The winter season brings with it a soothing coolness and the joy of festivals, but it can also be dangerous for your health. Do you know that cold weather can pose a major threat to your heart? According to experts, the chances of heart attack increase in winter, and cold is the direct reason behind this.
How does cold affect the heart?
When the temperature drops in cold weather, the blood vessels (arteries) in our body start shrinking. This process occurs naturally to keep the body warm. But due to this, blood flow may be disrupted. When blood does not reach the heart in sufficient quantity, the risk of heart attack increases.
Chief cardiologist and Prof. Dr. Tarun Kumar at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital explains that in cold weather, the heart arteries contract more, the blood clotting factor is more, intake increases while activity decreases, during this time the blood volume increases because there is no sweating in this season. In such a situation, blood pressure increases, hypertension occurs, sugar increases due to metabolism derailment. So, in a person whose BP has increased, weight has been gained, sugar has become uncontrolled, along with the artery contracting and blood volume is increasing, then all these factors together push that person towards the potential risk of heart attack. This situation becomes even more dangerous for those who are already suffering from high blood pressure or heart disease.
Tips to prevent heart attack in winter
Here are some precautionary measures you can take to take care of your heart during the winter season:
- Wear warm clothes: Wearing the right clothes is very important to protect the body from cold. Keep the head, hands and feet covered.
- Be careful while exercising: Avoid doing too much hard work while exercising outside in winter. Especially in the morning when the pollution is high, avoid outdoor heavy exercise. But do not give up exercising. Start exercising by warming up slowly and keep doing the exercises you do on normal days.
- Eat a healthy diet: A balanced diet and drinking enough water is beneficial for the heart.
- Avoid smoking and alcohol: Smoking can cause the blood vessels to shrink further, which puts extra pressure on the heart. In this season, it is seen that smokers increase the frequency of smoking to warm themselves up, which is extremely dangerous. Pollution also increases in this season, which has a double lethal effect on the body. Along with this, the effect of alcohol is also fatal on the body. After consuming alcohol, people are not able to control their body temperature properly.
- Consult a doctor: If you are suffering from heart disease, then keep in regular contact with the doctor during the winter season. Keep your blood pressure and sugar under control, do not let your weight increase and keep taking the medicines you take as per the doctor’s advice.