OCTOBER 2002
www.celtic-connection.com
Page 21
SLAINTE - TO YOUR GOOD HEALTH!
Your Man and Heart Disease
It's Saturday morning and your man is at the breakfast table nursing a cup of coffee. He rubs his chest wondering why he has heartburn so early in the day and he decides it was the fatty sausages you served him for breakfast.
An hour later the heartburn has become a dull ache in his upper back and he feels nauseous and starts to sweat. Obviously something is wrong with his stomach. He decides it is food poisoning from your potato salad last night.
If this happened at your house, what would you do?
a) Tell your husband to stop blaming you for his piggy behavior.
b) Call your family physician and tell him your husband has food poisoning.
c) Take hubby to the hospital immediately, even if he doesn't want to go, just in case it might be serious.
d) First try "watchful waiting" so you don't overreact and waste precious medical resources. If his symptoms persist or get worse, call 911.
e) Call 911 and tell them you are afraid your husband is having a heart attack.
Slainte knows how tempting choice "a" sounds but the correct response is "e."
A heart attack happens when one of the arteries supplying blood and oxygen to the heart muscle becomes blocked. When the flow of blood is interrupted, the part of the heart muscle fed by that artery dies. If the blockage is caused by a blood clot, doctors can dissolve the clot and restore circulation to the heart muscle before it has a chance to die.
In order for this to happen however, clot-dissolving drugs must be given within 70 minutes of the attack. These breakthrough emergency-room drugs help up to 75 percent of all heart-attack victims survive their heart attacks with little or no heart damage.
Not all heart attacks are like the ones you see in the movies -something that is sudden and painful.
Most start slowly with only mild pain or discomfort, and most men will not know they are having a heart attack. Many men will deny they are experiencing symptoms and will want to wait. It is your job to make sure he does not wait and does not ignore the pain or discomfort.
You can help your man survive his heart attack by:
- Learning how to give CPR before he needs it. Mouth-to-mouth breathing and chest compressions keep blood and oxygen circulating to vital organs and buy time until medical help can give defibrillation.
- Learning the warning signs of a heart attack so you can recognize them even if he can't.
By
MAUREEN KEANE
- Sharing the warning signs with your husband so he can recognize the symptoms in himself and in you. Agree on a plan of action if one of you should show symptoms of a heart attack.
- Calling 911 when he exhibits heart attack symptoms. Do not drive him to the hospital, let the Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) bring the hospital to him. If he stops breathing in the car, you will not be able to drive and give CPR at the same time. EMTs can start clot-busting treatment immediately and also during his ride to the hospital.
- Having him stop activity and rest quietly until help arrives.
- If he is conscious, having him chew (for immediate absorption) one 325 mg aspirin.
- Doing whatever the 911 Operator tells you to do.
- Trying to reassure him.
But what if your husband is one of those stubborn Celts who refuse to call 911 when they have symptoms? Far too many men still believe that "big boys don't cry."
They don't want to admit to being sick or weak or don't want to make a fuss. One study found 89 percent of people said they would call 911 if they saw someone having a heart attack. However, of that group only 23 percent of those who later had chest pain did the same for themselves.
- Call his doctor if symptoms occur during office hours. Your husband is more likely to go to the hospital if his doctor gives him "permission" to make the fuss.
- Let him use you as an excuse. That way, if he is not having a heart attack, he can say: "I knew it was nothing, Doc, but my wife was so worried."
- Ignore what he says and go ahead and call 911. If the EMTs want to take him to the hospital, he will probably admit that he needs to go.
Sldintel
Maureen Keane is a best-selling author, nutritionist, and whole foods expert.
She has authored 13 books on healtli and nutrition including the best selling Juicing for Life, What to Eat If You Have Heart Disease and What to Eat If You Have Cancer. Her newest book How to Turn Your Hefty Husband into a Lean . Lover can be pre-ordered at Amazon.com and will be in bookstores next year.
If you have a question or comment regarding nutrition or health that you would like to see addressed in this column, email it to Maureen@keanenutrition.com.
Call 911 when:
- He complains of pressure or a crushing pain in his chest. Sometimes this occurs with sweating, nausea, or vomiting.
- He feels pain that extends from his chest into the jaw, left arm or left shoulder.
- He has sensations of tightness in the chest.
- He has shortness of breath for more than a couple of seconds.
Irish Peace Institute Publishes New Book on Peace Process
PENS FOR PEACE The Irish Peace Institute ISBN 187465364X
LIMERICK - The Irish Peace Institute is a non-profit, non-governmental organization based in the Republic of Ireland devoted to promoting the peaceful reconciliation of conflict in Ireland through programs of education, research and outreach.
The Institute recently published a book containing reflections on the Peace Process and the current state of affairs in Ireland, North and South. It contains contributions from a range of influential people in Ireland including Taoiseach Bertie Ahem, First Minister David Trimble, United States Senator George Mitchell, Nobel Laureate Scanius Heaney, and Community Activist Baroness May Blood. ;
All of the proceeds from the sale of the book will go towards thej development of the Irish Peace Institute's Outreach Program which works to alleviate areas where tension exists between communities' helping to promote the ongoing peace process.
The book can be purchased through Irish Books and Media at! www.irishbook.com, via amazon.co.uk, or directly from the Peace Institute at www.ul.ie/ipi.
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