Study: Heatwaves Raise Heart Attack Risk
A study put out by the American Heart Association looked at 200,000 heart attack deaths. It tracked temperatures and pollution on case days. Investigators found an 18 percent higher risk during two-day heat waves when the mercury was between 82 and 97 degrees. It climbed to a 74 percent higher risk during four-day heat waves when the temps climbed between 94 and 109 degrees. Most concerning, the risk doubled when the hottest days were coupled with high pollution.
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00:00 It's well known that heat is the number one weather related killer and of those
00:06 deaths about 50% are attributed to a heart attack. This new study is showing
00:12 that the consecutive number of days exposed to high heat and high pollution
00:18 now matter as well. A four-day heat wave will increase your risk and in places
00:24 like Arizona we saw a 30-day heat wave just last month but it's that pollution
00:30 that now has to be factored in as well. The study put out by the American Heart
00:34 Association was a big one looking at 200,000 heart attack deaths. It tracked
00:40 temperatures and pollution on case dates. I think that can make sense to
00:44 everybody if you just think about the impact it has on your car right where
00:48 you know if your car is overworked and heat if you've ever had a car with a
00:54 radiator overheating. Investigators found an 18% higher risk during two-day heat
01:00 waves when the mercury was between 82 and 97 degrees. It climbed to a 74%
01:07 higher risk during four-day heat waves when the temps climbed between 94 and
01:12 109 degrees. Most concerning the risk doubled when the hottest days were
01:18 coupled with high pollution. Kind of being like a double whammy in terms of
01:23 the increased impact on the body. ABC 15 Health Insider Dr. Shad Marvasti says
01:28 bottom line those stressors are causing the body to work a lot harder. If you
01:33 have underlying risk factors and you have an underlying narrowing of your
01:38 arteries that feed your heart then basically when you strain it right from
01:44 excess heat or excess cold that's going to cause your body to do more to
01:48 compensate for that extreme temperature. What can we do about it on top of
01:53 limiting time outside on weather alert days and hydrating know your standing
01:58 risk. He says blood pressure, cholesterol levels, maintaining a healthy weight and
02:03 with air quality alerts. Considering wearing a high quality mask at times
02:07 outside that also can reduce the particulates that kind of come in.
02:12 Avoiding outside completely when we have the wildfires because that's when those
02:17 particulate numbers go up exponentially. And when it comes to high pollution
02:21 people with certain health conditions asthma COPD are often the ones
02:25 cautioned to limit their time outside. But the thinking here is that you might
02:30 have an underlying health issue and not even know it if you don't know your
02:35 numbers. The study did also find that cities with extreme cold and high
02:41 pollution also have an increased risk of heart attack though not as high as that
02:46 extreme heat. In Phoenix Arizona I'm Noheilani Graff, Scripps News.