Don’t underestimate the “梗”, prevent the “冠” before it happens!

Winter is a high-risk season for heart disease, especially for patients with coronary heart disease, who are prone to myocardial infarction in winter. Therefore, starting from autumn, we should prevent the occurrence of myocardial infarction. Let us learn how to prevent myocardial infarction caused by coronary heart disease!

01One step from coronary heart disease to myocardial infarction

Causes

The energy and oxygen needed for the heart to beat are all provided by the coronary arteries, so the coronary arteries are an important channel for nourishing the myocardium. Coronary heart disease is caused by atherosclerosis of the coronary arteries. Atherosclerotic plaques cause vascular stenosis, resulting in insufficient blood supply to the myocardium.

Disease Process

When the degree of coronary artery stenosis is relatively mild, there are generally no obvious discomfort symptoms.

When the coronary artery lumen narrows beyond a certain degree and the coronary artery blood supply cannot meet the heart's working needs, myocardial ischemia and angina pectoris will occur.

When the lumen of the coronary artery is completely blocked, myocardial infarction occurs. If rescue is not timely, cardiac arrest and sudden death will occur.

Note: Angina pectoris is a very important alarm signal of coronary heart disease!

02Risk factors for myocardial infarction caused by coronary heart disease

(1) Age and gender : The incidence of myocardial infarction in patients with coronary heart disease over 50 years old is significantly higher than that in patients under 50 years old, and the proportion of males is significantly higher than that of females.

(2) Combination with other cardiovascular and metabolic diseases : Hypertension and diabetes are important risk factors for myocardial infarction in patients with coronary heart disease.

(3) Unreasonable dietary structure : Excessive consumption of high-sugar, high-fat, and high-salt foods, and insufficient daily intake of vegetables or fruits, are also one of the main factors that induce myocardial infarction.

(4) Smoking : Compared with non-smokers, smokers are 2 to 3 times more likely to suffer from myocardial infarction.

(5) Drinking : Excessive drinking is also an important cause of myocardial infarction. Some people suffer from myocardial infarction immediately or 1-2 hours after drinking excessively.

(6) Work and life pressure : Regardless of whether one has coronary heart disease or not, working for a long time or staying up late continuously is a common factor that triggers myocardial infarction.

03 Self-diagnosis of symptoms that precede myocardial infarction

(1) Frequent feeling of palpitations, shortness of breath, fatigue, and difficulty breathing during physical activities.

(2) Palpitations and chest pains after a full meal, in the cold, or when watching an exciting movie.

(3) When lying flat or sleeping with a low pillow, you feel suffocated and need to lie down with a high pillow to feel relieved; when you suddenly wake up from a deep sleep or a nightmare, you feel palpitations, chest tightness, and difficulty breathing, and you need to sit up to feel better.

(4) Repeated abnormal heartbeat, either too fast or too slow.

In short, chest tightness, severe chest pain, and difficulty breathing are often important danger signals! Once discovered, you should seek medical attention and get checked as soon as possible.

04 Measures to prevent myocardial infarction in patients with coronary heart disease

In order to prevent myocardial infarction, patients with coronary heart disease should not only recognize risk factors, but also adhere to a healthy lifestyle to eliminate risk factors.

(1) Treatment of related diseases:

Diseases such as the three highs, obesity, diabetes, and coronary atherosclerosis can easily cause blood lipids to deposit in the coronary artery endothelium, thereby forming plaques, leading to stenosis of the lumen, and causing myocardial ischemia; at the same time, such diseases can also damage the vascular endothelium, leading to metabolic disorders, and further inducing myocardial infarction.

Therefore, when the above medical history exists, you should pay special attention, follow the doctor's advice, and seek timely treatment to prevent further deterioration of the condition.

**(2)** Maintain good eating habits:

You can eat more foods that can prevent myocardial infarction, such as deep-sea fish oil, olive oil, fresh vegetables and fruits, etc.

In daily life, it is recommended to eat small meals frequently, and the diet should be as low in salt and light as possible, high in fiber and balanced in nutrition. Avoid spicy and irritating foods, and avoid being too hungry or too full. In particular, the intake of cholesterol should be properly controlled, such as animal offal, especially animal paste, such as crab paste, liver, kidney, etc., which should be properly controlled. Eat more foods rich in unsaturated fatty acids to protect the heart.

The cooking method should also be controlled, using less animal oil and more vegetable oil.

**(3)** Appropriate exercise :

Proper exercise is important for maintaining a healthy weight, lowering blood pressure and preventing heart disease. Exercise suitable for patients with coronary heart disease should meet the following requirements: low intensity, appropriate duration, good self-condition and appropriate ambient temperature.

The amount of exercise should be enough not to speed up your heart rate or cause discomfort.

Traditional low-intensity aerobic exercise such as walking, light yoga, and jogging can help improve cardiopulmonary function. Losing weight and fat can further reduce the risk of coronary atherosclerosis and improve vascular dysfunction. Some traditional Chinese exercises such as Ba Duan Jin and Tai Chi are also good choices. They are not very intense, but are easy to stick to. They can not only improve cardiopulmonary function, but also effectively relieve stress and reduce mental triggers.

Of course, the most important thing is to make adjustments based on the patient’s own situation!

**(4)** Maintain a stable mood :

Negative emotions such as excitement and tension can cause metabolic disorders in the body, such as increased blood pressure and blood sugar, which may induce the occurrence of coronary heart disease. People at high risk of coronary heart disease must pay attention to this.

There are several simple ways to effectively control your emotions, such as taking a few deep breaths , which activates the nerves in your brain that control relaxation. Or try speaking slowly . When you are emotional, simply speaking slowly can keep you rational and not let your anger burn you.

**(5)** Quitting smoking:

Your risk of heart disease will decrease significantly over time after you quit smoking.

**(6)** Regular physical examination:

The most direct and effective way to prevent the disease is to have regular physical examinations. In addition to routine physical examinations , if there are the above-mentioned signs or cardiovascular discomfort, an electrocardiogram can also be performed. The sensitivity of the electrocardiogram is very high. As long as the disease occurs, the electrocardiogram ischemic manifestations can be captured, providing sufficient evidence for diagnosis.

When facing coronary heart disease, we should treat it rationally, prevent and treat it scientifically, stabilize our emotions, and avoid myocardial infarction!

Instructors | Pan Yanxia and Chen Limei

Author | Chen Yuqing, Wu Shan, Guo Xinyuan

Unit|School of Health, Fujian Medical University,

Department of Physical Education, School of Stomatology, School of Basic Medicine

Source: Popular Science Working Group of Home Rehabilitation Committee of Chinese Rehabilitation Medicine Association