Healthy Hearts
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Topics:
- Physical Exercise
- Kinds of Physical Exercise
- Beginner's Guide to Exercise
- Everyday Heart Health Tips
- Healthy Heart Diet
- The Food Pyramid
- Heart Diet Hints
- Keeping the Heart Clean
- Arteriosclerosis
- Diabetes
- Hypertension
- Heart Disease
- Heart Disease and Women
- Heart Attacks
- Invasive Procedures
- Open Heart Surgery
- Artificial Hearts
- Being a Heart Saver
Being a Heart Saver
If you're with someone who seems to be having an attack, act immediately.
- Expect a "denial." It's normal for someone with chest pain to deny that it could be a heart attack. Don't take "no" for an answer. Insist on taking prompt action.
- Call an emergency service or get to the nearest hospital.
- Give CPR if it's necessary and you are properly trained.
Know common warning signs:
- Uncomfortable pressure, fullness, squeezing, or pain in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes, or goes away and comes back again.
- Pain that spreads to the shoulders, neck, or arms.
- Chest discomfort with lightheadedness, fainting, sweating, nausea, or shortness of breath.
- Many heart attacks cause completely different sensations. The signs listed here are common, but by no means are they the only possible indications of a heart attack in progress.
Know what to do:
- Find out which nearby hospitals have 24-hour emergency cardiac care.
- Keep a list of emergency numbers next to the telephone and in your wallet.
- If you have chest discomfort, call an emergency service or have someone drive you to the nearest hospital. Don't drive yourself!
