Caribbean L 30 ife, December 20-26, 2019
Tis the season of health risks:
‘Holiday Heart’ can mean
grave threats, warns physician
By Nelson A. King
The holiday season
can mean friends, family
and joy, but it can
also mean grave threats
to your health, according
to Dr. Darryl Anderson, is
director for the medical
program at Plaza College
in New York City.
He said heart attacks
spike 37 percent on
Christmas Eve and 20
percent on New Year’s
Day, threatening to turn
seasonal cheer to tragedy.
“Holiday heart” syndrome,
most common
between Thanksgiving
and New Year’s Day, refers
to the sudden increase
during the holiday season
of people who suffer
heart problems due to
the combination of stress,
excessive consumption of
alcohol, fatty and salty
foods.
“The holidays can be
dangerous, as overindulgence,
stress and lack of
sleep can lead to severely
elevated blood pressure
and can be a key and critical
indicator of cardiac
distress,” Dr. Anderson
told Caribbean Life.
“Keep your holiday
safe and delightful by
taking the necessary precautions,
to ensure your
heart health,” he added.
Anderson said a report
published by the BMJ, formerly
the British Medical
Journal, first identified
the significant spike in
heart attacks and other
cardiac problems around
the so-called “most wonderful
time of the year”,
when holiday parties,
shopping and countless
work and family gettogethers
cause stress
combined with overindulgence.
As part of a seasonal
healthy-educat ion
campaign, Anderson is
instructing on the recognition
of the signs of
Holiday Heart.
He warned that binge
drinking or overindulging
on alcohol during
the holidays can increase
a person’s risk of atrial
fibrillation (AFib) or
heart attack and overwork
the liver.
Anderson referred to
the Atlanta-based Center
of Disease Control and
Prevention that says men
can safely consume two
drinks a day while women
can consume one.
According to a survey
from alcohol.org, 23
percent of men and 18
percent of women binge
drink during the winter
holidays.
The survey shows an
alarming 47 percent
of men and 40 percent
women report binge
drinking during New
Year’s Eve festivities.
“My advice to the public
is to take it slow,” Dr.
Anderson counseled. “If
you are not accustomed
to running around, shopping,
doing this-that and
the other thing, then do
it piecemeal. Watch what
you eat.
“I would suggest individuals
to not abstain
from alcohol, but instead
do so in moderation and
the same goes for tobacco
and for fried, fatty, greasy
foods,” he added. “Try
to consume much more
fruits and vegetables and
water, cut back on caffeine
and energy drinks.
“Lastly, get some
much needed sleep,” he
continued. “When you
have friends, family and
guests coming over, your
sleep patterns are disrupted.
Lack of sleep, or
sleep deprivation in and
of itself is very stressful.”
Dr. Darryl Anderson.
/alcohol.org