Drinking alcohol during the New Year's festivities can result in a heart attack due to sudden arrhythmias. What constitutes a festive heart syndrome, who should be afraid of it more than anyone else and whether it is possible to defend against it, I figured out. Festive Heart Syndrome is a heart rhythm disorder that occurs in generally healthy people when drinking large amounts of alcohol in a short period of time. Most often, the syndrome is manifested by atrial fibrillation - it is felt as a sudden flutter in the heart. Often the heartbeat will go away on its own, but if it doesn't, it can end in a heart attack.
The name for the syndrome dates back to 1978 in the United States, but little is known about the disorder. Most people with the syndrome do not seem to see a doctor. And conclusions drawn only from cases where fibrillation led to a heart attack may be biased.
Despite rare visits, Finnish scientists estimate that 5-10% of new cases of atrial fibrillation with which patients see a doctor were caused by excessive alcohol consumption.
"The most common diseases associated with atrial fibrillation were coronary artery disease (21%), hypertension (13%) and cardiomyopathy (8%)," the researchers report.
The syndrome is rare in people younger than 30 years old. In addition to alcohol, it can be caused by physical activity requiring endurance, drug use and obesity. But booze remains the main factor.
Copenhagen researchers from the Medical Center of Deaconess Beth Israel have identified more than a thousand cases of atrial fibrillation among 16.5 thousand men and women. Excess alcohol accounted for 5% of these among men. Those who drank alcohol in large quantities, fibrillation occurred 1.5 times more often than those who drank moderately or did not drink at all.
"Excessive alcohol consumption is associated with a higher risk of atrial fibrillation, at least among men," the authors write.
Many studies have been devoted to the effect of alcohol on the body, including on the heart, but mainly they relate to either the benefits of moderate drinking or the harm of hard drinking. Despite the fact that people began to talk about the holiday heart syndrome almost half a century ago, there are still too few works in which attention was paid to it. However, both doctors and patients should be aware of the potential risks - even when there are no signs of other heart disease.
The reasons why alcohol causes atrial fibrillation are unclear. The matter may be in the direct effect of alcohol on the heart muscle, or in the indirect effect of the products of its decay. Also, the cause may be the effect of alcohol on other organs.
Alcohol disrupts the conduction of nerves in the heart, altering the rate at which nerve impulses are transmitted through the heart muscle. Also, alcohol can increase the release of adrenaline from the adrenal glands or heart tissue, which can affect the heartbeat and lead to arrhythmias. In addition, blood levels of fatty acids rise after drinking alcohol, which are believed to be associated with the development of atrial fibrillation. Finally, the alcohol metabolite acetaldehyde can increase the rate of abnormal muscle contraction.
While it is clear that excessive alcohol consumption is bad for the heart, some questions remain unanswered.
For example, it is not known whether the incidence of holiday heart syndrome is different in long-term drinkers compared to non-drinkers. The fact is that frequent alcohol consumption is associated with a special heart disease, alcoholic cardiomyopathy. It stretches, thickens, or .jpgens the walls of the heart, impairing the heart's ability to pump enough blood throughout the body. The risk of having a holiday heart syndrome appears to be increased with regular drinking.
There is also a lack of information about other risk factors and their influence on the risk of developing the syndrome. Genetic factors, the type of alcoholic beverage, the rate at which it is consumed, and whether it is consumed on an empty stomach or after a meal can all contribute to the development of Happy Heart Syndrome.
The only way to protect yourself from it is by giving up alcohol.
New Year's Eve is conducive to fun and parties. But for those who are worried about the health of their hearts, it is better to think carefully when a hand reaches for the next portion of mulled wine.
bbabo.Net