Fabulous information, but lacking information isn’t the issue. The behavioral changes are obvious and well evangelized : lose weight, regular activity (walking), and if necessary, take meds. (Yes I know your marathon runner cousin who died suddenly of a heart attack, but these are still your best odds) Telling people what to do rarely fixes anything. People need dozens of impressions for those changes to sink in. Fri…
Ticker: Don't die of heart disease
31–40 of 501 posts
Re: Ticker: Don't die of heart disease
#32It is very difficult to have any level of confidence with the medical industry so my current approach has been to eat as healthy as possible while staying as fit as I can without undue extreme stress.
Re: Ticker: Don't die of heart disease
#33A key takeaway is: don't be afraid of taking statins if you need them. I fell for the "statins are bad" BS for years and have paid the price.
Re: Ticker: Don't die of heart disease
#34There doesn't seem to be any mention of hypertension on that page.
Re: Ticker: Don't die of heart disease
#35I might just be tired, but this seems highly repetitive. The author mentions friends in the field and concierge doctors multiple times in as much as I read. Feels like the whole thing could be shortened to just say "here's the tests you run, the drugs you might take, the lifestyle changes you should consider".
Re: Ticker: Don't die of heart disease
#36Re: Ticker: Don't die of heart disease
#37The title of the article says "don't die of heart disease", but given that we all have to die at some point, if you could choose what natural cause to die of, wouldn't you pick heart disease? It is the best way to die. The worst is stroke. So once you cross a certain age, say 60, don't worry about heart disease, worry instead about stroke.
He got up to make a sandwich for my mother in law, who was very sick, and don’t come back. Massive heart attack and aortic rupture - he was dead before he hit the ground.
My dad had a lot of stress over his career and his share of health issues but found a happy medium and improved his health greatly stating about in his late 40s. He was basically walk/running 2-5 miles a day for several years after retirement. He had a major stroke, recovered somewhat, and then ended up almost dying from a kidney stone and resulting infection. (He could not communicate pain as part of his aphasia.) long story short, he suffered in a lot of ways (pain, disability, loss of dignity) for 4 years before finally succumbing.
In online discussions, we tend to boil everything down to death. Reality is that longer you can put off complications, the better you will be when something more severe happens or you get sick. As you age, each time something happens, your recovery is a little less robust. Go to the doctor, take your statins and take care of yourself.
Re: Ticker: Don't die of heart disease
#38Very interesting, but do the numerous mentions of taking action in your 20s, 30s and 40s mean it's too late for someone in their 50s? Nitpick: he mentions LDL-C but the test results don't mention that at all. Only later do I see that is "LDL Cholesterol".
EDIT - I misread the comment. It’s never too late to start, just be careful for injuries as that will block your ability to exercise.
Re: Ticker: Don't die of heart disease
#39Tl;dr be affluent enough to be able to afford great medical care and have enough free time for preventative actions
Walking and eating sensibly is free. Even a balance oatmeal, rice & beans with infrequent meat servings would defend against heart disease better than expensive medicine, at less than $1 / day.
Re: Ticker: Don't die of heart disease
#40The title of the article says "don't die of heart disease", but given that we all have to die at some point, if you could choose what natural cause to die of, wouldn't you pick heart disease? It is the best way to die. The worst is stroke. So once you cross a certain age, say 60, don't worry about heart disease, worry instead about stroke.
Dementia seems a pretty awful outcome too. I hope my heart gives out before my brain.