Angina is an ischemia or lack of oxygen in the heart muscles. It is caused due to the block or obstruction of the coronary arteries. Since it expresses itself like a lesser intensity heart attack, people have often mistaken and misunderstood it to be a disease of the heart. This has lead to many myths and wrong notions about the condition. Here is an attempt to debunk some of the popular myths about angina pectoris.
Chronic angina is a disease
‘Chronic’ is a term that is often associated with a recurring disease or disease condition. Angina also causes pain in the chest like a heart attack. Thus, people confuse it for a disease. This is actually a myth. Chronic angina is a symptom of a disease! Coronary heart disease or coronary artery disease has angina as its primary symptom. The symptom should not be confused with the disease. An angina merely suggests the probable occurrence of a heart condition or disease if neglected and not tended to immediately.
Angina symptoms are the same for everyone: pain or discomfort in the chest area
This myth must have originated from the fact that an angina affects the heart and the heart is located in the chest! People, however, experience angina in very different manners. A person suffering from chronic angina gets discomfort or pain in the shoulder, back, neck and even the jaw. There is a shortness of breath which results in the feeling of fatigue or tiredness. Patients may also experience a feeling of light-headedness and nausea. Thus, there is an array of symptoms that are exhibited.
Angina affects people of middle age and older years
The root cause for people to think that angina is an age-dependent problem is because in most cases, the manifestations of angina strike in the middle age or the older years. This dangerous myth keeps many youngsters blissfully oblivious of the fact that roots of an angina attack lie in childhood as well. A bad and unhealthy lifestyle leads to degradation and blocking of the arteries, gradually, over a period of many years. Thus, the build up for angina occurs in the younger years and thus it manifests later. Preventing this early build up is very important.
Mental condition has no connection with angina
It is the opinion of several cardiologists that emotions and the mental state of a person may affect behavior but has no bearing on the heart. This has grown and ballooned into a myth that angina is a purely physical condition. Recently, multiple studies have shown that angina has a strong correlation with the levels of stress that a person harbors. Stress can be as dangerous as excess cholesterol when it comes to causing angina! Thus, mind-body connections exist and the physical heart seems to depend on your spiritual heart which gives and receives love and care. Having a peaceful, loving and harmonious life will promote cardiovascular health too.
Angina is a small heart attack
One cannot blame people for believing in this myth. Angina invariably occurs in the development of a heart attack. The symptoms of angina are similar to the ones of a heart attack but milder in intensity. However, an angina has nothing to do with the heart. In a heart attack, a part of the heart malfunctions. In angina, the heart muscles are deprived of sufficient oxygen. Hence, they send out a ‘distress signal’ in the form of pain. Thus, we can see that in an angina, the problem lies with the arteries, the blood vessels. Exercising in moderation will help to enlarge these vessels and get more blood into the heart and ease the cardiac muscles.
Angina is a cruel blow of fate that renders you helpless
An angina can have an adverse impact on the minds of the patient more than the physical condition. It can lead to a feeling of helplessness with the thought that all is over now. Acceptance is the key to be able to move on. There are many things that can be done to improve the quality of life of a person struck with angina. Talking and working closely with a cardiologist is very important in customizing and optimizing the treatment. The support of family and friends can be enlisted and different stress-management techniques learnt. Being informed helps in bettering the quality of life after getting affected by angina.
Men and women experience angina in the same manner
The heart is common in both men and women and thus comes the natural assumption of similar symptoms of indication for angina. Surprisingly, men and women do not show the same warning signs. While men feel a tightening in the chest accompanied by pain, women experience a stabbing feeling in the chest that keeps throbbing instead of remaining constant. Secondary symptoms like severe stomach pain and vomiting is far more common among women compared to men. This difference in symptoms along with the myth that angina exhibits itself in the same manner in men and women can prove very dangerous. Women often get confused and are not able to recognize angina. They mistake it for fatigue, indigestion or both. Getting medical help immediately while experiencing any kind of chest pain is very important.
Monitoring the total cholesterol level is sufficient to combat angina
People often believe this myth because of the false notion that if the cholesterol level is under check, all will be fine. Knowing the total cholesterol level is important but that is only part of the whole equation. The total cholesterol score is actually made up of three components. These are the LDL (low density lipoprotein), HDL (high density lipoprotein) and VLDL (very low density lipoprotein). It is good if the HDL is very high and the LDL is as low as possible. The level of triglycerides is related to the VLDL and is also important. It should be kept to the minimum. Thus, not only is the total cholesterol level important but the component values, too, are necessary for a good reading.
Downsizing your lifestyle is the only way to manage angina symptoms
A heart problem is considered a lifelong disability, like a fault in the combustion chamber of an engine. Thus, as an automatic corollary, it is believed that drastic lifestyle changes are necessary to cope with it. This is not wholly a myth for lifestyle changes are in order. However, they do not involve downsizing the lifestyle. There are other options also which include medical procedures like angioplasty or bypass surgery, anti-angina medications and rehabilitation. Modern cardiac rehabilitation has a magical impact on those suffering from chronic angina. It makes it possible for patients to live a wholesome and vigorous life.
