Topic: Heart disease, heart attacks, cholesterol problems & the lot

[End Product]

Anyone had experience of this? Went to register at a gp today and they did a check up. My heart rate was abnormal and I've been sent to a specialist for some tests. 

My heart is beating at 45 beats a minute,  a normal range is 60 -100. I've just hit 30 and healthy anyone got experience with this?

[The Bournemouth Red]

Anyone had experience of this? Went to register at a gp today and they did a check up. My heart rate was abnormal and I've been sent to a specialist for some tests. 

My heart is beating at 45 beats a minute,  a normal range is 60 -100. I've just hit 30 and healthy anyone got experience with this?

Bradycardia is a relatively common condition and can just be a sign you're very fit.  It's not usually a major issue, your GP is probably sending you for a check-up to err on the side of caution.

[Mutton Geoff]

Had a lot of chest infections in 2017 so ended up having a Xray and went for the results got told no problems with my lungs but i have an enlarged heart, sort of good news bad news and then he did some more tests and i have a BP problem as well, so far so good,  i am on medication each day, but if i didnt get the chest infections i might still not know about my heart and BP conditions

[PhaseOfPlay]

I had a heart scare last year that brought up a condition that is probably congenital/hereditary that frightened the shite out of me. Lifestyle change, back into exercise more, and a daily regimen of three different tablets every day. The doctors thought I was having a "Houllier" (Aortic Dissection), and when I passed out in the CT Scan, they thought the worst (it was just a panic attack though, which I'd never had before).

BP of 201/99 at the time. Let's just say salt is no longer on my shopping list

While the health aspects are now being managed, I've been left with these anxiety attacks, which happen for no good reason at all, randomly. But at least I have an explanation as to why I always got so tired so quickly when I used to play

But seriously - get your heart checked once a year. You'll be thankful if they find a minor thing before it becomes a major thing.

[End Product]

Bradycardia is a relatively common condition and can just be a sign you're very fit.  It's not usually a major issue, your GP is probably sending you for a check-up to err on the side of caution.

Ta mate,  puts it at ease .

[AndyInVA]

Anyone had experience of this? Went to register at a gp today and they did a check up. My heart rate was abnormal and I've been sent to a specialist for some tests. 

My heart is beating at 45 beats a minute,  a normal range is 60 -100. I've just hit 30 and healthy anyone got experience with this?

Myself and many friends I have who are super fit all have low heart beats. 45 is pretty flipping low but at rest I have friends at 48 bpm or mine can regularly be in the low 50s just sitting at home

[Peabee]

Anyone had experience of this? Went to register at a gp today and they did a check up. My heart rate was abnormal and I've been sent to a specialist for some tests. 

My heart is beating at 45 beats a minute,  a normal range is 60 -100. I've just hit 30 and healthy anyone got experience with this?

My RHR is normally 40 or below when I’m training. But if it’s that low when not so, I’d have it checked.

[AlphaDelta]

Let me cheer you up.

Chest pains - if your doc says it's anxiety, believe him. I've had chest pains, and my cardiologist says my heart valve problem doesn't cause chest pain. He said the same thing to me -- my anxiety about this makes me think I'm going to have heart attack and I tense up a bit. But my coronary arteries are quite clear as I passed a stress test well. It's probably indigestion if anything.

Cholesterol - you're doing two things right. Don't EVER start smoking. Worst thing you can do. And you're eating better & exercising more, so that's great.  One thing that helped me in my 20s was I moved from home and lived alone, so I bought only healthy food for my apartment. Yes, I eat junk sometimes, but it's only once or twice a week when I'm out. (My valve problem was probably with me since birth, it has nothing to do with cholesterol or heart attacks).

A big tip!! -- My total cholesterol dropped 30 points in the last two years despite the fact I've been lazy and not working out like I used to. How? I told my dr and nurses what I do and asked if it helped. ALL of them said yes, keep doing it. So here it is: take fish oil pills every day. The omega 3 is thought to help reduce the chance of coronary heart disease. You have to carefully read the label as there are different formulations.

Here's some links from experts:
http://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/omega-3-fatty-acids-fish-oil-alpha-linolenic-acid/background/hrb-20059372

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/omega-3/

http://www.brighamandwomens.org/Patients_Visitors/pcs/nutrition/services/healtheweightforwomen/special_topics/intelihealth0104.aspx?subID=submenu10


 

I know its a few years old, but that health anxiety is very real and can often make you convinced you have genuine symptoms. A few months ago I (stupidly) climbed to the top of the Mach Loop in North Wales, a steep as fook mountain/hill. I was unfit, had no exercise for ages and didnt have the right clothing on for such shenanigans - a pair of Adidas Samba, shorts and a t-shirt! Anyway, I was literally fooked climbing up, blowing tugs and had to stop about 5 times, whilst older fellas were going ahead of me.

After coming down and the next few days I found myself breathless and when lying in bed at night I was sweating cobs and my heart was racing. I convinced myself I had a heart issue so took myself to the docs who said the exercise had kicked off my asthma (I am slightly asthmatic from childhood).
I wasnt convinced and made the mistake of Googling my symptoms, I phoned NHS direct, went back to my GP, had the full works, ECG the lot - nothing wrong with me.
When I told the doc I had been afraid and searching my symptoms online had made me more scared, he told me it was health anxiety.

[RedSince86]

I just bought a blood pressure monitor for 20 quid in boots as a random purchase.

Are these things accurate and trusted.

I keep averaging around 114/76 when i use it.

[AndyInVA]

I just bought a blood pressure monitor for 20 quid in boots as a random purchase.

Are these things accurate and trusted.

I keep averaging around 114/76 when i use it.

I guess the only way to check is to verify it against legitimate equipment. Here in the states a lot of pharmacies have a sit down blood pressure tester in the waiting area. There must be an easy access blood pressure tester somewhere. At least then you could compare one against the other in real time.

[Dublin Red]

I just bought a blood pressure monitor for 20 quid in boots as a random purchase.

Are these things accurate and trusted.

I keep averaging around 114/76 when i use it.

I bought one in Argos a couple of years back and I think it's pretty accurate.

I'd be more worried if the readings were jumping around the place.

My blood pressure is always a lot lower in the evenings than it is in the mornings, and I think lots of people the same.

So, do a few sense checks and see if it changes etc.

[BlackandWhitePaul]

My Dad has had Shingles since Wednesday last week.

It's not very nice.

[PhaseOfPlay]

My Dad has had Shingles since Wednesday last week.

It's not very nice.

The Sour Cream and Onion ones aren't bad

[BlackandWhitePaul]

A sour cream and onion rash on your belly and back sounds fabulous to me.

I wish I had that, I'd lay in bed all day licking myself     

[PhaseOfPlay]

A sour cream and onion rash on your belly and back sounds fabulous to me.

I wish I had that, I'd lay in bed all day licking myself     

Hope your old man feels better. Shingles is nasty.

[BlackandWhitePaul]

Hope your old man feels better. Shingles is nasty.

It is a strange thing, the rash, well it's like a load of blisters, it is on only one half of his torso.

[So… Howard Philips]

It is a strange thing, the rash, well it's like a load of blisters, it is on only one half of his torso.

Shingles is nasty but can spread. Best keeping an eye on him.

[BlackandWhitePaul]

He was seen to by a Doctor.

He has to take a tablet 5 times a day = Aciclovir 800mg and 2 Paracetomol every 6 hours.

[So… Howard Philips]

He was seen to by a Doctor.

He has to take a tablet 5 times a day = Aciclovir 800mg and 2 Paracetomol every 6 hours.

Just hope he can stop scratching.

[Danny Boys Dad]

A sour cream and onion rash on your belly and back sounds fabulous to me.

I wish I had that, I'd lay in bed all day licking myself     

How could you lick your own belly or back? You'd have to have a tongue like an anteater

[BlackandWhitePaul]

Just hope he can stop scratching.

He said it was far worse for 3 days and nights before the rash showed up.  Was feeling like pins n needles and dead tingly . . . . and a hundred thousand million red hot needled being rammed into his belly, side and back.

His words not mine.

[fowlermagic]

Had a wee service two weeks ago with my Dr and everything was good for a young 48 year old except the cholesterol which was 7.5 (quite high) so been instructed to change the diet and exercise more etc. I am actually pretty good about exercise but the diet could be a lot better as have a sugary tooth I guess and love my carbs. Its the bad carbs with too much sugar ingredients that had me sitting close to 85kg prior to Christmas. Losing the weight as down to 81.5 since start of December but ideally aiming at 75kg by May. Sipping on liquid yogurt right now for lowering cholesterol and also taking plant sterols and other probiotics to increase the good fats and reduce the bad fats. Anyone else here have any tips on how they reduced their cholesterol as its a good time of my life to get the auld engine fine tuned again. Cheers

[harryc]

Had a wee service two weeks ago with my Dr and everything was good for a young 48 year old except the cholesterol which was 7.5 (quite high) so been instructed to change the diet and exercise more etc. I am actually pretty good about exercise but the diet could be a lot better as have a sugary tooth I guess and love my carbs. Its the bad carbs with too much sugar ingredients that had me sitting close to 85kg prior to Christmas. Losing the weight as down to 81.5 since start of December but ideally aiming at 75kg by May. Sipping on liquid yogurt right now for lowering cholesterol and also taking plant sterols and other probiotics to increase the good fats and reduce the bad fats. Anyone else here have any tips on how they reduced their cholesterol as its a good time of my life to get the auld engine fine tuned again. Cheers

Increase your fibre mate that will reduce the absorption into your blood stream

Re good fats you want to increase your HDL ( high density lipoprotein) to LDL ( low density lipoprotein) ratio.
Oily fish is a very good source of these types of fats also high intensity exercises 

[RedSince86]

Porridge every morning is the best food for lowering cholesterol and blood pressure.

It's amazing with cinnamon sprinkled on top and slice banana, i eat that every morning.

Slow released carbs, Fibre and filling.

https://nationalpost.com/health/is-porridge-a-miracle-food-why-eating-a-regular-bowl-of-oatmeal-may-mean-cleaner-arteries-protection-from-cancer

[AndyInVA]

I wasnt convinced and made the mistake of Googling my symptoms,

I'm convinced this is the absolute worst thing to do. I thought I potentially had some heart issues as I live in the crazy united statesI didnt d anything about it for at least a week. I was worried about skyrocketing health insurance premiums, no more life insurance etc. and googled my sypmtoms

I was convinced I was heart attack imminent. One web site says check which hospitals have a 24 hour ER in case you have a heart attack at night. I managed to basically make my symptoms worse by googling stuff and getting stressed

the moment I committed to go the docs I suddenly started to feel better. once at the docs I passed all tests and the conclusion was just stress

the crazy thing is if you google psychosomatic heart attack and something like 50% or more symtoms have no physical cause, people are healthy, but the mind and stress put such a burden on you

made me realize that going to the docs once a year is not all we have to do, but managing stress and being able to self diagnose when we can see/feel ourselves getting stressed is so imortant

[So… Howard Philips]

Had a wee service two weeks ago with my Dr and everything was good for a young 48 year old except the cholesterol which was 7.5 (quite high) so been instructed to change the diet and exercise more etc. I am actually pretty good about exercise but the diet could be a lot better as have a sugary tooth I guess and love my carbs. Its the bad carbs with too much sugar ingredients that had me sitting close to 85kg prior to Christmas. Losing the weight as down to 81.5 since start of December but ideally aiming at 75kg by May. Sipping on liquid yogurt right now for lowering cholesterol and also taking plant sterols and other probiotics to increase the good fats and reduce the bad fats. Anyone else here have any tips on how they reduced their cholesterol as its a good time of my life to get the auld engine fine tuned again. Cheers

Were you prescribed statins?

I had a heart attack and the blocked artery was down to raised cholesterol. I had the benefit of a rehab program which introduced me back to cardiac raising exercise. Exercise helps reduce cholesterol and also lowers blood pressure.

I've also virtually stopped eating cheese, butter, pies etc and my cholesterol was down to 2.9

[Chakan]

Did a physical about 3 weeks ago, turns out my cholesterol is in the moderate to high range. Also my BMI was high so needed to start doing exercise. So cut out a lot of meat, started eating chicken and fruits and veg. Also quite a bit of sushi/talipia/salmon. Started back on the exercise bike and walking.

Going for my follow up tomorrow, hopefully it's making a difference.

[God's Left Peg]

Tell you what the Tricky Reds aren't doing much for my heart!

[John C]

I had a heart scare last year

Only just read this, how are you now PoP?

[TepidT2O]

Only just read this, how are you now PoP?

Dead.


(Well... maybe a touch healthier than that)

[soxfan]

.

[soxfan]

.

[PhaseOfPlay]

Only just read this, how are you now PoP?

I was doing okay until Tepid started making bad jokes...

[Lycan]

Did a physical about 3 weeks ago, turns out my cholesterol is in the moderate to high range. Also my BMI was high so needed to start doing exercise. So cut out a lot of meat, started eating chicken and fruits and veg. Also quite a bit of sushi/talipia/salmon. Started back on the exercise bike and walking.

Going for my follow up tomorrow, hopefully it's making a difference.

Your body produces a lot of cholesterol its self. Genetics and stress can cause it. Only a small part of it actually comes from food. About 20% of it in fact.

Of course, it's always better if you eat healthy though.

[Caligula?]

^^^that said, I'm having heart surgery next month. 

The above solved my coronary problem (yes, it works!). But I was born with a prolapsed mitral valve which was regurgitating moderately 6 years ago. Diet doesn't fix that unfortunately. Some chest pain, lots of skipped beats and heartbeat flutters every day. Always a bit tired due to a lesser amount of oxygenated blood getting into my system. Had a stress test 2 weeks ago and it is now severely regurgitating at rest. Worse under stress (exercise). My left atrium is severely dilated. And now because of the pulmonary pressure caused by my MVR, my tricuspid valve is now regurgitating severely under stress (only moderate at rest).

Because I follow a good diet and exercise regularly, I've been able to hold off on surgery longer than most. But not forever...

I go to one of the best cardiovascular hospitals in the US, and my cardiologist is the head of the entire center -- sheer luck that I got him. He and the surgeon decided to operate via a 4 inch cut between my 4th and 5th rib on my right side. No sawing through my sternum, thank god! Repair the mitral valve and tricuspid valve, ablate my 4 pulmonary veins, and close off the unnecessary atrial appendage. 99% chance of living through it, but I'll admit I'm not loving the thought of lying there with my heart stopped for 5 hours, being kept alive by a machine pumping my blood while they cut into my heart in 7 places. If all goes well, I'll be out in 4 days and driving again in 2 weeks! Back to 100% after that with no permanent damage. Outside chance they would forego a mitral repair if it is too damaged, and would replace with a mechanical one.

Will keep you updated as the March date looms. Wish me luck.

Oh wow, I wish you the best of luck. I won't lie, I'd be shitting bricks for weeks before a surgery like that. Hopefully everything will be alright.  Great tips for lowering cholesterol/blood pressure as well. I'm on the edge, my numbers are slightly higher than they should be.

That being said, does anyone know if there are there any natural supplements, herbs, teas etc that I can also add to my diet and lifestyle that will make a difference as per cholesterol and blood pressure? I tried a garlic supplement about a year back and I took it for a few months and it made no difference. It was one of the 'higher' quality ones as well.

[CraigDS]

Have been having heart palpiltations for the last 3 weeks after a bad bout of flu. Put it down to that and just me exerting myself too much....ended up collapsing in Tesco on Sunday!

Fast forward 8 hours in A&E at the Royal and it turns out I had half the red blood cell count that I should. Couple that with quite a large and sudden weight loss over the previous 4 weeks and the Docs were going down the path towards things like a blood cancer. Was admitted straight away and had an emergency blood transfusion (2 units) over night whilst they carried out more tests.

Thankfully it’s not cancer, but turns out my antibodies in my stomach are attacking my own protein enzymes which is preventing me absorbing vitamin B12 so my body can’t produce red blood cells, which was then causing the heart palpitations. Transfusion has gone a long way to helping me in the short term but going to need 3 injections of B12 a week over the next month and then regular injections going forward.

Could have been a worse outcome I guess!

[rob1966]

Have been having heart palpiltations for the last 3 weeks after a bad bout of flu. Put it down to that and just me exerting myself too much....ended up collapsing in Tesco on Sunday!

Fast forward 8 hours in A&E at the Royal and it turns out I had half the red blood cell count that I should. Couple that with quite a large and sudden weight loss over the previous 4 weeks and the Docs were going down the path towards things like a blood cancer. Was admitted straight away and had an emergency blood transfusion (2 units) over night whilst they carried out more tests.

Thankfully it’s not cancer, but turns out my antibodies in my stomach are attacking my own protein enzymes which is preventing me absorbing vitamin B12 so my body can’t produce red blood cells, which was then causing the heart palpitations. Transfusion has gone a long way to helping me in the short term but going to need 3 injections of B12 a week over the next month and then regular injections going forward.

Could have been a worse outcome I guess!

Hopefully they get you sorted soon mate.

Not a dig at you, as I'm just as guilty, but this perfectly exhibits how stupid men are when it comes to health and all this "I'll be fine bollocks".

Over a period of about 2 years, I ignored daily vomiting of my breakfast which then turned into vomiting most meals up, stinky breath and getting weaker and weaker, just put it down to eating too quick and a lack of fitness. I've got a scar that goes from my neck to my belly that proves and reminds me that it wasn't.

[CraigDS]

Hopefully they get you sorted soon mate.

Not a dig at you, as I'm just as guilty, but this perfectly exhibits how stupid men are when it comes to health and all this "I'll be fine bollocks".

Over a period of about 2 years, I ignored daily vomiting of my breakfast which then turned into vomiting most meals up, stinky breath and getting weaker and weaker, just put it down to eating too quick and a lack of fitness. I've got a scar that goes from my neck to my belly that proves and reminds me that it wasn't.

You’re not wrong mate.

I used to proudly say I hadn’t been the docs since I was about 16 (34 now). Missus was hounding me to go the docs for the last 4 weeks and I would just say it’s down to the flu and not wasting their time with that.

Thankfully the delay didn’t cause any further damage this time (other than having to have the transfusion which I likely wouldn’t have had to have) but has definitely taught me to get to the docs right away from now on.

[robgomm]

While the health aspects are now being managed, I've been left with these anxiety attacks, which happen for no good reason at all, randomly.

Ahh, I don't have a heart issue that I know of but I've got a life long anxiety issue.  My best advice for an attack itself is to let it pass, try to focus on one thing (breathing usually or, in my case, reading a page in a book) until the symptoms subside. Then otherwise maybe think about some meditation exercises.

Given what you've been through, I'd say it's understandable your body is reacting with anxiety. Hope you're feeling better generally.

[AndyMuller]

Have been having heart palpiltations for the last 3 weeks after a bad bout of flu. Put it down to that and just me exerting myself too much....ended up collapsing in Tesco on Sunday!

Fast forward 8 hours in A&E at the Royal and it turns out I had half the red blood cell count that I should. Couple that with quite a large and sudden weight loss over the previous 4 weeks and the Docs were going down the path towards things like a blood cancer. Was admitted straight away and had an emergency blood transfusion (2 units) over night whilst they carried out more tests.

Thankfully it’s not cancer, but turns out my antibodies in my stomach are attacking my own protein enzymes which is preventing me absorbing vitamin B12 so my body can’t produce red blood cells, which was then causing the heart palpitations. Transfusion has gone a long way to helping me in the short term but going to need 3 injections of B12 a week over the next month and then regular injections going forward.

Could have been a worse outcome I guess!

Bloody hell that is scary mate glad your doing relatively ok now!