People are often concerned about heart disease, but many people are unaware of the actual causes of heart disease. There are several major reasons why someone would develop a heart condition. Heart disease is the number one killer of people, so it’s important to know the facts about it.
Genetics play a main role in the development of heart disease. It’s an unfair fact of life that some people eat what they want, smoke, and even avoid physical activity at all costs but don’t have any kind of heart problem.
But most people are not so lucky. The reason for these differences is heredity. If you have a family history of heart disease, you’re more likely to develop heart disease – especially if you don’t lead a healthy lifestyle.
The most common cause of heart disease is coronary artery disease. This is a narrowing or even a blockage of the blood vessels. This puts strain on the heart and can even cause the heart to be cut off from any blood supply. When this happens to the blood vessels in the heart, a heart attack results.
Trouble with the valves of your heart is another source of heart disease. Your heart has valves inside it that help to keep blood flowing in one direction and prevents blood from flowing back to another chamber. If you have a weakening or damage to this part of the heart, you may end up having to deal with heart disease.
Diabetes is another major contributor to heart disease in adults. People who have type 2 diabetes have a higher risk of developing heart disease. Usually by the time someone has been diagnosed with this illness, he or she already has atherosclerosis.
That means that he or she will be more likely to have heart disease and has an increased risk of heart attack. In fact, diabetics have twice the risk of heart problems as people who don’t have blood sugar problems.
Some people also suffer from congenital heart defects. These are heart defects that they are born with. This can include heart murmurs or other deformations of the structures of the heart.
These are often treated surgically when the person is a very young child. However, they may require a lifetime of monitoring and healthy lifestyle habits to prevent problems from worsening.
In addition to the above problems, people also have heart trouble as a result of specific illnesses. For example, rheumatic fever causes the build up of scar tissue in the heart. Endocarditis can also be caused by bacterial infections in the heart.
