CVS – Brilliant Pharma

CVS Cardiovascular Disease

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a general term that describes a disease of the heart or blood vessels.
Blood flow to the heart, brain or body can be reduced because of a:

blood clot (thrombosis)
build-up of fatty deposits inside an artery, leading to the artery hardening and narrowing (atherosclerosis)

Types of CVD

There are four main types of CVD:

coronary heart disease
stroke
peripheral arterial disease
aortic disease

Each type is discussed in more detail below.

Coronary heart disease

Coronary heart disease (CHD) occurs when your heart muscle’s blood supply is blocked or interrupted by a build-up of fatty substances (atheroma) in the coronary arteries. The coronary arteries are the major blood vessels that supply your heart with blood. If your coronary arteries become narrow due to a build-up of atheroma, the blood supply to your heart muscle will be restricted. This can cause angina (chest pains). If a coronary artery becomes completely blocked, it can cause a heart attack. This is a medical emergency.

Stroke

A stroke is a serious medical condition that occurs when the blood supply to the brain is disturbed.
Like all organs, your brain needs a constant supply of oxygen and nutrients to function properly. This is provided by the blood, so if your blood flow is restricted or stopped, brain cells will begin to die. This can lead to brain damage and possibly death.
Therefore, a stroke is a medical emergency and prompt treatment is essential. The sooner a person receives treatment, the less damage is likely to occur.
The main stroke symptoms can be remembered with the word FAST which stands for:

Face – the face may have drooped on one side, the person may not be able to smile or their mouth or eye may have drooped
Arms – the person with suspected stroke may not be able to lift their arm and keep it raised due to weakness or numbness
Speech – the person’s speech may be slurred or garbled, or they may not be able to talk at all despite appearing to be awake.

Peripheral arterial disease

Peripheral arterial disease, also known as peripheral vascular disease, occurs when there is a blockage in the arteries to your limbs (usually your legs). The most common symptom of peripheral arterial disease is pain in your legs when walking. This is usually in one or both of your thighs, hips or calves. The pain can feel like cramp, a dull pain or a sensation of heaviness in the muscles of your legs. It usually comes and goes and gets worse during exercise that uses your legs, such as walking or climbing stairs.

Aortic disease

The aorta is the largest blood vessel in the body. It carries blood from your heart to the rest of your body. The most common type of aortic disease is aortic aneurysm, which is where the wall of the aorta becomes weakened and bulges outwards. You will usually experience pain in your chest, back or abdomen (tummy).

Preventing CVD

Most deaths caused by cardiovascular disease are premature and could easily be prevented by making lifestyle changes, such as eating a healthy diet and stopping smoking. It is estimated that CVD is responsible for around 1 in 3 premature deaths in men and 1 in 5 premature deaths in women.

Risk factors of cardiovascular disease

Many risk factors of cardiovascular disease (CVD) are linked. This means that if you have one of the risk factors you are also likely to have others.

High blood pressure (hypertension)

High blood pressure is a key risk factor for CVD. Poorly controlled high blood pressure can damage artery walls and increase the risk of developing a blood clot.

Smoking (or other tobacco use)

The toxins in tobacco can damage and narrow coronary arteries, making them more vulnerable to coronary heart disease.

High blood cholesterol

High blood cholesterol can cause arteries to narrow and increase the risk of developing a blood clot.

Diabetes

The high blood glucose (sugar) levels associated with type 1 diabetes or type 2 diabetes can damage the arteries. Many people with type 2 diabetes have other risk factors such as being overweight or obese.

Poor diet

A high fat diet can speed up the formation of fatty deposits inside arteries, leading to both high blood cholesterol levels and high blood pressure.

Lack of exercise

People who don’t exercise regularly usually have higher cholesterol, higher blood pressure and higher stress levels. They are also more likely to be overweight, another risk factor of CVD.

Being overweight

Being overweight or obese increases the risk of developing diabetes and high blood pressure. Both of which are risk factors of CVD.

Excessive alcohol consumption

Excessive alcohol consumption can increase both cholesterol levels and blood pressure.

Stress

Stress can increase blood pressure and the hormones associated with stress are thought to also increase blood glucose levels.

Family history

People with a family history of CVD are more likely to develop it.

Ethnicity

Afro-Caribbean and South Asian communities are at higher risk of CVD.

Preventing cardiovascular disease in adults

Most risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) are linked. This means that if you have one risk factor you’ll probably also have others.
An example of linked risks is that obese people are found to be more likely to have diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure.
This means that to significantly reduce your risk of developing CVD, you need to look at your lifestyle as a whole.
In particular, you need to consider:

your diet
your weight
the amount of alcohol you drink
the amount of exercise and physical activity you do
whether you need to stop smoking

Your diet

For a healthy heart, a low fat, high fibre diet that includes whole grains and plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables (at least 5 portions a day) is recommended.
Your diet should include no more than 6g (0.2oz or one teaspoon) of salt a day, as too much salt will increase your blood pressure. This amount is contained in the everyday food and drinks you consume so avoid seasoning or cooking with added salt. It’s also a good idea to limit the amount of salty foods you eat, such as ready-made meals and canned or tinned food.
Avoid eating foods high in saturated fat, as they will increase your cholesterol level. This includes:

meat pies
sausages and fatty cuts of meat
butter and ghee (a type of butter often used in Indian cooking)
lard
cream
hard cheese
cakes and biscuits
foods that contain coconut or palm oil

Exercise and weight management

If you’re overweight or obese, you can lose weight using a combination of regular exercise and a calorie-controlled diet.
The recommendation for adults is 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise every day, at least 5 days a week. Cycling or brisk walking are examples of moderate intensity exercise.
Other activities you could incorporate into your exercise programme include:

swimming
running
hill walking

If you find it difficult to do 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise each week, start at a level you feel comfortable with. Break it down into 10 minute chunks throughout the day.