When Is It An Emergency
If you suddenly notice a change in your heartbeat that is accompanied by:
- feeling fluttering or palpitations in your chest
- having pain or discomfort in your chest
- exercise intolerance
Your doctor may use a variety of diagnostic tools to help diagnose your condition, including:
- Holter or event monitor. This is a smaller, portable EKG machine you wear for a set amount of time to help your doctor monitor your electrocardiographic signals.
- Electrocardiogram. Also referred to as an ECG or EKG, this diagnostic tool uses small electrodes to record the electrical activity of your heart. Your doctor can use the information collected to determine if heart abnormalities are contributing to your condition.
- Stress test. Sometimes called a treadmill test, this can help diagnose people whose symptoms may be exercise related.
- A tilt-table test. This measures how your blood pressure and heart rate respond when you go from lying down to standing up. People dealing with fainting spells are usually candidates.
- Imaging tests. Imaging can be used to assess if there are any structural abnormalities in your heart that may be contributing to your condition. Possible imaging tests can include echocardiogram, CT scan, and MRI scan.
- Electrophysiologic testing. Done under local anesthesia, this procedure involves temporary electrode catheters being threaded through veins or arteries into the heart to record the hearts electrical signals.
Your Target Heart Rate Is What Matters
One way you can compensate for a slower heart rate is to get and stay fit. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that adults get 150 minutes of moderate-intensity cardio a week or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity a week.
When you go into serious training, you stretch the cardiac muscles, says Benson. Thats how you improve stroke volume. And, according to the American Heart Association, when your stroke volume is highermeaning your body can pump more blood with each heartbeatthe heart doesnt have to beat as many times to deliver the same amount of blood to your muscles.
So how can you try to exercise at the right intensity? If you own a Fitbit Alta HR, Charge 2, Blaze, or Surge and have your birthday logged in your profile, your tracker can help. Heres how it works: Using the common formula of 220 minus your age, Fitbit will calculate your maximum heart rate and then create three target heart rate zonesfat burn , cardio , and peak based off that number. After exercising, you can click on the workout summary within your exercise tile to see how many minutes you logged in each zone.
These zones explain why my son and I can run togetherat different heart ratesand feel like were expending the same amount of effort.
For instance, at age 15, my sons max heart rate is 205 and his cardio heart rate zone is 144 to 172
My Blood Pressure Is 140/90 What Do I Do
Dr. T
QUESTION:
Dear Doctor,
My mothers blood pressure is 140/90. She is 56 years old. Whether the Blood Pressure 140/90 is normal one ? What are the precautions to be taken to reduce the blood pressure ?Please give me the answer ASAP.
Thanks
ANSWER:
Prasad,
It is a little high. Hypertension is considered to be present when a persons systolic blood pressure is consistently 140 mmHg or greater, and/or their diastolic blood pressure is consistently 90 mmHg or greater.
While elevated blood pressure alone is not an illness, it often requires treatment due to its effects on many organs. The risk is especially increased for:
- Stroke
Treatment includes
- Lifestyle modification with weight reduction and regular aerobic exercise are recommended as the first steps in treating mild to moderate hypertension.
- Reducing salt in your diet is proven very effective: it decreases blood pressure in about 60% of people. Many people choose to use a salt substitute to reduce their salt intake.
- A diet rich in fruits and vegetables and low fat or fat-free dairy foods.
- Stop smoking and limit the use of alcohol.
- Medications. Evidence suggests that reduction of the blood pressure by 5-6 mmHg can decrease the risk of Stroke by 40%, of Coronary Artery Disease by 15-20%.
Hope this helps,
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Why Your Heart Rate Goes Up When Youre Sick
When you get sick a run-of-the-mill illness, like a cold or the flu you may have noticed your heart beats a little faster than normal. In that moment, perhaps you even got a bit nervous. You may have asked yourself, why is my heart beating so fast? or should I call a doctor about it?
Its totally normal to have an increased heart rate when youre sick. Most of the time, its not a cause for concern. When you get sick, your body temperature usually rises, and that makes your heart beat faster. However, to better understand exactly whats going on, we spoke with Jason Hatch, MD, a cardiologist at Banner Health, to discuss the connection between sickness and your heart rate. Heres what you should know.
How To Check Your Resting Heart Rate
The best places to check your pulse are your wrists, the inside of your elbow, the side of your neck, and the top of the foot, according to the American Heart Association.
The wrist or neck is easiest for most people, Osborne says, but wherever you can get a good read is fine there’s no location that’s necessarily more accurate than another.
Here’s how to do it:
- Place your index and middle finger on your wrist or neck. Refrain from moving or talking as you press gently and feel for a mild thumping sensation.
- When you feel a consistent pulse, keep your two fingers in the same spot.
- Using a timer to keep track, count your pulse for thirty seconds. Multiply that number by two to calculate your heart rate in beats per minute.
According to Osborne, it makes sense to check your heart rate regularly about every month or so. To get the most accurate measurement, you should take it a few times in a row and try not to smoke, drink alcohol, or have caffeine beforehand, as they can influence your heart rate.
A normal resting heart rate usually ranges bewteen 60 to 100 bpm in adults, but it can vary based on your age, genetics, health conditions, and fitness level.
If you are interested in checking your heart rate while exercising, you’ll need to use a different measure.
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What Happens In Pots
Normally when you sit up or stand, gravity pulls some of your blood down to your belly area, hands and feet.
In response, your blood vessels quickly narrow and your heart rate increases slightly to maintain blood flow to the heart and brain, and prevent blood pressure dropping.
This is all done without needing to think about it, by the autonomic nervous system the nervous system in charge of automatic body functions.
In PoTS, the autonomic nervous system does not work properly. There’s a drop in blood supply to the heart and brain when you become upright and the heart races to compensate for this.
Why Does A Good Resting Heart Rate Matter
It’s important to know what heart rate is healthy and normal at every age in your life. Your heart rate, or pulse, can guide you to discover dangerous health conditions that need expert care, such as some heart problems. But your normal resting heart rate changes throughout your life as you age. Read this guide to learn more about your pulse through every step of your life.
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What Are The Benefits Of Brisk Walking
Regular cardio exercise, like brisk walking, offers a wide range of physical and mental benefits. Some well-researched benefits include:
- Weight loss. Walking can help you lose excess weight by burning more calories, increasing lean muscle mass, and boosting your mood so youre more likely to keep on walking.
- Improved cardiovascular health. According to a
- how much lean muscle you have
- the intensity at which you work out
- how long you work out
To burn a higher number of calories, youll want to walk at a faster pace. Youll also want to walk for a longer period of time.
For instance, youll burn more calories if you walk at a pace of 4 miles per hour for 35 minutes than if you walk at a pace of 3 mph for 20 minutes.
Heres a snapshot of the calories you can burn, depending on your weight and pace, if you walk for 1 hour. Divide this number by 2 to figure out the calorie burn for a 30-minute walk:
| Weight |
To burn more calories on your walk, try some of these strategies:
How Is Bradycardia Diagnosed
When you see your doctor, they will measure your heart rate. Your heart rate might have returned to normal, so its a good idea to keep a record of when you experience bradycardia or related symptoms.
Your doctor will also need to work out the cause of your bradycardia. They will ask about your symptoms and your medical and family health history, and will examine you. Tests, such as an electrocardiogram, or ECG, might be done to check your heart. Depending on what is found, you might need further tests such as a stress test.
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Fast Heart Rate Causes
Fast heart rate, or tachycardia, is defined as a heart beating more than 100 times per minute. Sometimes a fast heartbeat is regular, but other times the beat is erratic, which is referred to as an . A fast heartbeat can occur briefly or can continue for a longer period of time. You may not even know you have a fast heart rate unless you are examined. You may or may not have other symptoms along with a fast heart rate.
Some issues that can cause a fast heart rate include:
- Sudden fright or shock
- Use of illegal stimulant drugs, such as cocaine
Sometimes, eating certain foods or overeating can bring on a fast heart rate. This is because eating causes blood to be redirected to your digestive system, which can raise both your heart rate and blood pressure.
Certain foods also contain substances that can trigger higher heart rate in some people. Examples include sugary or high-carb foods in people with low blood sugar high-salt foods in those with or eating spicy foods that cause , which can result in a pounding heart. Usually, a fast heart rate after eating is not a cause for concern, but you should mention its occurrence to your doctor, especially if this happens repeatedly.
How The Heart Works
The heart has two upper chambers and two lower chambers .
The atria and ventricles have walls of muscle. A heartbeat happens when this muscle suddenly contracts so that the chambers become smaller and the blood inside is squeezed out.
The control of the heartbeat starts with a small clump of cells in the right atrium, called the sinoatrial node . This sends out electrical impulses through the atrial muscle to another clump of cells called the atrioventricular node, found between the atria and ventricles. The impulse then continues through the AV node down fibres that conduct the impulse into the muscle of the ventricles.
The AV node determines the rate of contraction of the ventricles. The pulse felt at the wrist is due to the contraction of the ventricles.
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What Is A Healthy Resting Heart Rate For An Adult
A normal resting heart rate for adults lies somewhere between 60 and 100 beats per minute , and varies based on age group and gender. Women’s heart rates are about 2-7 BPM faster than men’s on average.
Generally speaking, you want to keep your resting heart rate as low as possible. One large, long-term study compared men with heart rates above 90 and those below 80. The men with higher average heart rates were associated with triple the risk of death.
People with lower heart rates tend to be more active and get more exercise than others. A young, highly-trained athlete’s healthy resting heart rate may be as low as 40 BPM.
What Is The Heart Rate
Heart rate or pulse rate is the number of times your heart beats in a minute. It is a simple measure to know how much your heart works during rest or activities.
Heart rate is one of the vital signs that are checked regularly whenever you visit your doctor, or when you get admitted to the hospital.
Your heart rate is lower when you are resting and higher when you are doing any kind of activity, or are feeling stressed or anxious.
When you exercise, your heart needs to work harder, which increases your heart rate. As soon as you rest, the heart rate starts decreasing gradually and returns to its normal level, usually within an hour.
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Normal Heart Rate In Human
In basic, the adult resting heart beats in between 60 and 100 times per minute. When an individual has tachycardia, the upper and/or lower chambers of the heart beat considerably quicker.
Our heart rates are managed by electrical signals that are sent throughout the tissues of the heart. When the heart produces rapid electrical signals, tachycardia occurs.
When the heart beats too rapidly, it pumps less effectively and blood circulation to the remainder of the body, including the heart itself, is decreased.
Since the heart is beating quicker, the muscles of the heart require more oxygen if this continues, oxygen-starved myocardial cells can pass away off, causing a cardiovascular disease .
Some patients with tachycardia might have no symptoms or complications. Nevertheless, tachycardia considerably increases the risk of stroke, abrupt cardiac arrest, and death.
How Do I Determine Heart Rate
Take your pulse on the inside of your wrist on the thumb side or on the side of your neck next to your larynx .
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What Is A Normal Or Resting Heart Rate
There are three general ways to classify heart rate, 1) normal, 2) fast and 3) slow.
- A resting heart rate is normal between 60-100 beats per minute.
- A resting heart rate is fast at greater than 100 beats per minute.
- A resting heart rate is slow at less than 60 beats per minute.
A resting heart rate predicts longevity and cardiovascular disease, and current evidence suggests that it is also an important marker of outcome in cardiovascular disease, including heart failure. A normal heart rate is generally stated to be between 60-100 beats per minute at rest . However, recent studies have suggested that an ideal resting heart rate is between 50-70 beats per minute. It is well-known that the average resting heart rate for well-trained athletes is between 40-60 beats per minute! A heart rate can change dramatically while sleeping or with daily activity and exercise. Usually, a heart rate will be slower during sleep, faster during daily activities or with exercise, and recover quickly back to a resting rate after exercise. This means your heart has appropriate heart rate variability and recovery, which is associated with good heart health. Your resting heart rate can also be used to estimate how much energy your body uses, or your basal metabolic rate.
Is Your Heart Rate Linked To Blood Pressure
If youre exercising or feeling anxious, both your heart rate and blood pressure normally increase. But even if your resting heart rate is within the normal limits, this doesnt necessarily mean your blood pressure is, too, as your blood pressure is very different from your heart rate. Your blood pressure is the force needed to push your blood along the arteries in your body, while your heart rate is how many times this happens each minute. Although this process requires a certain amount of pressure, if it becomes too high over a sustained period, it can cause your heart to become enlarged. This could eventually lead to heart failure.
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How To Check Your Heart Rate
You can check your heart rate by counting your pulse. A pulse can be felt at various sites on the body like over the sides of the neck, the wrist, and the top of the foot. To check your pulse on the wrist with the help of your middle finger and index finger, you need to:
- Keep your middle finger and your index finger over the inner part of the wrist and keep pressing gently until you can feel your pulse. The pulse is felt in your radial artery.
- After you have located your pulse, look at the watch, and start counting the beats for 30 seconds. Doubling this count will give you your heart rate. You can even count the beats for 10 seconds and multiply the number by six to get your heart rate.
If you find the rhythm of your heartbeat slightly irregular, you will have to count the beats completely until 60 seconds. You will have to visit your doctor if you keep getting a fast and irregular heart rate consistently.
Whats Considered Brisk Walking
The term brisk walking is somewhat vague. Is it a little faster than your normal pace? Is it a lot faster?
To help firm up exactly what it means, there are several ways to measure your pace to make sure youre in the brisk zone. Lets take a closer look at three options for gauging whether youre walking at the right pace.
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