Heart attacks occur with frightening regularity. Every year, heart attacks strike more than 1 million Americans. According to the American Heart Association (AHA), 785,000 of these are first-time heart attacks and 470,000 of them are recurring, repeat attacks. But you can fight back: Many of these potentially deadly heart disasters are preventable with simple changes in lifestyle.

Signs Of A Heart Attack

A heart attack occurs when a section of the heart muscle becomes damaged or dies, reducing blood supply. Cardiac arrest occurs when the heart stops beating completely. In any case, immediate actions are essential. These include taking an aspirin (to break up clots), having cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and calling 911 for emergency help. The speed of treatment increases the chance of recovery.

Many people think chest and arm pain are the only symptoms of a heart attack. Not true.
The main five symptoms of a heart attack include:

1. Pain or discomfort in the jaw, neck or back.
2. Feeling weak, light-headed or faint.
3. Chest pain or discomfort.
4. Pain or discomfort in arms or shoulder.
5. Shortness of breath.

The Prevention Study

The European Heart Journal recently published the results of the Interheart Study. Uppsala University (Sweden) professor Claes Held and colleagues conducted a meta analysis of data collected over a four year period, from 1999 to 2003. They analyzed and correlated the data to uncover cause-and-effect relationships that may otherwise have been overlooked in the individual studies during that time period.

The study tracked nearly 30,000 individuals living in more than 50 countries and found that breaking even a light sweat at work and during leisure time can greatly decrease your risk of heart attack. In fact, those individuals who owned both cars and televisions (which discourage physical activity) were nearly 30 percent more likely to have a heart attack than those who owned neither.

After comparing more than 10,000 middle-age men and women who have had a single heart attack with a cohort study of those who have no history of cardiovascular disease, the results were clear. “This study,” said lead researcher Held, “shows that mild to moderate physical activity at work, and any level of activity during leisure time, reduces the risk of heart attacks.”

In fact, the study revealed that the addition of any form of increased physical activity during otherwise normal times of leisure provided preventive power. Adding a mild physical activity during leisure reduced heart attack risk by 13 percent, while moderate activities dropped the risk factor by 24 percent. The results were similar when the researchers examined mild and moderate physical activity during work hours. Interestingly, however, heavy physical exertion at work was not found to reduce heart attack risk. And other studies show that extremely strenuous aerobic exercises can cause heart disease rather than prevent it. (More on this is here.)

Get Up And Move

Notice that this study found a correlation between technology and the risk of a heart attack. When you engage with technological devices like cars, computers, televisions, etc., you inevitably walk less and perform fewer physical activities.

In light of studies like this, one would think that lack of physical activity would be a well-known cause of heart attack. Yet, the shocking numbers of those having heart attacks annually shows that either people are not aware of this connection, or they’re too tired to make a change in their lives. This is a shame, a potentially deadly shame.

If you could reduce your risk of heart attack by nearly 30 percent by making a simple lifestyle change, why wouldn’t you? Go ahead and make the right choice. If you’re not sure how to add more activity to your day, do simple things that can make a big difference. Walk to the local store, park farther away from the office door, do push-ups while watching the news or play an active game on a Wii Fit. Try yoga, Pilates, martial arts, weight training, elliptical exercise and walking on a treadmill.

Making fitness a part of your day with simple activities and tips is fairly easy. (For more on how to do this, look here.) The fact that being just slightly more active during work or while at home can not only extend your life but also increase its overall quality makes this lifestyle choice a no-brainer. Let’s all do this together and reduce those heart attack statistics in the process. The life you save may be your own.