6 Hidden Causes That Can Cause A Heart Attack

The World Health Organization warns that cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death worldwide.

In addition to tobacco, alcohol, and lack of exercise, here are six potential risks that you should also be aware of.

1. Not flossing

Your teeth and your cardiovascular health are more closely related than you think.

Several studies have shown that people who have poor oral health (such as gum disease or tooth loss)  have higher rates of cardiovascular problems than people with good dental health.

This is because bleeding, swollen gums allow bacteria from your mouth to enter your bloodstream, where it can cause inflammation and create ideal conditions for heart disease.

The solution?

Floss regularly and don’t cancel your dentist appointments.

2. Hating your boss

No joke:  Hating your boss could be damaging your cardiovascular health.

A 10-year study in Sweden published in the British Medical Journal found that having a bad boss increases your chances of having a heart attack by 40%.

“Heart attacks can be triggered by significant stress at work,”  explains cardiologist Vijay Kumar of the Health Heart Institute in Orlando.

And when combined with other risk factors such as lack of sleep or poor diet,  the risk of coronary heart disease increases even further.

3. Experiencing a traumatic event

A sudden traumatic event, such as a death in the family, can break your heart.

According to a 2017 study published by the North American Menopause Society, the inner lining of blood vessels in women who have experienced three or more traumatic events in their lifetime function worse than those of women who have not suffered the same number of traumatic events.

According to cardiologist Jackie Eubany, this is because high levels of stress can trigger a significant increase in adrenaline,  which causes heart rate and blood pressure to increase and remain very high.

Therefore, the expert recommends going to the doctor immediately if you suffer a traumatic event.

4. Feeling alone

According to a study published in the British Medical Journal, people with few social connections or who feel lonely are 29% more likely to suffer from heart disease and 32% more likely to suffer a heart attack.

One reason is that loneliness can be stressful, in part because lonely people have no one to help them  regulate their emotions,

On the other hand, an eight-year study from 2014 conducted at the University of Oxford involving more than 700,000 women found that people living with a partner were 28 % less likely to die from ischemic heart disease than those who lived alone.

5. Suffer from depression

According to the American Heart Association,  33% of people who have suffered heart attacks may have depression.

Experts speculate that this higher rate of heart problems in people with depression may be because people with mental health issues feel too overwhelmed to make healthy life choices.

According to Nieca Goldberg, medical director of the Joan H. Tisch Center for Women’s Health in New York, eating healthy or limiting alcohol consumption can be too much effort for people suffering from depression.

“When you are in a bad situation,  people turn to things that provide them comfort and they don’t think about whether they are healthy or not,” explains the doctor.

6. Menopause.

Women are most likely to have heart attacks about  10 years after menopause.

The American Heart Association explains that this could be due to a decrease in the natural hormone estrogen in postmenopausal women.

Estrogen is thought to have a positive effect on the inner layer of the arterial wall,  helping to keep blood vessels flexible.

Cardiologist Jackie Eubany says it could also simply be because blood vessels become stiffer with age,  leading to higher blood pressure.

In any case, the American Heart Association indicates that, as always,  a good diet and exercise can counteract these effects.