Coronary artery disease, the most common form of cardiovascular disease, is the leading cause of death in America today. But thanks to many studies involving thousands of patients, researchers have found certain factors that play an important role in a person's chances of developing heart disease.
Risk factors are divided into two categories: major and contributing. Major risk factors are those that have been proven to increase your risk of heart disease. Contributing risk factors are those that doctors think can lead to an increased risk of heart disease, but their exact role has not been defined.

Major Risk Factors

• High Blood Pressure (Hypertension). High blood pressure increases your risk of heart disease, heart attack, and stroke. Though other risk factors can lead to high blood pressure, you can have it without having other risk factors.
• High Blood Cholesterol. One of the major risk factors for heart disease is high blood cholesterol. Cholesterol, a fat-like substance carried in your blood, is found in all of your body's cells. Your liver produces all of the cholesterol your body needs to form cell membranes and to make certain hormones. Extra cholesterol enters your body when you eat foods that come from animals (meats, eggs, and dairy products).
• Diabetes. Heart problems are the leading cause of death among people with diabetes, especially in the case of adult-onset or Type II diabetes (also known as non-insulin-dependent diabetes).
• Obesity and Overweight. Extra weight is thought to lead to increased total cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, and an increased risk of coronary artery disease.
• Smoking. Research has shown that smoking increases heart rate, tightens major arteries, and can create irregularities in the timing of heartbeats, all of which make your heart work harder. Smoking also raises blood pressure, which increases the risk of stroke in people who already have high blood pressure.
• Physical Inactivity. People who are not active have a greater risk of heart attack than do people who exercise regularly. Exercise burns calories, helps to control cholesterol levels and diabetes, and may lower blood pressure. Exercise also strengthens the heart muscle and makes the arteries more flexible.
• Gender. Overall, men have a higher risk of heart attack than women. But the difference narrows after women reach menopause. After the age of 65, the risk of heart disease is about the same between the sexes when other risk factors are simila
• Heredity. Heart disease tends to run in families. For example, if your parents or siblings had a heart or circulatory problem before age 55, then you are at greater risk for heart disease than someone who does not have that family history.
• Age. As we age, our hearts tend to not work as well. The heart's walls may thicken, arteries may stiffen and harden, and the heart is less able to pump blood to the muscles of the body. Because of these changes, the risk of developing cardiovascular disease increases with age.

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Contributing Risk Factors

• Stress. Stress is considered a contributing risk factor for heart disease because little is known about its effects. The effects of emotional stress, behavior habits, and socioeconomic status on the risk of heart disease and heart attack have not been proven.
• Sex hormones. Sex hormones appear to play a role in heart disease.Between the ages 40 and 65, around the time when most women go through menopause, the chances that a woman will have a heart attack greatly increase. From 65 onward, women make up about half of all heart attack victims.
• Birth control pills. If you smoke or have other risk factors, birth control pills will increase your risk of heart disease and blood clots, especially if you are older than 35.
• Alcohol. Drinking more than a moderate amount of alcohol can cause heart-related problems such as high blood pressure, stroke, irregular heartbeats, and cardiomyopathy (disease of the heart muscle).

Some risk factors can be controlled, while others cannot. But, by eliminating risk factors that you can change and by properly managing those that you cannot control, you may greatly reduce your risk of heart disease.

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Symptoms of Heart Disease
Coronary artery disease, heart attack -- each type of heart disease has different symptoms, although many heart problems have similar symptoms. The symptoms you experience depend on the type and severity of your heart condition.

• Coronary Artery Disease
  The most common symptom is angina. Angina can be described as a discomfort, heaviness, pressure, aching, burning, fullness, squeezing or painful feeling in your chest. It can be mistaken for indigestion or heartburn. Other symptoms that can occur with coronary artery disease include: Shortness of breath Palpitations (irregular heart beats, skipped beats or a "flip-flop" feeling in your chest) A faster heartbeat Weakness or dizziness Nausea Sweating
• Heart Attack
  Classical symptoms of acute myocardial infarction include sudden chest pain (typically radiating to the left arm or left side of the neck), shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, palpitations, sweating, and anxiety (often described as a sense of impending doom). Women may experience less typical symptoms than men, most commonly shortness of breath, weakness, a feeling of indigestion, and fatigue. Approximately one quarter of all myocardial infarctions are silent, without chest pain or other symptoms. A heart attack is a medical emergency, and people experiencing chest pain are advised to alert their emergency medical services, because prompt treatment is beneficial.
• Arrhythmias
  When symptoms of arrhythmias are present, they may include: Palpitations (a feeling of skipped heart beats, fluttering or "flip-flops," or feeling that your heart is "running away"). Pounding in your chest. Dizziness or feeling light-headed. Fainting. Shortness of breath. Chest discomfort. Weakness or fatigue (feeling very tired).
• Atrial Fibrillation
  Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a type of arrhythmia. Most people with AF experience one or more of the following symptoms: Heart palpitations (a sudden pounding, fluttering, or racing feeling in the heart). Lack of energy; tired. Dizziness (feeling faint or light-headed). Chest discomfort (pain, pressure, or discomfort in the chest). Shortness of breath (difficulty breathing during activities of daily living). Some patients with atrial fibrillation have no symptoms. Sometimes these episodes are briefer.

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