Incidence of Heart Disease doubles in Jaipur; doctor at Fortis Escorts advocates healthy changes in sedentary lifestyle

Jaipur,14^th March 2019.

The doctors of Fortis Escorts Hospital in Jaipur raised concern at the growing risk of heart ailments among people of Rajasthan in a health talk recently. While Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) like high blood pressure and diabetes become more of an endemic globally, there is a greater need to create awareness among people to adopt healthy changes to make amends to their sedentary lifestyle. The talk was delivered by Dr. Amit Kumar Singhal, Consultant- Cardiology, Fortis Escorts Hospital, Jaipur.

As per independent reports by National Sample Survey over a period of two decades, the self-reporting of cardio vascular diseases (CVDs) doubled from 1 to cases per 1000 persons. Doctors have attributed this rise in CVDs to the sedentary lifestyle prevalent in most urban areas in the country including Jaipur. From being the sixth largest risk factor for disability-adjusted life year (DALY) in Rajasthan in 1990s causing distress to 2.6 per cent people, hypertension has risen considerably. According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS 4), it now affects 6.9 per cent women and 12.4 per cent men between the age of 15 and 49 years in the state.

“India is the capital of heart ailment and Rajasthan is no exception. Our growing sedentary lifestyle have contributed to growth of hypertension. While there are ways to prevent and control this condition, the lack of awareness makes it critical. A few changes in your daily lifestyle will do you a world of good. One of the main things to do is to eat healthy. Add plenty of fruits and vegetables, grains and food high in omega 3 fatty acids. We must strike a balance in our diet while it’s always a good idea to cut down on salt, saturated fats, sweets and red meats. Apart from this try to relax and unwind from stress, Yoga is a good technique. Also, regular check on blood sugar and physical exercise of some sort help,” says Dr Amit Kumar Singhal.

High blood pressure forces the heart to work harder than necessary to pump blood to the rest of body, causing the left ventricle to thicken or stiffen (a condition known as left ventricular hypertrophy) and limits the ventricle’s ability to pump blood to body. A condition like this increases the risk of heart attack, heart failure, and sudden cardiac death. High blood pressure damages and narrows arteries; it can damage the cells of arteries’ inner lining. The common heart ailments caused by hypertension are coronary artery disease (CAD), enlarged left heart, and in extreme cases, heart failure.

“We receive an average of 3000-5000 new patients every year coming with complaints that indicate towards a potential case for hypertension. Controlling and managing hypertension is crucial to prevent its vascular complications. Each 10 mmHg reduction of systolic blood pressure is found to be associated with significantly lower risk of mortality, cardiovascular events, coronary heart disease, stroke, albuminuria and retinopathy in patients with hypertension. Those who are overweight or obese are more at risk than their leaner counterparts while people who have a family history of hypertension should start taking precautions as early as they can,” adds Dr Singhal.