Good morning, you guys.
It's time for your health
check and as you know it
is heart Health Month.
February heart disease is still the
number one killer of Americans and you
may not think you fall into this category.
You may not think that this happens
to people like you until it
really hits home on December 7th.
My cousin had a heart attack and
died while walking to his mailbox.
He was 67 years old.
He'd occasionally go running,
but he did have high blood pressure.
He worked really hard and he
dealt with a lot of stress.
He had symptoms that I didn't
know about until other people
later described them to me.
So this morning I'd like to share
with you 9 symptoms that can indicate
that your heart is in distress.
To keep it simple,
let's cluster these nine symptoms
into three categories. First group.
Let's say you have pain, pressure,
or discomfort in your chest, arm,
jaw, or throat during daily activity,
but then it goes away with rest.
Then it happens again when you climb stairs,
vanishes, then comes back when you vacuum.
This pattern is worrisome. Dr.
Darryl Kowalski with medical City McKinney
says it could indicate the heart may
not be getting proper blood supply.
A lot of people start developing
those symptoms when they're on a
walk with their dog, or if their dog
comes off the leash and runs away,
and then they suddenly get those symptoms.
They say, wow, you know,
so it's not always some of these patients
who don't exercise or even at higher risk,
so you have to be careful. Doctor
Kowalski says sure jaw pain
and throat discomfort can be
caused by dental problems,
but if it comes and goes with exertion,
it's worth looking into
next group of symptoms.
Indigestion, heartburn,
and gastrointestinal distress.
Can all be red flags that
something is wrong with your heart.
I've seen patients who come in
with these symptoms and have
had true cardiac event for
women who generally develop heart
disease a decade later than men.
It's not always clear cut.
We tend to blame symptoms on food choices,
overeating, menstruation,
menopause when really doctor Kowalski
says if you're having these symptoms
often and fall into a high risk category,
you need further testing to rule
out heart problems for sure.
OK, final category of symptoms is a big one.
Extreme fatigue, shortness of breath,
nausha, dizziness, or feeling lightheaded.
Everybody gets dizzy every once in a while,
as you know, but it can be serious
and I've had recently had cases
where that has been the case.
I know the symptoms sound vague
and sometimes could be linked to
something mild outside of the heart,
but Doctor Kowalski says the smart
thing to do is monitor the symptoms
overtime just to be certain.
Look, we live in a time
when wearable technology.
Can give us real time recordings
of what's happening in our body.
We can monitor these patients for a
month with a monitor that they can
wear shower with and determine whether
this event or let's say, a dizziness.
Lightheadedness was cardiac related.
Now, if any of those symptoms
sound familiar to you and you're
at high risk for heart disease,
I want you to call a doctor today, please?
OK, let's go over who's
high risk one more time.
Anyone with type 2 diabetes,
high blood pressure, kidney disease,
or in this one is important.
A family history of heart attack or stroke,
Kara and Mark,
your doctor will likely order some
tests for you to check and see
whether you have any blockages or
problems with your blood supply.
More often than not,
they can fix the problem.
Right, trust me it is better
to have Peace of Mind now
than to wonder what if later
Karen I were talking about it
this morning about how you know,
sometimes you avoid going to the doctor,
especially as men,
because you think it's not a big deal.
But look at the end of the day,
an hour and whatever your copay
is could make a huge difference
in your life expectancy and how
that impacts your loved ones.
Yeah, I know you remember you
telling me after your cousin had
died that you were asking questions
and you were like Oh my gosh
there were so many warning signs,
but if you weren't
really in tune to them. You wouldn't know.
Yeah, you have to be in tune and you
also have to like put your ego aside
like you can't say well I have to work
and then I have to do this for the
kids and I have to do that for what?
Whomever? Because you're not going to
be around to do that much longer if you
don't take care of yourself first, so.