Menopause Hormones And Heart Disease Risk
When a woman is still having her menstrual period, estrogen and progesterone levels rise and fall during different times of the month, according to the Cleveland Clinic. When a woman enters perimenopause, the lead up to menopause, there is a significant decrease in estrogen production that is associated with an increase in heart rate and an increased frequency in palpitations and nonthreatening arrhythmias.
Perimenopause can begin 8 to 10 years before menopause during the last one to two years of this transition, the drop in estrogen accelerates and many women can begin to experience menopausal symptoms.
Menopause is diagnosed in hindsight, after a woman has gone without a menstrual period for 12 consecutive months. Estrogen declines even further during this phase and irregular heartbeats and palpitations can occur, according to research published in the journal Climacteric.
Although menopause doesnt cause heart disease, the risk for developing heart disease goes up with the onset of menopause, according to the American Heart Association . One factor that may contribute is the decline in estrogen, which is believed to have benefits for the inner layer of the artery wall, helping to keep blood vessels flexible.
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Why Are You Experiencing Gas And Heart Palpitations
1. Eating Gassy Foods
If you eat foods that produce too much gas then you may feel heart flutters from air pressure in your stomach. Some of the gas inducing foods include soda, foods with fiber , and high sugar foods.
2. Swallowing Too Much Air
If you eat too fast you may swallow too much air. This can cause your stomach to bloat and put pressure on your heart. This can also happen when you chew gum and swallow often.
3. H. Pylori Infection
Helicobacter pylori are bacteria that can invade the lining of the stomach. It may cause acid and gas buildup that may lead to heart palpitations.
4. Pancreas Problems
If the pancreas does not release enough enzymes the digestion process slows down. This can cause excess gas that leads to bloating and heart palpitations.
5. Food Poisoning
If you eat food that contains bacteria or parasites, you may get food poisoning. Not only does this cause vomiting and/or diarrhea, it may also cause gas and heart palpitations.
6. Fructose Malabsorption
With this, your body cannot properly digest fructose and carbohydrates. It causes a gas buildup in your intestines that can lead to pressure on the upper abdomen and cause heart palpitations.
7. Slowed Digestion
If food moves slowly through your digestive tract then gas may get trapped in the stomach area. People with anorexia, stomach muscle issues, and gastroparesis usually suffer from this.
8. Gluten Intolerance
What Examinations Are Done In A Patient With Palpitations
ECG
If you are having palpitations the first thing that you should do is to do an ECG. ECG is essential to find out exactly what type of arrhythmia you are having.
Holter monitoring
If the basal ECG doesnt show any arrhythmia than Holter monitoring is essential for the diagnosis of arrhythmia.
Cardiac ECHO
It is essential for the evaluation of palpitations because it will help to evaluate heart structure and heart valves. Any damage on heart structure or valves may be the cause of palpitations.
Hormonal balance
Hormones influence in heart work and hormonal abnormalities may be the cause of arrhythmias.
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Foods That Cause Heart Palpitations
By Stephen T. Sinatra, M.D., F.A.C.C., F.A.C.N., C.N.S., C.B.T.
Often when I write about the best and worst foods for the heart, I talk in the context of heart-healing foods that are good to eat, as well as foods that should be avoided because they fan the flames of inflammation. Those discussions focus on how the things we eat and drink every day affect heart health over the long haul.
Today, though, I want to shift gears and focus on foods that can have more immediate and noticeable impacts on the heartstarting with foods that can cause heart palpitations. In this article Ill explore:
The Most Common Causes Of Heart Palpitations
If youve ever had the sensation that your heart is beating in an unexpected way, youre familiar with the feeling of heart palpitations.
Heart palpitations are usually not serious. However, its very important to have them evaluated to rule out a potentially problematic heart condition.
Here at HeartCare Associates of Connecticut, LLC in Hamden, Connecticut, our providers are experts at diagnosing and treating a full range of heart conditions, including heart palpitations. Wed like to share this important information about the causes of heart palpitations with you.
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What Exactly Is A Migraine
The âclassicâ migraine is preceded by aura, which typically consists of strange visual disturbances zigzagging lines, flashing lights, and, occasionally, temporary vision loss. Numbness and tingling affecting one side of the lips, tongue, face, and the hand on the same side may also occur. But only about a third of migraine sufferers experience aura, and fewer still with every attack.
The migraine headache, with or without aura, often but not always produces pain that usually begins on one side of the head. A migraine headache also often has a pulsating quality to it. Many people experience nausea, extreme sensitivity to light or sound, or both.
Itâs also possible to confuse other sorts of headaches with migraines. Migraines can cause nasal congestion and a runny nose, so theyâre sometimes mistaken for sinus headaches. And the regular headache that most of us have experienced can have some of the features of a migrainous one, such as unilateral pain and nausea.
In short, arriving at a definition and diagnosis for migraine is complicated. Yet a simple headache diary keeping track of headaches and factors that might have provoked them can be very helpful in making a diagnosis.
Midlife Women With Insomnia Depression And Higher Stress Are More Likely To Experience Palpitations
Carpenter and colleagues published a study in the December 2020 issue of the Journal of Womens Health that looked at 759 women who were perimenopausal and postmenopausal and had vasomotor symptoms, meaning that they were experiencing hot flashes 14 or more times a week and the hot flashes were bothersome or severe on four or more days or nights per week.
Investigators found that on average about 1 in 4 women reported palpitation distress which they could rate from not at all to a lot of bother. Although the palpitations were fairly common, they didnt cause severe distress in a lot of women, says Dr. Lewey, who was not involved in this research. Only about 5 percent of women said that they had moderate distress and 1.5 percent said they had severe distress from the palpitations, she says.
That may seem like a small percentage of women, but if you consider the hundreds of thousands of women going through some stage of perimenopause or the menopausal transition every year, this symptom does actually impact a large number of women, according to Lewey.
This study does a nice job of characterizing the problem and how common it is. I think a lot of women donât expect to have heart palpitations as a symptom of perimenopause or menopause, and they can be surprised and sometimes scared when it does happen, she says.
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How Is Myocarditis Diagnosed
Sometimes symptoms may go away on their own, so a diagnosis wont be needed.However, if symptoms dont go away you may need tests such as:
- an electrocardiogram to check for an abnormal heart rhythm, if you have experienced palpitations
- a chest X-ray, to check for fluid in or around the heart
- an echocardiogram , if your doctor is concerned there may be heart muscle damage
- blood tests to check for infection.
Opioid Use And Heart Palpitations
The term cardiac arrhythmia describes a disruption to the hearts natural rhythm. Individuals with cardiac arrhythmia may experience heart palpitations, or the feeling of an irregular heartbeat.
This can feel like any of the following:
- Your heart beating too fast
- Your heart beating too hard
- Your heart fluttering
- Your heart skipping a beat
There are many factors that can cause arrhythmia and heart palpitations. One of these is the use of certain drugs such as opiates.
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How Is Gas And Heart Palpitations Related
It is common to get gas after eating, but there are some people that experience heart palpitations too. This can be concerning, but most often benign depending on the cause of the heart palpitations. Gas is normally caused by taking in air when you eat gas causing foods, carbonated sodas, or eating too fast. On the other hand, heart palpitations may or may not be associated with eating and should be checked by your doctor if you have never experienced this before.
Antibiotics And Cardiac Risk: A Look At Recent Data A Call For Increased Awareness
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In recent years, reports of increased risk for cardiac events associated with use of some antibiotics have been under the spotlight. Widely used antibiotics such as azithromycin have been linked to risk for mortality and others have been linked to pronounced effects on QT interval prolongation. Growing attention on the link led the FDA to issue public health advisories cautioning physicians and patients about usage of certain antibiotics in patients who are already at risk for CV events.
Experts Cardiology Today interviewed said recent reports should not cause undue alarm, but rather underscore the need for careful consideration of antibiotic regimens in patients with known CV risk. Increased awareness and education on which antibiotics can raise the risk for CV events and in which patients higher risk is most likely to occur are key, they said.
The prescribing of any antibiotic is a trade-off between the risks and the benefits. The adverse cardiac events are just like any other adverse effects, such as photosensitivity or superinfection with Clostridium difficile,Wayne A. Ray, PhD, professor of public health policy at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, said in an interview. These effects need to be considered in the prescribing decision.
Image: Marty Perlman
Mechanisms of risk
Recent reports of interest
Wayne A. Ray
Practice considerations
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Ask The Gp: Has A Recent Tooth Infection Caused Me To Have Heart Palpitations
Q: I HAVE impacted wisdom teeth and recently had one removed because it caused an infection. I also started having heart palpitations, which went away when I was taking antibiotics for the infection but came back after I finished them. My breathing is laboured, too. Is this connected to my tooth infection?
SH, by email
A: Heart palpitations are defined as an awareness of forceful, rapid or irregular heartbeats. Although they may feel significant, their root cause is often innocent. Mostly palpitations are due to extra systoles, or heartbeats, which occur in all of us at times and are more common when we are under stress or drink excess caffeine, for example.
Now that your symptoms are occurring with breathlessness you do need further investigation, as this can happen when there is an underlying issue, such as a heart rhythm problem.
There are any number of possible causes, and without knowing about your medical history, age, current medication and other symptoms, it would be misleading to speculate whether or not there is a connection with your tooth infection.
Dental infections such as your recent wisdom tooth problem are usually localised to the jaw and soft tissues. But there are occasions when infection can spread elsewhere in the body, including to the heart.
Endocarditis when bacteria travelling in the bloodstream alight on one or more of the heart valves, causing infection there can be secondary to a dental infection.
A Bad Pillow Or Mattress
Sometimes, morning headaches are caused by strained neck muscles. If your pillow or mattress isnt supporting your neck in the right way, your unhealthy sleep posture can make your head throb. The best mattress and pillow should support your head and neck in a neutral position similar to when youre standing. If your pillow is too soft or too firm, it can fail to support your head and neck properly.
A good rule of thumb is that your pillow should fit the contours of your head, neck, shoulders, and back so that it relieves the tension and pressure that can lead to headaches. Sometimes, the top part of your head stays on the pillow as you sleep, but your neck isnt really touching it at all which leads to a completely unnatural position that strains muscles and leads to headaches.
You might need some trial and error to find a pillow with the right firmness, but its worth the effort. As a first step, why not try the Purple Pillow it features an elastic polymer molded into a smart-comfort grid that supports your necks natural curvature. In fact, its specifically designed for ideal head and neck support and may be your best pillow for neck pain and headaches. The Purple® Pillow is also highly breathable. It allows for plenty of airflow and doesnt absorb heat, so it remains a neutral temperature throughout the night youll be super comfortable and get overall better sleep.
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Antibiotics And Heart Risk
diet, heart attack and stroke, lifestyle habits, TMAO, vitamins and supplements, women’s health
Can Antibiotics Increase Your Heart Attack Risk?
You may have heard that taking too many antibiotics can make them less helpful. This happens because bacteria become resistant to these medications over time. Sometimes, antibiotics may not work at all when you really need them and this can be quite dangerous.
But theres a new reason to be careful about taking a lot of antibiotics. A new study found that women whose total time taking antibiotics was two months or longer had a higher risk of heart attacks and strokes.
In the study, more than 36,000 women in the Nurses Health Study were asked about their use of antibiotics at different times in their lives. These were in their 20s and 30s , in their 40s and 50s , and in their 60s and older . Researchers also asked about the total length of time the women took them: less than 15 days, 15 days to 2 months, or 2 months or more. The women were followed for 8 years to watch for effects on their health.
Researchers found that women over age 60 who took antibiotics for at least 2 months during a 5-year period had the greatest risk of having a heart attack or stroke. Women who took a long course of antibiotics in middle age had a 28% higher risk. Women who took antibiotics for 2 months or longer in their 20s and 30s did not have a higher risk.
How can you avoid the heart risks of antibiotics?
More Research Urgently Needed Scientists Say
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One of the most commonly prescribed antibiotics has been linked with an increased risk of death from heart disease, researchers have said.
Clarithromycin, which is used in the treatment of many bacterial infections, is given to millions of people every year. Its use is already discouraged in patients with certain heart conditions, but in a new analysis of patient data carried out by Danish researchers, the drug was found to cause 37 potentially avoidable deaths compared to similar antibiotics for every one million courses of the antibiotic prescribed.
Although this level of risk is small, they said that the fact that clarithromycin is prescribed to so many people meant that urgent confirmation of their findings was required. However, they did not recommend any immediate changes to prescribing practice.
Clarithromycin belongs to a group of antibiotics known as macrolides. These antibiotics are known to affect the rhythm of the heart muscles electrical activity known as the QT interval and are therefore thought to increase the risk of potentially fatal heart rhythm problems.
Doctors already know to exercise caution when prescribing the drugs to patients with a rare condition called Long QT syndrome, which causes episodes of rapid heart rhythm, or arrhythmia.
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Does Iron Deficiency Cause Headaches
The Merck Manual Home Health Handbook describes iron deficiency as one of the most frequent mineral deficiencies in the world 2. It leads to anemia, a condition that develops when your body does not produce enough healthy red blood cells to supply your organs adequately with oxygen. Iron deficiency can cause a range of symptoms, including headaches.
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What Do Heart Palpitations Feel Like
Heart palpitations produce a sensation where it feels like the heart is fluttering, pounding, or skipping beats. Many people are scared when they feel heart palpitations. The good news is that most causes of heart palpitations are not serious and do not need treatment. If you know what causes heart palpitations, it may ease your mind when you feel them. However, some causes of heart palpitations are serious so you should learn when to be concerned about heart palpitations and when to see a doctor.
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