Heart Disease

If you think that you or someone you know is having a heart attack, you should call 911 immediately.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) , heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States and is a major cause of disability. Almost 700,000 people die of heart disease in the U.S. each year. That is about 29% of all U.S. deaths.

Heart disease is a term that includes several more specific heart conditions. The most common is coronary artery disease , which causes most heart attacks .

The National Heart Attack Alert Program notes these major symptoms of a heart attack:

• Chest discomfort - Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts for more than a few minutes, or goes away and comes back. The discomfort can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness, or pain.
• Discomfort in other areas of the upper body - This can include pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw, or stomach.
• Shortness of breath - This often comes along with chest discomfort, but it also can occur before chest discomfort.
• Other symptoms - These may include breaking out in a cold sweat or feeling nausea or light-headedness.

For more information about heart disease, please visit the following websites:

• Heart Disease Prevention - Information from the CDC about what you can do to lower your risk for heart disease and heart attack.
• The CDC's Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention - View health topics related to heart disease and stroke, access information about prevention programs and view publications and statistics.
• WomensHealth.gov - Heart Disease - View answers to frequently asked questions about heart disease in women and what you can do to reduce your risk.
• The Heart Truth - A campaign to make women more aware of the danger of heart disease, sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) and other organizations.
• Act in Time - An NHLBI website that provides information about heart attacks and what to do in order to survive one.
• HealthyPeople.gov - A federal website geared toward helping Americans identify the most significant preventable threats to their health and establishing national goals to reduce these threats.
• Quick Guide to Healthy Living - Heart Health - Information about how to keep your heart healthy from HealthFinder.gov .
• The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) offers information about how to eat for a healthy heart .

Health Observances:

• February is American Heart Month and February 4, 2011, is National Wear Red Day , a day when you can wear red to show your support for women's heart disease awareness.
• May is High Blood Pressure Education Month , designated to alert Americans to the dangers of untreated hypertension and to urge everyone to have their blood pressure checked regularly.
• September is National Cholesterol Education Month , a month set aside to encourage citizens to get their blood cholesterol checked and take steps to lower it if it is high.