This was the warning issued by the Philippine College of Physicians (PCP) Foundation as the holidays brings more traffic, overcrowding, and stress.
“Cold weather is not the only cause of the spiking of cardiovascular cases. Study after study shows the culprits to be holiday stress, pollution, and most of all, food and alcohol binging. Eating and drinking sprees send them to emergency rooms for palpitations and light-headedness - symptoms of ‘holiday heart,’” said Dr. Anthony Leachon, President of PCP Foundation.
“For lucky ones the abnormal heart rhythm, usually atrial fibrillation, fixes itself within 24 hours. But others would require admission for monitoring and in extreme cases, electric shock to normalize heart rates. It’s certainly not a fun way to spend the holidays,” he added.
Deadliest days
A 26-year (1973-2001) charting of 53 million deaths in the US reveals a 5-percent jump in natural-cause demise during the holidays.
Christmas Day was the deadliest, followed by December 26, then January 1, according to the study.
Research by sociologist Dr. David Phillips also noted increases in hospital admissions for cardiac and non-cardiac causes. Published in the Journal of the American Heart Association in December 2004, Phillips study excludes suicides, homicides, and accidents.
Could many of the deaths have been caused by lack of specialist attention, as doctors are on holiday too? No, according to a study of 127,959 patients hospitalized for heart attack in 1994-1996 by cardiologist James Jollis at Duke University.
Treatment was basically the same for all patients during the holidays and off-season. Still, according to Jollis, the 30-day mortality of patients in December is higher, with over-indulgence singled out as the culprit.
Cardiologist Robert Kloner’s 1999 report further discounted mere cold weather and pointed to the “holiday effect.”
Focusing on hospitals in Los Angeles, where winters are milder, he noted that change of diet rather than temperature leads to more heart attacks and strokes.
Merrymakers of all ages tend to eat fatty stuff, with adults drinking more alcohol in parties. Pollutants from wood-burning fireplaces further trigger cardiovascular irregularities.
All three studies by Phillips, Jollis, and Kloner exhibit annual 5-percent rises in heart attacks and strokes -- and deaths – during Christmas.
But the situation in the Philippines seems to be worse.
Leachon, who is a cardiologist in the Manila Doctors Hospital, recalled a 2004-2008 survey of Metro Manila hospitals to show a tripling of emergencies and admissions in Christmastime.
Patients were taken in for heart attack, stroke, and diabetes due to overeating and overdrinking.
Usually about 30-50 cases occur from January to November. But this rose to 153 in December 2004, 163 in 2005, 172 in 2006, 170 in 2007, and 170 in 2008.
Half of the holiday patients died.
So for the coming holidays, Leachon gave these health tips to remind the people on how to prevent life-threatening medical condition:
Stop smoking.
Eat low-fat low-salt diet. Stick to healthy habits and help your family too.
Exercise daily for 30 minutes.
Observe moderate alcohol drinking.
Don’t skip regular appointments with the doctor.
Have enough of your usual medications to allow for holiday business or pharmacy breaks and travel.
Check out the medical facilities where you will be traveling; ask your physician who you could see if you
need a doctor away from home.
If you have symptoms, don’t ignore them.
source: interaksyon.com
