B U D A K M E D I K

These are the worst of the worst -- the 3 most dangerous diseases for men. Every man needs to know what he's up against. The good news? They are preventable.


Heart Attack and Cardiac Arrest in Men


You've heard the terms a million times. But do you really know the difference between a heart attack and cardiac arrest? Here's what every guy needs to know.



The cause of a heart attack (or myocardial infarction) is pretty easy to understand. It's essentially a plumbing problem. As any schoolboy knows, the heart is really a pump that circulates the blood throughout your body. But like all pumps, it needs an energy supply to work -- in this case, a flow of blood with oxygen and nutrients.


Sometimes the arteries that feed the heart -- called the coronary arteries -- get clogged up with a combination of fats, clotted blood, and other nasty stuff. If a blood clot suddenly blocks off a clogged artery altogether, the heart stops getting the fuel it needs, the cells start starving and dying, and the pump can stop working.


Cardiac arrest is different. While a heart attack is a plumbing problem, cardiac arrest is electrical. Your heart is triggered to beat with regular electrical impulses. But if these electrical impulses become erratic -- causing an irregular heartbeat called an arrhythmia -- the pump may not work. When you see heroic TV doctors shouting "Clear!" and shocking a flat-lining patient with paddles, they're dealing with cardiac arrest. They're trying to electrically jolt the heart back into the correct rhythm. When it's fatal, cardiac arrest is known by the doleful name "sudden cardiac death."


While they're different problems, a heart attack can sometimes lead into cardiac arrest.



High Blood Pressure in Men


Many men have it for years and don't know it, while high blood pressure silently damages their arteries. Here's how to make sure you're not one of them.



Blood pumping through the circulatory system is under pressure, much like the water in the pipes of a house. And just as too much water pressure can damage pipes and faucets, high blood pressure can spell trouble. Hypertension occurs when the force exerted against artery walls is abnormally high.


Over time, the increased pressure can cause a wide range of problems. Small bulges, called aneurysms, may form in blood vessels. The heart can become enlarged, increasing the danger of heart failure. Damage to blood vessels in the kidneys can cause them to fail. Because tiny blood vessels in the eyes are especially vulnerable to damage, hypertension can lead to vision problems and even blindness.


Many factors can lead to high blood pressure. Clearly, diet plays a role. Too much salt, too little potassium, and heavy drinking have all been found to increase the risk of high blood pressure. Too much stress and too little physical activity both increase the danger of developing high blood pressure, as does being overweight or obese. And as with many chronic illnesses, high blood pressure also tends to run in families, suggesting that genes play a role.


In some patients, high blood pressure is related to other medical problems or to the use of certain medicines. This form of the disease is called secondary hypertension, because it is secondary to other medical conditions.


High blood pressure is usually diagnosed using the familiar blood pressure test that involves a cuff wrapped around the upper arm. The cuff is inflated and then sensors measure the pressure of blood beating against the arteries.


Blood pressure is measured using two numbers ― systolic and diastolic pressure. Systolic, the upper number, is the pressure when the heart is beating. Diastolic, the lower number, is the pressure between beats. Normal blood pressure is considered to be anything below 120/80. Prehypertension is defined as a systolic reading between 120 and 139 and a diastolic reading between 80 and 89. Hypertension is defined as blood pressure of 140/90 or higher. For people with diabetes or chronic kidney disease, hypertension is defined as 130/80.



High Cholesterol in Men


With the way men like to eat, the risk of high cholesterol begins as early as our 20s and keeps going up. Find out how to stay ahead of it.



Cholesterol, a fat-like substance, is an essential building block of cells. But if levels in the blood of certain forms of cholesterol climb too high, the substance builds up on the walls of arteries like rust on the inside of a pipe. This build-up eventually reduces blood flow to the heart. If levels of blood and oxygen to the heart drop far enough, the result can be severe chest pain. In the worst case, a chunk of cholesterol-laden plaque can break off and completely block blood flow to the heart, causing a heart attack. A blockage of blood vessels supplying the brain can cause a stroke. Cholesterol build-up can also disrupt the way the heart beats, increasing the risk that blood clots will form.


The artery-clogging form of cholesterol is called low-density lipoprotein, or LDL. Another form of cholesterol, called high-density lipoprotein, or HDL, is actually beneficial. It helps remove LDL from the blood and then from the body. The ideal for good health is to keep LDL levels down and HDL levels up. Cholesterol tests often include a ratio of these two forms of cholesterol. Desirable levels of LDL are less than 100 mg/dL. The ideal for HDL is 60 mg/dL or higher.


Your risk of having high cholesterol increases if:

• Your diet is high in saturated fat. These fats, found in meat and full-fat dairy products, raise LDL cholesterol. Dietary cholesterol, found in eggs and organ meats, can also raise blood cholesterol levels.
• You eat foods containing trans fats. These artificially made fats, found in partially hydrogenated oils, raise LDL cholesterol and lower HDL cholesterol — exactly the wrong combination.
• You are overweight or obese. Excess weight increases LDL and lowers HDL.
• You don’t get much exercise. Studies show that a bout of exercise can boost HDL, the good cholesterol. Lack of exercise can lead to weight gain.

• total cholesterol level
• LDL cholesterol level
• HDL cholesterol level
• triglycerides (another fat in your blood that raises the risk of heart disease)
• ratio of LDL to HDL cholesterol