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Heart Failure -- Know the Top 10 Signs
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September 16, 2011
By Alison Turner, Contributing Columnist
4. Constant coughing and wheezing. If you cough beyond
your odds of getting something caught in your throat (and
especially if this coughing produces a white or pink-ish mucus)
it probably deserves clinical attention. A weakening heart may
cause fluids to build up in the lungs, The American Heart
Association explains, so that coughing may indicate a weak
heart , not a lost piece of dust.
5. Pulmonary Edema. If coughing or shortness of breath
arising from heart failure is not brought to the attention of a
physician, you may end up with a more serious condition –
pulmonary edema.
Swelling in the lungs happens when abnormal amounts of fluid
build up in your lungs, which is often caused by a weakened
heart pump. The National Heart Blood and Lung Institute
warns that acute pulmonary edema “requires emergency
treatment.”
6. Tiredness and Fatigue. Just as we all get short of
breath sometimes, we all also have days in which we’re just
plain tired.
But if you or a loved one is experiencing unusual, consistent
fatigue, so that carrying groceries, walking, or other daily
activities are difficult, The American Heart Association suggests
that it might be a symptom of heart failure.
Heart failure may cause fatigue because it cannot pump blood
quickly enough to meet the needs of your body’s tissues. To
compensate, blood is diverted away from the less vital organs,
such as muscles in your arms and legs, towards organs of
priority, such as the brain.
7. Lack of Appetite and/or Nausea. A weakened blood
pump means that there will not be enough blood to go around.
Just as this can cause muscle fatigue because vital organs like
the brain and heart are prioritized, so, too, might this cause
problems with digestion. If the digestive system does not
receive an adequate amount of blood it cannot function the
way that we would all like it to.
8. Increased Heart Rate. You almost got hit by a car, you
are about to give a presentation to three hundred people, you
have fallen in love – all of these can make our heart race. But if
you get this sensation during times that seem unexpected or
unusual, The American Heart Association warns that it may be
because you have heart failure, and your heart is trying to
make up for its weak pumping by more pumping.
An increased heart rate, particularly suddenly, is certainly
worth the attention of experts, as indicated by the work of Dr.
Maria Teresa La Rovere with the Rehabilitation Institute of
Montescano in Italy. In 2003, Dr. La Rovere and a dozen other
doctors from various universities and centers in Italy ,
conducted a study on variable heart rate and chronic heart
failure.
Their results are unnerving: short term increased heart rate is a
“powerful predictor of sudden death in patients with [chronic
heart failure].” (Learn what your normal heart rate should be. )
9. Muscle Pain. Your heart pumps nutrients to the muscles
– it follows that if something is wrong with the pump, your
hungry muscles will let you know it.
Andrew Coats and others with the National Heart and Lung
Institute and the Royal Crompton National Heart and Lung
Hospital in London, assure in a 1994 report that “Muscle
fatigue can arise due to alterations in the supply of oxygen to
exercising muscle or to a change in the muscle itself.”
Furthermore, the study proposes that in addition to indicating
potential heart failure, specific treatments to the muscles of
affected patients “may help in the management of chronic heart
failure.”
10. Anemia. You have anemia if your body does not
produce enough red blood cells, which are responsible for
bringing oxygen to your body’s tissues.
In 2001, Dr. Tamara Horwich from the University of California
in Los Angeles and a team of other doctors from the University
of California Cardiomyopathy Center and the Cedars-Sinai
Health System in Los Angeles , found that low levels of red
blood cells negatively affect the functioning of the heart and
the capacity to exercise in people with heart failure. They
conclude that treating anemia may be beneficial for conditions
of heart failure.
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Invest a few more minutes to learn how to achieve an ideal
body weight, not just to look good, but to improve your overall
health and lifespan: Foods That Shrink Your Waist / Size 6
Weight Chart / Size 8 Weight Chart / 10 Small Changes to
Make You More Active / Exercise At Home to Lose Weight /
Exercises That Speed Up Your Metabolism/Are Diet Sodas Bad
for Your Health?//Ideal Weight Chart for Children of Different
Heights/ Does Drinking Cold Water Burn Calories?/ Size 6
Weight Chart-How Much Do You Have to Lose to Get Into a
Size 6 / Simple Diet to Lose 10 Pounds/ Does Coffee Help You
Lose Weight?
More Related Links:
Ideal Breakfast to Lose Weight
Diet and Exercise-A Simple Plan
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Foods That Reduce Blood Pressure
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