Heart disease can happen to anyone
You can’t bounce through life, wolfing down Big Macs, chomping on cigars, pushing the needle further on the scale and ignoring blood pressure and cholesterol numbers and not expect to suffer a heart attack. Former President Bill Clinton is proof that heart disease doesn’t care who you are or what you wish to accomplish. It kills half a million Americans each year. The quadruple bypass that Clinton had in which arteries are taken from other parts of his body and grafted to replace those in his heart that have become clogged is one of the most common operations performed.
Heart disease is more the norm than the exception. But that doesn’t mean it is inevitable.
Clinton is said to have had seven of the nine risk factors: a few of them, his age, gender and family history of heart disease are something he couldn’t control. The others – high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking and carry extra weight – were. The two things Clinton had in his favor were regular exercise and not being a diabetic.
Heart disease often comes as a shock to people who ignore the risk factors. Some even foolishly leave untreated high blood pressure and high cholesterol. And like Clinton, they try to ignore the first warning signs of shortness of breath and chest pain, rationalizing that its just indigestion. Doctors say that Clinton tried this tactic for several months before the pain drove him to the hospital on Friday. Lucky for him, he finally realized he couldn’t keep ignoring his body. The surgery saved his life, and his doctors expect that within a few months he will be running at 100 percent.
Unfortunately far too many Americans continue to ignore their risks and symptoms. Clinton has brought heart disease to the forefront this week. We all might learn something from him. If we haven’t recently had our blood pressure taken or our cholesterol screened it might be wise to make an appointment. Talk to your doctor; assess your risk. Heart disease, of the type that Clinton suffered, develops quietly over many years. There is always an opportunity to stop it, before it stops you.