The stereotype of a heart attack or heart disease victim for many years was basic -- type A driven businessman. Does that stereotype still hold?"Surprisingly, no,” said cardiopulmonary nurse, Jojo Larin. “And you will find that most people think it is a bigger problem in men but it's really not. Women are affected more, per the American Heart Association, the statistic was 267,000 women die each year of heart disease."
The reason why many of those women die is because their symptoms are not as severe as those men may suffer and they present differently.
"Their symptoms are usually associated with neck pain, shoulder pain, abdominal pain, maybe a shortness of breath, maybe some flu-like symptoms, maybe some unusual fatigue so when they present to the ER, sometimes it's a little too late and they've lost some heart tissue,” said Larin.
She says there are some basic steps to take to avoid heart disease and heart attack.
"Exercise, first and foremost is very important. Eat right. Eat a diet low in saturated fat, low cholesterol, low salt. Throw away the shoyu. Throw away the salt shakers. Most people don't want to do that,” said Larin.
In addition, Nurse Larin says it's important to have your blood pressure and cholesterol checked on a regular basis. Most importantly is to stop smoking. Doctors say it's the single most important thing anyone can do to prevent the onset of heart disease.
In regards to exercise, Larin says, “Any small steps. Baby steps at first if you have to and then work up to a goal of four times a week, thirty minutes at a time. Do a bunch of different things, go hiking, walk around the block, walk around the mall, use stairs at work instead of using the elevator."
