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Every day, 900 Indians under 30 die of heart attack, according to a Trinity Hospital Study from 2013.
Today, it’s no longer an old man’s problem. People in their 20s and 30s are increasingly struggling with their heart health. No points for guessing that it’s our terrible sedentary lifestyle that is to blame.
Rishabh's heart attack made him change his lifestyle for the better. But there are hundred of thousands like him who don’t get a second chance.
Rishabh’s heartbeat fell to 22-23 per minute – that’s dangerously low. A normal heartbeat is around 70-80 per minute. He fell unconscious after coming home from work at night and he was alone. Thankfully, his uncle came to visit him incidentally. And when Rishabh didn’t answer, he broke the door and entered.
He was admitted in the ICU and woke up after two days of unconsciousness.
“I was born and brought up in such a way that my body never had to do too much work. So, when I started working, I became so stressed. I was working for 12 hours and after that I used to sleep late. Ignored my diet and exercise as well,” recalls Rishabh.
“The looks of a person can be very deceptive,” explains Dr Mathur. “We have lots of patients who are very lean and thin and lead a very active lifestyle. But if they have any of the risk factors – family history, diabetes, high blood pressure, or they are smokers – they are still at risk of having a heart attack.”
Excessive exercise is bad too. If a person has gone for strenuous exercise, like running excessively every day or playing sports, this leads to an abrupt blockage of the artery, which can lead to a heart attack, says Dr Mathur.
So, it's very important that people who are at risk they should be screened regularly for cardiovascular issues.
Be proactive rather than reactive. Don’t wait for the disease to strike and only then start taking precautions. Develop healthy habits from an early age.
Cameraperson: Abhay Sharma and Sumit Badola
Video Editor: Deepthi Ramdas
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