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Robert Landau\/Getty Images<\/p>\n <\/span> \nExposure to extreme heat combined with air pollution may double the risk of having a fatal heart attack, according to a new study.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \nWhile this combination raised the risk most significantly, researchers found that the chances of a deadly heart attack also spiked solely during periods of extreme heat or cold.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \nDoctors said the study, published last month in the journal Circulation<\/em>, highlights the importance of monitoring time outdoors during extreme weather or when air quality is poor.\n<\/p>\n \n\u201cOne important takeaway message for patients is that if you have a history of coronary artery disease, especially if you have had a recent or prior heart attack, it is important to take precautions on very hot or very cold days,\u201d Grant Reed, MD, a cardiovascular medicine specialist at Cleveland Clinic, told Health<\/em>. \u201cIt is likewise an important goal for all of us to avoid the effects of smog and poor air quality on our bodies and encourage public health policies that promote better air quality.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \nThe study comes as extreme temperature events \u201care becoming more frequent, longer, and more intense, and their adverse health effects have drawn growing concern,\u201d Yuewei Liu, MD, PhD, senior study author and associate professor of epidemiology in the School of Public Health at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, China, said in a press release.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \nExtreme heat has already been tied to several health issues, such as heat stroke, heat exhaustion, and respiratory problems.<\/span><\/span> Exposure to extreme cold can cause hypothermia, frostbite, and inflammation of blood vessels in the skin.<\/span>\u00a0\n<\/p>\n \n\u201cAnother environmental issue worldwide is the presence of fine particulate matter in the air, which may interact synergistically with extreme temperatures to adversely affect cardiovascular health,\u201d Liu said in the press release.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \nFine particles come from smoke from fires and emissions from power plants, cars, trucks, and industrial facilities. They\u2019re more dangerous than coarse particles\u2014from dusty roads, dry riverbeds, farms, construction sites, and mines\u2014because they can reach the deepest parts of your lungs or even your bloodstream.<\/span>\u00a0\n<\/p>\n \nThis type of pollution has already been associated with heart disease. It is also linked to chronic lung disease, preterm births, cancers, and other conditions.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n Study: Insomnia Linked to Increased Risk of Heart Attack, Especially for Women<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span> <\/p>\n \nFor the study, researchers analyzed 202,678 heart attack deaths in China\u2019s Jiangsu province between 2015 to 2020. They examined weather patterns and pollution levels on the days of and the days surrounding the deaths.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \nThey found the risk of a fatal heart attack was twice as high as usual when temperatures ranged from 83 to 98 degrees Fahrenheit for four days and fine particulate pollution measured above 37.5 micrograms per cubic meter. That exceeds the World Health Organization\u2019s air quality guidelines, which recommend that people avoid exposure to more than 15 micrograms per cubic meter more than three to four days a year.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \nResearchers found an 18% increase in the risk of a deadly heart attack during two-day heat waves. The chances of dying from a heart attack rose by 4% during two-day cold spells when temperatures ranged from 33 to 41 degrees Fahrenheit.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \nPeople aged 80 and older had the highest risk of dying from a heart attack during heat waves, cold snaps, or days with poor air quality, the study found. Women fared worse than men during extreme heat.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \nThe researchers don\u2019t know what\u2019s behind the link between fatal heart attacks, extreme heat or cold, and polluted air, but they have some theories.\n<\/p>\n \nDehydration may influence heart attack risk during periods of intense heat, the researchers wrote in the study, while elevated blood pressure and contracting blood vessels could raise the risk of a deadly heart attack on cold days.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \nThe combination of heat and pollution may elevate heart attack risk because people may breathe faster and harder on sweltering days, causing them to inhale even more harmful microscopic particles than usual, the authors said.<\/span>\n<\/p>\n How Climate Change Is Worsening Infectious Diseases Across the Globe<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span> <\/p>\n \nThe study has limitations, according to the doctors interviewed.\n<\/p>\n \nFor one, it didn\u2019t prove extreme weather or polluted air causes fatal heart attacks, only that there is an association between these outdoor conditions and heart attack deaths, noted Reed.\n<\/p>\n \nThe results may also only apply to some regions and populations, Matthew Tomey, MD, a cardiologist and assistant professor of medicine at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, told Health<\/em>. \u201cStudies to replicate this analysis in other areas, including in the United States, would be helpful to appraise the generalizability of the findings,\u201d said Tomey.\n<\/p>\n \nReed echoed that sentiment. \u201cThe culture and adaptation behaviors of the Chinese population may be different than other countries, so it would be helpful to repeat the study in the U.S. population as we may see less or even more impressive findings,\u201d he said.\n<\/p>\n How Safe Is It to Exercise Indoors or Outdoors When Air Quality Is Bad?<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span> <\/p>\n \nReed said that people with heart conditions aren\u2019t the only ones who should monitor their time outdoors during risky conditions. These conditions can harm healthy people, especially if they\u2019re doing strenuous activities outside.\n<\/p>\n \n\u201cExtreme heat or cold can put stress on our bodies. It is important to avoid pushing yourself to your full exercise capacity without speaking to your physician first,\u201d said Reed. \u201cCertain activities to avoid may be shoveling snow during the winter or pushing a lawn mower\u2026on very hot days.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \nIf possible, you should stay inside and use an air conditioning unit during heat waves, he added.\n<\/p>\n \nIn the press release, Liu suggested other ways to stay safe during periods of extreme weather or poor air quality:<\/span>\n<\/p>\n \nReed noted that it\u2019s important to take precautions when possible, given the known health effects of extreme weather and poor air quality. \u201cThis is an important observation, as it suggests fluctuations in climate and air pollution may be contributing to an increase in\u2026deaths,\u201d he said. \u201cThis was a well conducted study, with important public health implications.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Long heat waves combined with extremely poor air quality may as much as double the risk of a fatal heart attack, new research has found. The research found that the effects of extreme weather and air pollution on the cardiovascular system may be especially dangerous for women and the elderly. The study was based on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":17341,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1227,410],"tags":[1228,116],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/1millionbestdownloads.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17341"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/1millionbestdownloads.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/1millionbestdownloads.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1millionbestdownloads.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1millionbestdownloads.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17341"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/1millionbestdownloads.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17341\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1millionbestdownloads.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17341"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/1millionbestdownloads.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17341"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1millionbestdownloads.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17341"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1millionbestdownloads.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17341"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n The Link Between Heart Attack, Weather, and Air Quality <\/span> <\/h2>\n
Limitations of the Study <\/span> <\/h2>\n
How To Protect Your Heart During Periods of Extreme Weather and Poor Air Quality <\/span> <\/h2>\n
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