As the economy continues to falter, there are signs people are taking it to heart.
Cardiologist Christine J. Browning is seeing more patients complaining of stress, and for many, the economy is to blame.
"Sometimes they come in saying, 'Oh, I think this is all stress and I don't know why my doctor sent me to have a heart evaluation,'" said Browning, who practices with Richmond Cardiology Associates at the Bon Secours Heart & Vascular Institute.
"Or sometimes they are coming in and just say, 'I am under a lot of stress and I am having more chest pain and I want to get checked out.' Everybody is affected in some way by the economy, by what is going on in our country," Browning said.
To be safe, Browning urges people to get checked if they have symptoms of heart disease, which include chest pain, left-arm pain, shortness of breath, or not being able to exercise at the same capacity.
"You don't want to dismiss it and heart disease is there," Browning said.
Various studies have confirmed that psychosocial factors, such as stress, can increase risk of heart disease and heart attack.
The Framingham Heart Study in 1978 found stress increased risk for heart disease. A large international study found that stress at work and home, financial stress, and experiencing major life events in the past year increase risk for heart attack.
Signs of heart disease in women often get missed, because symptoms can be different from those in men. "One of the major problems with women is they don't realize how prevalent cardiovascular disease is," Browning said. "We hear of it as a disease of men, with crushing left-side chest pain. "Women are not aware they are at risk for the same heart problems. They are more difficult to diagnose. They often present with more subtle chest pain, sometimes with just breathing problems, or are more easily fatigued than they used to be." The annual Go Red for Women luncheon, being held Feb. 19 at the Richmond Marriott, highlights heart-disease risk in women. Browning urges patients to keep up their preventive-health practices, such as managing stress, even during difficult times. Also, don't replace healthier foods with less-expensive foods, such as fast food or canned soups loaded with calories and salt, neither of which is good for you. "Especially in times of stress, you need to continue to exercise," Browning said. "We recommend 30 minutes, five times a week. That is even more important when you are under stress to help you cope. People need to continue to watch their diet, eat healthfully -- lots of fruits and vegetables. Avoid the comfort food, desserts, fried foods."
Some patients, she said, might need to see a therapist to help with stress management. "A lot of people are resistant to therapy," Browning said. "They think they can deal with stress on their own. I try to get them to go if they need to. . . . Just having somebody to talk to when you are stressed out and have a lot of things going on in your life can make a difference." That social support can be formal, or it can be informal, like the women Louise Robinson brings together monthly at the North Richmond library for a group called Women Realizing Another Purpose. Their guest speaker this month is a retired nurse who will talk about heart disease. "What I find in general is that we don't know a lot about our health, period, and that does include our heart," Robinson said. "Basically we have a place where we can vent and talk about certain things so the stress won't build up. We have so much pent-up anger as women, just going through a typical day."
