Heart disease explained: Signs, symptoms, and reduce risk.

Perhaps you’ve heard that smoking is bad for your health. It’s been pretty common knowledge for decades. In fact, smoking is the leading cause of preventable death and disease in the United States. It kills over 480,000 individuals per year in the U.S. alone. Smoking can cause lung cancer and a myriad of other health problems. But did you know that smoking and nicotine can have a big effect on your heart health? Individuals at risk of heart disease, stroke, and even diabetes are advised to stop smoking as soon as possible. You might assume that this is because of the chemicals found in to cigarettes. After all, the average cigarette contains over 5,000 chemicals, including arsenic, at the formaldehyde, and tar. As people have learned what cigarettes contain.

Smoking makes your blood ‘stickier’, causing blood cells to clump together. This slows blood flow through your arteries and makes blockages more common.

Dr. Jon Moxley

Keep in mind, nicotine is addictive. Research on nicotine seems to suggest it’s just as addictive as alcohol, heroin, or cocaine. But, the good news is that quitting smoking can have both long term and immediate benefits to your health and your heart. There are many different ways that people quit smoking. Talking to your doctor is a great place to start. They can suggest local and national programs, behavioral therapists, or even medication that may help you on your journey to quit smoking.

In layman terms, they put a scope down my throat to capture images of my heart to make sure no clots have formed in it due to the irregular heart rhythm. If it turns out to be clot-free, they have a pad on my chest and one on my back and they deliver a shock to my heart. Having gone through two of these procedures, it’s not as awful as it sounds – but like anyone who has to get their heart shocked, there’s some anxiety that accompanies the thought of swallowing a tube and getting shocked.

My experience was positive, and I was glad to share it publicly. I’ve worked closely with the team from the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute for the past four years in my role as a public relations professional with Intermountain Healthcare.