Those who think of heart problems usually have shortness of breath and chest pain in mind as primary symptoms of heart disease. But looking for these warning signs might be too late for you to react as these symptoms only appear before a heart attack. So, what are the symptoms of heart disease that you should look for? Let’s find out.
The heart is one of the most precious organs in the body. It starts working before you are born and keeps working throughout your life without the slightest pause. The symptoms of heart disease are different for different people. Sometimes it is the atypical symptoms that indicate heart health like painful legs can also be a symptom of heart disease. Therefore, we have summarized both typical and atypical symptoms of heart disease that you need to know.
1. Leg Pain is a Symptom of Heart Disease
You should be particularly sensitive when it comes to pain in the calves that occur when walking and quickly subsides when standing. Caution should also be exercised if pain occurs in the toe area when lying down, especially when the pain subsides when you get up.
These two types of pain are often due to vascular calcification in the blood vessels of the legs, according to the foundation. The resulting circulatory disorders do not only cause problems for the legs, but the risk of heart attack also increases.
According to the experts, around 237 million people worldwide suffer from the so-called peripheral arterial disease.
2. Edema Can Indicate a Sick Heart
With heart disease, edema can also develop in the leg and foot area. These are pathological fluid deposits in the tissue. Edema is usually noticeable as painful swellings. The reason is that the heart can no longer pump the blood sufficiently.
A backlog builds up, which can lead to blood accumulation in the foot. Due to the pressure that is created, more and more liquid is pressed into the tissue.
3. Urge to Urinate More Often is a Warning sign
The visible symptoms of heart disease like edema or leg pain are not the only ones you should look out for. The symptoms might be as simple as the increased frequency of urination. If the bladder keeps calling at night, you should think about your heart.
Because when the heart is too weak to provide adequate blood circulation, water from the over-pressured veins penetrates into the tissue. During sleep, this accumulated fluid flows back and collects in the bladder, thus making you go to the toilet again and again.
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4. Snore and startle at night
If you keep waking up from your sleep, gasping for breath, sleep apnea may be behind it. The breath stops for a few seconds. A consequence of the heavy daytime tiredness is constant startling while sleeping. Cardiovascular disease can be behind the nightly shortness of breath.
5. Potency problems are often due to the heart
If the potency suddenly decreases, a sick heart can be the trigger because too high blood pressure is often the most important risk factor for heart and vascular diseases. As a result of high blood pressure, the fine vessels in the male reproductive organ are damaged over time.
It can no longer fill itself with blood sufficiently, and the erection wears off. In such a case, men should consider this a symptom of heart disease and consult a doctor.
6. The cough without a cold
Not every cough is harmless. Sometimes it can even indicate a sick heart, such as Cardiac Cough or Asthma Cardinale. The cough occurs particularly with exertion, for example, when climbing stairs or at night. Many patients with heart failure are familiar with the seizure-like coughing fits.
The trigger is congestion in the pulmonary circulation. It is often difficult to distinguish between lung congestion with a strong cough and bronchitis. In addition to coughing, there are often breathing interruptions.
7. Take shortness of breath seriously on the stairs
If you start to breathe after the first floor, you shouldn’t blame it on your lack of fitness or your age. Because here too, it may be that undetected heart disease is behind the outgoing breath.
Listening to your breath in everyday life helps. If you experience increased breathing during gardening or walking a few steps, you should get medical advice.
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8. Correctly interpret nausea and abdominal pain
The symptoms of heart disease are often unspecific. In addition to the classic symptoms like pressure or tightness in the chest, women often suffer from nausea, tenderness in the upper abdomen, vomiting, and shortness of breath.
It is important to think about a heart attack, especially when such symptoms of heart disease occur with unprecedented violence. If you have the slightest suspicion of a heart attack, you should contact the doctor.