.
Who is at Risk?
Virtually, all age group are prone to having this disease of heart that
manifest in various forms. However, as
with the case with many illnesses, heart disease in women can be complicated by
other factors. The two most important are diabetes and pregnancy
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CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE: THE FATE
OF EVERY THIRD WOMAN |
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How can this be prevented?
A change in
lifestyle with a sensible diet can actually prevent the deadly diseases to a
very large extent. A research has it that sweat is the only proven mechanism
that removes heavy metals, PCBs, pesticides, and other foreign chemicals from
the body. Nothing else does. The far infrared technology is the
only one that allows sweat depuration of at xenobiotics at low, safe
temperatures, even tolerated by heart patients. That is why the far
infrared sauna has been able to accomplish what nothing else in medicine can in
terms of reversing the true underlying causes of disease.
Foods rich in fresh fruits and vegetables as well as vitamins such as B-12, B-6 & Folic Acid can boost our state of health.
Task
As a public
policy analyst you are to do an oral presentation for ten minutes on the analyzing the social problem of chemical
pollutants in our environment. You will use the PPA to complete your
presentation. You will access expert opinion on ways in which each of the diseases
of heart listed above such as, CHF, stroke, heart murmur, can be managed and
controlled. You will use the six steps of the public policy analyst to organize
your research. Your research can find
ways for future generations to prevent heart disease by improving the
environment and cleaning the pollutants from our environment.
Process:
You are to
use Internet resources to assist you in your research work. The links listed below as well as “google"
and Yahoo” search engines may assist you.
You will use the public policy steps in writing your oral report. The steps include: You should also use the
information given above in this web quest as resource material.
- Define the
problem
- Gather evidence
- Identify
causes
- Evaluate a
policy
- Develop
solutions
- Select best
solution
Complete the worksheets on
each of the steps and answer the questions on the heart disease. You will use
these worksheets to complete your report.
Links:
http://www.health-nexus.com/heart_murmur1.htm
http://www.howstuffworks.com/heart-diagnosis.htm
http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/text2-11-2004-50423.asp
http://www.miracleheatsaunas.com/sauna_heart_benefits.cfm
http://www.sublingualb12.com/cardiovascular-disease.asp?GTSE=goto>KW=heart+disease
http://www.heartpoint.com/valvularheartdxmore.html
GENERAL WEB SITES
Science Standards:
S2f: Student
produces evidence that shows the behavioral response of organisms to their
environment.
S5e:
Student identifies problems; proposes, and implement solutions.
S8d: Students shows scientific competence in
undertaking secondary research.
English
Language Arts
Standard 2: Language for Literary Response and
Expression
Students will read and listen to
oral, written, and electronically produced texts and performances from American
and world literature; relate texts and performances to their own lives; and
develop an understanding of the diverse social, historical, and cultural
dimensions the texts and performances represent. As speakers and writers,
students will use oral and written language that follows the accepted
conventions of the English language for self-expression and artistic creation.
Standard 4: Language for Social Interaction
Students will listen, speak, read,
and write for social interaction. Students will use oral and written language
that follows the accepted conventions of the English language for effective
social communication with a wide variety of people. As readers and listeners,
they will use the social communications of others to enrich their understanding
of people and their views.
Rubric:
4,3,2,1 Rubrics
4
-contributed outstanding effort to work that demonstrates outstanding
language skills
3
-report is compelling and moves the reader through the text -, and
enhance the understanding of report -goes beyond all
requirements-contributed good effort to work or project -shows good language
skills
2
-report is interesting and keeps reader's attention; illustrations
mostly accurate and appropriate -satisfies all requirements-contributed fair
effort to work or project -shows fair language skills
1
-report is written clearly, using good sentence structure; neatly handwritten
-illustrations somewhat accurate and appropriate -satisfies some requirements.
Conclusion:
There is no doubt that a scientific research
of this magnitude will expand the students’ repertoire of learning, enhances
their interest in looking inward in order to manage and take care of their own
health.
