Maintaining a healthy diet can help you keep your heart healthy during the holidays.
EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP – For most people, the “hustle and bustle” of the holiday season is associated with joy and exhilaration. But this isn’t the case for many cardiac care providers whose holiday “tradition” includes putting in more hours to meet an increased need for services to address atrial fibrillation, commonly referred to as AFib.
AtlantiCare’s Heart and Vascular Institute, for example, typically sees an increase in new and worsening AFib cases every year from the period spanning from Thanksgiving until the first few weeks into the new year.
The dangers of AFib, especially when left untreated and/or unmanaged, are real and can be quite severe. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, AFib is the primary diagnosis in more than 454,000 hospitalizations every year in the U.S., with AFib contributing to approximately 158,000 deaths annually. Left untreated AFib, an arrhythmia in which the heart beats too quicky and irregularly, can lead to blood clots, heart failure, stroke and heart attack.
“This time of year, we see increases across the board, including individuals who need emergency, in-patient and outpatient care for AFib, as well as new onset cases and worsening cases in people who have previously experienced AFib,” said Devender Akula, medical director Electrophysiology Lab AtlantiCare Heart and Vascular Institute. “Unfortunately, holiday festivities often get in the way, or distract people who have AFib from managing it properly. Moreover, many people experiencing AFib who should seek immediate care are often so wrapped up in holiday happenings that they delay care—which can lead to more challenging health complications.
Some of the key contributors to AFib run in direct parallel to holiday activities, so it’s little wonder healthcare providers tend to treat more patients from late November through early January. These contributors include excessive drinking of alcohol or caffeine, smoking, eating rich, salty, or fatty foods, exercising less frequently or not at all, having more stress, and getting less sleep. Because AFib can, and does, strike people who are otherwise healthy, it’s important for everyone to avoid these pitfalls—in other words, limit or eliminate alcohol and smoking, enjoy rich and salty holiday foods only in moderation, get out for some brisk holiday walks and build sufficient, quality sleep time into your schedule.
In addition, AtlantiCare recommends the following steps to help ensure your holidays remain “merry and bright” and free from hospitalization or worse from AFib.
Recognize signs and symptoms of AFib and seek immediate care if they are unusual, extreme or persist. Quick and irregular heartbeat in the upper chambers of the heart can result in disruption in flow of blood to the lower chambers, causing symptoms such as heart palpitations; lightheadedness or dizziness; progressive fatigue; shortness of breath; and chest discomfort, pressure or pain.
