Essay on Heart Disease - Helping Students Understand

Essay on Heart Disease - Helping Students UnderstandAn essay on heart disease will always provide students with a perspective on the disease that is valuable to the entire class. But students are only going to understand the disease better if they have a deeper understanding of what heart disease is and why this disease affects everyone in a unique way. In this essay, you will be introducing a student to the disease by helping her understand the causes, symptoms, complications, and treatments of heart disease. By the time she has finished reading this essay, she will have a better understanding of the disease, how to recognize the symptoms of heart disease, and where she should get help for the symptoms of heart disease.Because everyone deals with heart disease differently, students need to know that there is no universal treatment for heart disease. Each person's heart disease is different and not everyone will respond the same way to the medications used for treating heart disease. Each person will need to be treated according to his or her symptoms and medical history. Understanding the symptoms of heart disease is the first step in getting treatment for the disease.Although most people experience heart attacks, heart disease is not limited to only people who have heart problems. In fact, people of all ages can suffer from heart disease. However, it is more common among middle-aged adults, those who smoke and those who have high blood pressure. Women are three times more likely to develop heart disease than men. It is estimated that about twenty percent of all deaths in the United States are caused by heart disease.Symptoms of heart disease may include pain, aches, numbness, and tingling in the hands, arms, legs, back, neck, or jaw. These symptoms may also vary from person to person and may take many forms. Some of the most common symptoms of heart disease include fatigue, dizziness, shortness of breath, chest pain, nausea, indigestion, vomiting, swelling in the ankles and feet, high blood pressure, darkening of the skin, and black, green, or blue patches on the skin.Although pain is the most common symptom of heart disease, it is not the only symptom. A patient may experience difficulty breathing, irregular heartbeats, and even abnormal heart rhythms. When people do not feel well, they will usually have frequent infections and gastrointestinal problems. There are two types of heart conditions: Ischemic and Hypertrophic. Ischemic heart disease occurs when the valves in the heart become damaged, thereby restricting blood flow.One of the most common causes of heart disease is hypertension. The main symptom of heart disease that is associated with hypertension is abnormally high blood pressure. Most cases of hypertension are found in middle-aged adults, but younger adults are also at risk. When the blood pressure is too high, the heart will not pump blood efficiently as well as it should. The lack of oxygen in the blood will cause the hea rt to work harder, creating an unstable situation.More complications of heart disease can occur when the heart does not receive the right amount of oxygen. This condition is called acute ischemia, or shock. When the heart receives insufficient oxygen, it will no longer function properly. When the blood oxygen levels drop, the blood loses its oxygen. The heart will then go into shock, which means that the heart stops pumping blood and goes into a period of ventricular fibrillation, a rapid irregular beating.While heart disease can strike anyone, people who are over fifty are the most prone to the development of heart disease. Young adults, middle-aged adults, and even children can develop heart disease. The question is: How can people begin to prevent this disease?