Coronary Heart Disease & Smoking
What is heart disease? Coronary Heart disease is the term used to describe the gradual narrowing of the linings of the coronary arteries which can lead to angina or heart attack.
Coronary Heart Disease is the single most common cause of death in the UK. It is also the single most common cause of death under the age of 65yrs.
Smoking is one of the major risk factors for coronary heart disease (a risk factor is something that increases the chance of getting the dieease). Around 30,000 smokers have fatal heart attacks each year in the UK. The other major risk factors include high blood pressure, cholesterol, inactivity, obesity, diabetes and a strong family history of getting coronary heart disease.
1 in 5 deaths from coronary heart disease is associated with smoking.
The risk of a heart attack is greater if you smoke. In general, people who smoke cigarettes have about twice as great a risk of a heart attack as people who do not. However, the increased risk is particularly large in smokers aged under 50yrs – their heart attack death rates are up to 10 times greater than the rates for a non-smoker of the same age.
The more you smoke and the younger you started, the greater your risk. Every cigarette counts. Smoking just 3 to 6 cigarettes a day doubles your chance of having a heart attack. Stopping smoking is the single most important thing you can do to avoid a heart attack. Its never too late to stop. However, no matter how long youve been smoking and how heavily, its beneficial to stop.
By Mike Buss | Personal Trainer
Source: The British Heart Foundation
Category: Health News
Subscribe
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to receive more just like it.
