Heart Disease

What Is Heart Disease? Symptoms, Causes, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Prevention

Ashley Welch
By Medically Reviewed by 
Reviewed:
Medically Reviewed
Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States.

While often thought of as one illness, heart disease is actually an umbrella term that covers a range of heart conditions. It includes diseases of the blood vessels, including coronary artery disease (CAD) and peripheral artery disease (PAD); abnormal heart rhythms, or arrhythmias; heart defects you’re born with, or congenital heart disease; and the thickening or enlarging of the heart, a condition called cardiomyopathy.

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Small-Batch Blueberry Jam Crumble Breakfast Bars

Breakfast rotations have a way of turning into breakfast ruts. Smoothie, oatmeal, eggs — rinse and repeat. To mix it up, you could always treat yourself with a trip to your local cafe, but make a habit of it and that little splurge starts to add up. Instead, shake up your morning ritual with a treat you can enjoy any day of the week.

One part muffin, one part crumble, these oatmeal-inspired, maple-sweetened blueberry jam bars are going to be your new favorite! Paired with an iced coffee (or hey, treat yourself to one from the local coffee shop), a small batch of these bars are the perfect weekday breakfast treat or midmorning snack.

Oats are blitzed into a fine flour, then combined with almond butter, maple syrup, and cardamom. This dough acts as both the base and crumble topping. They're not too sweet, packed with toasty oat and nut flavor, and freeze like a dream!

contains  Eggs, Tree Nuts
4.4 out of 27 reviews

SERVES

9

CALORIES PER SERVING

326

AUTHOR

The Feedfeed

PREP TIME

30 min

COOK TIME

50 min

TOTAL TIME

1 hr 20 min

Ingredients

2 cups fresh or frozen (thawed) blueberries
3 tbsp pure maple syrup
3 tbsp lemon juice, from about 1 large lemon
2 tbsp chia seeds
2 tsp lemon zest, from about 1 large lemon
2 cups old-fashioned oats, divided
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground cardamom (or cinnamon)
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
1/2 cup natural almond butter
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
1 egg
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp sliced almonds
Flaky sea salt, to taste

Directions

1

For step-by-step directions to make this recipe, visit The Feedfeed.

Nutrition Facts

Amount per serving

calories

326

total fat

15g

saturated fat

1.7g

protein

9g

carbohydrates

42g

fiber

6.7g

sugar

15.7g

added sugar

11.3g

sodium

217mg

TAGS:

Eggs, Tree Nuts, Heart-Healthy, Mediterranean, Gluten-free, Vegetarian, High-Fiber, Family-Friendly, Breakfast

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Signs and Symptoms of Heart Disease

Symptoms of heart disease can vary depending on which type you have and whether you are a man or a woman. For example, with a heart attack, men are more likely to experience chest pain, while women are more likely to have symptoms other than chest discomfort, like nausea, shortness of breath, and fatigue.

Generally, symptoms of CAD include:

  • Angina (pain, tightness, pressure, or discomfort in the chest)
  • Shortness of breath
  • Extreme fatigue with exertion
  • Light-headedness
  • Pain in the jaw, throat, neck, upper abdomen, or back

PAD can include these symptoms as well, though the most common signs are cramping of the lower extremities and pain in the leg or hip muscles while climbing stairs.

Symptoms of arrhythmias include:

  • Fluttering in the chest or the sensation of skipping a beat (palpitations)
  • Racing heartbeat (tachycardia)
  • Slow heartbeat (bradycardia)
  • Chest pain or discomfort
  • Shortness of breath
  • Dizziness or light-headedness
  • Fainting
  • Fatigue

Symptoms of congenital heart disease include:

  • Arrhythmias
  • Shortness of breath
  • A bluish tint to the skin, lips, and fingernails
  • Tiring quickly
  • Swelling of the body tissue or organs

Symptoms of cardiomyopathy include:

  • Fatigue
  • Breathlessness with exertion or at rest
  • Arrhythmias
  • Dizziness, light-headedness, and fainting
  • Swelling of the legs, ankles, and feet

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People with heart disease are at higher risk for severe complications from any infection, so it's in their best interest to get the flu vaccine. Purvi S. Parikh, MD, of NYU Langone Health explains.
What Do People With Heart Disease Need to Know About the Flu Shot?

Causes and Risk Factors of Heart Disease

The causes of heart disease also vary depending on the type of disease.

CAD and PAD are caused by atherosclerosis, or the buildup of cholesterol and other material called plaque in the arteries.

This buildup of plaque can result in the narrowing of arteries, which makes it harder for blood to flow and can result in a heart attack or stroke.
Atherosclerosis can be caused by modifiable lifestyle choices, like a lack of physical activity, an unhealthy diet, being overweight or obese, and smoking tobacco. Having high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and diabetes also increases the risk of both CAD and PAD.

Arrhythmias, on the other hand, are electrical abnormalities that can be caused by a variety of factors. These include:

  • Heart defects that you’re born with
  • High blood pressure
  • Heart failure
  • Diabetes
  • Tobacco use
  • Excessive caffeine or alcohol consumption
  • Drug use
  • Stress
  • Certain over-the-counter medicines, prescription drugs, dietary supplements, and herbal remedies
Most congenital heart defects develop in the womb and are present at birth.

Certain medical conditions, medications, and genes may influence the development of heart defects. Sometimes, structural heart defects can occur in adults as the heart’s structure changes with age.

Researchers are still working to understand the exact causes of cardiomyopathy. It can be hereditary or caused by damage to the heart after a heart attack, years of untreated hypertension, heart valve abnormalities, or infection.

It’s believed that certain diseases, such as connective tissue disorders, hemochromatosis (the excessive buildup of iron in the body), and amyloidosis (the buildup of abnormal proteins), can cause cardiomyopathy.
Certain coexisting health problems or lifestyle habits can make you more susceptible to heart disease. Some of these can be changed and some cannot. These include:

How Is Heart Disease Diagnosed?

Before a heart disease diagnosis is made, your healthcare provider will gather a full medical history and perform a physical exam. If your doctor suspects heart disease, blood tests will be ordered to check your cholesterol and triglyceride levels, as well as look for proteins that could signal heart failure or plaque in your arteries. A chest X-ray will also help your doctor look for signs of heart failure or heart valve problems.

Depending on the type of heart disease your doctor thinks you may have, other tests may include:

  • Electrocardiogram (ECG) This test records electrical signals from the heart that can help determine abnormalities in the heart’s rhythm and structure.
  • Stress Tests These involve elevating your heart rate with exercise or medication while performing ECG and imaging of the heart to see how it performs.
  • Echocardiogram This ultrasound of your heart displays detailed images of its structure and how it functions.
  • Holter Monitors Allowing for a continuous ECG through a portable device you wear for 24 to 72 hours, this type of monitoring can detect heart rhythm abnormalities not detected on an standard resting ECG.
  • Computerized Tomography Scans produce detailed images of your heart and can help doctors detect calcium in the coronary arteries.
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging A powerful magnetic field produces detailed images of the structures within and around the heart. It can also detect scars present in the heart muscle. This will help your doctor evaluate your heart’s anatomy and function.
  • Cardiac Catheterization This test can help your physician detect abnormalities in the blood flow through your heart, blood vessels, and valves. It involves a short tube inserted into a vein or artery in your groin or arm, into which a hollow, longer tube is inserted. With the help of imaging on a monitor, your doctor will guide the catheter through the vein or artery until it reaches your heart.

Duration of Heart Disease

How long heart disease lasts very much depends on the type of heart disease an individual has and the severity of the condition. For example, it may be possible for someone to partially reverse the effects of CAD over time with the right treatments and lifestyle changes.

While there is no cure for other forms of heart disease, like PAD and heart failure, your doctor will help you come up with a treatment plan to manage the symptoms.

Treatment and Medication Options for Heart Disease

How your heart disease is treated depends on your specific condition.

Generally, heart disease treatment often starts with lifestyle modifications. These include eating a heart-healthy diet that is low in sodium and fat, exercising regularly, quitting smoking, managing stress, and limiting alcohol use.

Medication Options

Medications like these are commonly used in the treatment of heart disease:

  • Anticoagulants, or blood thinners, decrease the clotting ability of the blood. They are used to treat certain blood vessel, heart, and heart rhythm conditions.
  • Antiplatelet agents, such as aspirin, can help prevent blood clots in people who have had a heart attack or stroke. Sometimes a doctor may prescribe aspirin along with another antiplatelet medication, known as dual antiplatelet therapy.
  • Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors expand blood vessels and decrease resistance by lowering levels of hormones that regulate blood pressure, allowing blood to flow through the body more easily.
  • Angiotensin II receptor blockers block specific hormones from having any effect on the heart and blood vessels, thereby preventing blood pressure from rising.
  • Beta-blockers work by slowing down the heart rate and decreasing the effects of adrenaline on the heart. This helps lower blood pressure so the heart has to do less work.
  • Calcium channel blockers interrupt the movement of calcium into the cells of the heart and blood vessels, relaxing the blood vessels. They can also help slow the heart rate during an arrhythmia. Calcium channel blockers are generally avoided in patients with a weakened heart muscle (such as individuals with heart failure).
  • Digitalis can help the heart contract harder when its pumping function has been weakened.
  • Vasodilators increase blood and oxygen to the heart, reducing its workload. This can help ease angina.
  • Diuretics, also known as water pills, rid the body of excess fluids and sodium through urination. This helps relieve the heart’s workload.
  • Cholesterol-lowering medicines, like statins, decrease levels of LDL (“bad”) cholesterol in the blood.

Surgical Options

If both lifestyle changes and medication are not enough, your doctor may suggest surgery. The type of heart disease you have and how much damage has been done to your heart will determine which procedure is needed.

Medical procedures to treat heart disease can include:

  • Angioplasty In angioplasty, special tubing is threaded up to the coronary artery with an attached deflated balloon. The balloon is then inflated to widen the areas that are blocked and where blood flow to the heart has been slowed or cut off.
  • Stent Placement A wire mesh tube is used to prop open an artery during an angioplasty and stays in the artery permanently.
  • Artificial Heart Valve Surgery This procedure restores function to the heart valves by repairing or replacing a diseased or damaged heart valve with a healthy one.
  • Bypass Surgery This surgery removes healthy arteries or veins from other parts of the body and uses them to reroute blood around clogged arteries in the heart, improving blood flow to the heart.
  • Radiofrequency Ablation This procedure can treat a variety of heart rhythm problems when medications do not work. A catheter is placed at the site in the heart where electrical signals are causing the abnormal heart rhythm. A mild radiofrequency energy is then transmitted, destroying heart muscle cells in a very small area.
  • Cardiomyoplasty This is an experimental procedure in which doctors remove skeletal muscles from the back or abdomen and wrap them around a weakened heart to help boost its ability to pump.
  • Heart Transplant This surgery is performed in the most serious of circumstances, when a heart is irreversibly damaged. If you need a heart transplant, your heart will be removed and replaced with a healthy one from an organ donor.
  • Transmyocardial Revascularization This procedure is performed with a laser, which drills tiny pinholes through the heart muscle and into the heart’s pumping chamber to improve blood flow and reduce angina.

Prevention of Heart Disease

Having a healthy diet and consistently exercising are two of the most important actions to take to prevent heart disease.

Exercise improves heart health in a number of ways. Aerobic exercise can improve circulation and lowers blood pressure and cholesterol. It can also help you to maintain a healthy weight. Resistance training strengthens muscles to better protect them from injury and boosts metabolism. This makes it easier to burn calories and maintain a healthy weight, which keeps the heart healthy. Long-term resistance training can help lower blood pressure, too. The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity per week.

Yoga and other exercises that focus on breath work can also help to reduce stress, which is a risk factor for heart disease.

A healthy diet is another way to take care of your heart and can help prevent — or possibly reverse — heart disease. Foods that are part of a heart-healthy diet include:

  • Fruits and vegetables
  • Whole grains
  • Low-fat or fat-free dairy products
  • Lean protein, like skinless poultry and fish
  • Nuts, seeds, and legumes
  • Nontropical vegetable oils, like olive and canola oils

The AHA recommends the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) eating plan for optimal heart health.

Foods to limit for a heart-healthy diet include those that are high in saturated fat, trans fat, and sodium.

Other ways to lead a heart-healthy life include:

  • Maintaining a healthy weight
  • Abstaining from smoking cigarettes
  • Limiting alcohol consumption
  • Finding ways to manage stress

Complications of Heart Disease

Heart disease can lead to a number of serious, potentially fatal complications, including heart attack, stroke, and heart failure.

Heart disease can also lead to an aneurysm, or a bulge in the wall of an artery that can occur anywhere in the body.

If an aneurysm bursts, it is serious and can lead to life-threatening internal bleeding.

Finally, heart disease can lead to sudden cardiac arrest, or the unexpected loss of heart function. This is often caused by an arrhythmia called ventricular fibrillation or ventricular tachycardia. Sudden cardiac arrest is a medical emergency and, if not treated immediately, will result in death.

Research and Statistics: How Many People Have Heart Disease?

Approximately 126.9 million Americans have some form of heart disease.

Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death globally. Every year, heart disease kills about 659,000 Americans, making it responsible for 1 in 4 deaths.

Black and Hispanic Communities and Heart Disease

While heart disease is the leading cause of death for all adults in the United States, certain populations are at a greater risk than others. African Americans are 20 percent more likely to die from heart disease than non-Hispanic white Americans.

Furthermore, when looking at younger and middle-aged adults, African Americans ages 18 to 49 are twice as likely to die of heart disease than non-Hispanic white Americans.

As a whole, the Black community has higher rates of some of the main risk factors for heart disease, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, and obesity. Teasing out the underlying causes of these risk factors is difficult, but researchers believe that a combination of socioeconomic factors, environment, education, stress levels, and culture are all at play. Genetics may also factor in. Some research, for example, suggests that Black Americans have a gene that makes them more sensitive to salt.

Hispanic women are likely to develop heart disease 10 years earlier than non-Hispanic women. However, only 1 in 3 Hispanic women are aware that heart disease is the No. 1 cause of death in their community. Culturally, many Hispanic women report they're more likely to take preventive action for their families when it comes to heart health, rather than focusing on themselves.

Unfortunately, these selfless actions can become dangerous and even deadly.

Related Conditions and Causes of Heart Disease

It is widely accepted that obesity takes a toll on the heart. First, it increases your risk of developing many other risk factors for heart disease, including hypertension, high cholesterol, and type 2 diabetes. It also triggers inflammatory processes that can harm your cardiovascular system and can lead to structural or functional changes in the heart itself. Extra weight forces your heart to work harder, placing it under increased stress. Over time, this can lead to symptoms of heart failure.

Sleep apnea, a condition in which a person may experience pauses in breathing during sleep, is closely related to heart disease, too.

These episodes cause the sleeper to wake and gasp for air, preventing restful sleep. Over time, the repeated awakenings and sudden drops in blood oxygen levels that occur with sleep apnea can increase blood pressure and strain the cardiovascular system. Sleep apnea is associated with a higher risk of heart attack, arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation, stroke, and heart failure.

Heart Disease Resources We Love

Favorite Organizations for Essential Information About Heart Disease

American Heart Association

The AHA is the nation’s oldest and largest nonprofit organization dedicated to fighting heart disease. The AHA funds lifesaving research, advocates for people affected by all heart-related issues, and provides education about heart and stroke. You can also connect with others living with various heart conditions through the AHA’s support network.

American College of Cardiology (ACC)

The ACC is a nonprofit medical association that bestows credentials to cardiovascular specialists who meet their criteria. For nearly four decades, the ACC has partnered with the AHA to develop clinical practice guidelines for practicing cardiologists. The ACC holds annual meetings that focus on the latest research and innovation in the realm of heart health.

Favorite Online Support Networks

WomenHeart

This organization helps women who are dealing with heart-related health issues connect with one another. Check out the website, where you can scroll over an interactive map of the United States to see if there are local support networks in your community. WomenHeart also offers one-on-one support by text, phone, or email, virtual live meetings, and an online community.

Mended Hearts

This national- and community-based organization is a peer-to-peer support network for people with heart disease and their families. Use its website to find a local chapter or support group near you or join one of the online discussion groups focusing on an array of heart conditions.

Conquering CHD

This nonprofit organization seeks to empower patients living with congenital heart disease (CHD) and their families. Online support networks include Facebook groups for teens and adults with CHD, a Spanish-language support group, and a bereavement group for families affected by CHD. There are also several state chapters, which offer both virtual and in-person peer support.

Favorite Apps for People With Heart Disease

Cardiio

Cardiio is a heart fitness app that uses your phone's camera to measure your heart rate and provides users with information on how the numbers relate to their general health. Also find tips on how to perform effective workouts and track your progress. Cardiio is free on the App Store.

PulsePoint Respond

This app alerts users who have indicated they are trained in CPR if someone nearby is having a cardiac emergency and may require CPR before EMS can arrive. The app also directs these potential rescuers to the closest automated external defibrillator.

Favorite Resource for Heart-Healthy Diet Advice

EatRight.org

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics offers advice and comprehensive, actionable cooking tips to make your diet more heart-healthy.

Favorite Resource for Becoming an Advocate

Go Red for Women

The AHA’s signature women’s initiative is designed to increase awareness around women’s heart health and spur change to improve the lives of women around the world. Participate in the annual National Wear Red Day every February and start conversations about women’s heart health with those in your life.

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