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Most heart attacks are the result of coronary heart disease, a condition that clogs coronary arteries with fatty, calcified plaques. In the early 1980s, researchers confirmed that the immediate cause of nearly all heart attacks is not the obstructive plaque itself. Instead, it's the sudden formation of a blood clot on top of plaque that cuts off blood flow in an already narrowed blood vessel.
The step-by-step process that leads to heart attack is not fully understood. Major risk factors, though, are well-known, and some can be controlled. Of these, the main ones are high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity, smoking, diabetes and a sedentary lifestyle. Stress may also raise the risk, and exertion and excitement can act as triggers for an attack. Another important risk factor is family history. A family history of heart disease can increase the risk in both men and women at earlier ages.
In a previous article in this journal (“What Causes Heart Attacks,” Fall 2007), I presented the case that the spectrum of heart disease, which includes angina, unstable angina, and myocardial infarction (heart attack), is better understood from the perspective of events happening in the myocardium (heart) as opposed to events happening in the coronary arteries (the arteries that supply the heart).
As we all know, the conventional view holds that the central event of heart disease occurs in the arteries, with the buildup of blockage called plaque.
In this follow-up article I will go into more detail about the conventional theory and why it is largely misleading; then I will describe the precise and well documented events that do lead to MIs (myocardial infarctions or heart attacks).
This understanding is crucial since during the last fifty years, the pursuit of the coronary artery theory has cost this nation billions of dollars in unnecessary …
heart attack is a medical emergency. It must be quickly addressed by conventional medicine. At this point, alternative medicine cannot compete with standard drug therapy and surgical treatments. Alternative medicine may at other times, though, make valuable contributions to heart attack prevention and recovery.
Please Read this Article at Articles.Mercola.com
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