Coronary heart disease is the No 1 cause of premature death throughout the developed world. Please take it seriously. At the very least, please make sure you have your blood pressure and cholesterol tested regularly.

Heart Disease Made Simple
We need a constant blood supply. Every second, blood travels around our body through a series of pipes called arteries or veins. If it didn't, none of our organs (e.g. heart, brain, liver, kidneys, eyes) could survive. Why not? Because blood is the body's transport system. It carries oxygen and other vital chemicals around the body to all the organs and simultaneously collects waste and other toxins for eventual treatment and disposal. So, if one of our arteries/veins becomes blocked, causing a stoppage in the blood flow, our organs stop working and we collapse.

Heart attacks and strokes
A heart attack occurs when we develop a blockage in one of the arteries supplying blood to our heart. A stroke is the result of a blockage in one of the arteries to our brain. In either case, the story is the same. Lack of blood stops the heart or brain from working so it shuts down and we collapse.

How does an arterial-blockage occur?
It occurs as a result of a combination of things. Over time, the wall of our artery becomes diseased or 'corroded'. As our blood passes through this corroded section, it dumps some of the fat, which it is carrying, and this fat forms a bulge in the wall of the artery. Result?

In the same way that double-parking narrows a road and causes a slow down in the flow of traffic, this fatty bulge narrows the width of the artery and slows down the flow of blood as it passes around it. If the blood flow gets too slow, and if tiny bits break off the bulge in the wall - clogging up the blood even more - the blood will form a spontaneous clot, completely blocking the artery.