This is an archive article published on September 2, 2021

Heart attack is becoming common among young people; a doctor explains the causes

Dr Subhendu Mohanty, head and senior consultant, cardiologist, tells indianexpress.com that cardiac arrest and heart attack are becoming more common in the younger age group than it was 10-15 years back

Smoking is a leading cause of heart attack among young people. (Source: getty images)

3 min readNew DelhiSep 3, 2021 12:55 PM IST First published on: Sep 2, 2021 at 03:00 PM IST

TV actor and Bigg Boss 13 winner Sidharth Shukla has passed away at 40. His death was confirmed by Mumbai’s Cooper hospital. According to a PTI report, Shukla suffered a “massive heart attack in the morning”.

Dr Subhendu Mohanty, head and senior consultant, cardiologist, Sharda Hospital, Greater Noida, tells indianexpress.com that cardiac arrest and heart attack are becoming more common in the younger age group than it was 10-15 years back. “In the last two years or so, there has been rising incidence, so much that we have seen heart attacks in the age of 18 and 20 also.”

What are the causes?

The most important reason behind this is the increased prevalence of smoking among young people, according to the doctor. “Secondly, it is the high mental stress that most young professionals are going through. The third factor is decreased physical activity and a sedentary lifestyle that most of us lead,” says Dr Mohanty.

Some fitness buffs are also known to consume steroids; can that lead to heart attack too? “Theoretically, it is possible but we have not seen too many cases of heart attacks caused by steroid intake. There have, however, been occasional instances where young people taking supplements have developed heart attacks but that is not very common,” the doctor explains.

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Tips to prevent heart attack

Risk factors:

If you have diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol, then you take control of those and consult a doctor regularly.

If you are healthy and do not have the above issues, here are some things to follow as recommended by Dr Mohanty:

*Regular physical activity for at least 30-45 mins, five days a week. Cardio exercises such as cycling, running, swimming, etc, are good for the heart, says the doctor. On the other hand, lifting excess weight does not work well for your heart. “Using low weights, say up to five kilos is fine. But while heavier weights may help develop muscle bulk, they may put extra pressure on your heart.”

*Take a break from work and spend time with your family and friends. Remember watching TV does not really count as a break because you may still be thinking about work.

Also Read | Here’s what to do if someone is having a heart attack

*Smoking has to be stopped completely. Doing it in moderation does not help at all. You may develop heart attack even if you smoke one cigarette in a day.

*Take good care of your mental health. There is no quantification of how much stress a person has because of which it gets frequently ignored.

*Include 250-200 gm of raw vegetables and fruits every day in your diet. Decrease the amount of salt intake. Empty sugars like soft drinks have to be totally avoided.

“If you take care of these, then there is a good 95-98 per cent chance that nothing is going to happen to you,” the doctor states.

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