Low temperatures put a strain on the heart. Heart patients should therefore be particularly careful at temperatures below zero degrees, advises the German Heart Foundation. On very cold days, even the number of heart attacks increases, as shown by a Swedish long-term study in more than 280,000 patients. "Chest pain or shortness of breath should therefore not be taken lightly, especially in winter," warns heart specialist Thomas Voigtl盲nder from the board of the German Heart Foundation.
"If a healthy person goes out into the cold and suddenly experiences pain , pressure or burning sensation in the chest and shortness of breath, that is a warning sign and a doctor should be consulted immediately to thoroughly examine the heart." The symptoms can be harbingers of a heart attack. Particularly at risk are patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) and angina pectoris complaints or after a heart attack.
Heavy cold puts pressure on the coronary arteries, narrowing the vessels and reducing the blood supply to the heart muscle, which reduces oxygen consumption. At the same time, the resistance vessels in the rest of the body are narrowed (blood pressure increase), so that the heart has to pump against a greater resistance. "Particularly vigilant in the winter months should be high-pressure patients and those with heart failure".
Those who already suffer from heart disease should refrain from strenuous physical exertion such as snow shovels at temperatures below zero. Although regular exercise in winter is recommended. Instead of too high a burden, however, the foundation advises less strenuous exercise such as walks or walking tours. In freezing temperatures, cardiac patients are best placed to protect themselves with a scarf over their mouths and noses so that the air is already preheated into the respiratory tract.
When it is very cold, it can also make sense to transfer the training to the sports hall or the swimming pool. Individual studies suggest that even a cool apartment can raise blood pressure and endanger the heart. Coronary patients should therefore keep the apartment comfortably warm without overheating it. Basically, people with heart disease in the winter should regularly measure their blood pressure and take their medicines particularly carefully, so the recommendation.
A recent Finnish study confirms that cold can adversely affect the prognosis in heart patients. Thus, the use of cardiac drugs such as ASA, beta-blockers or nitrates protects cardiovascular patients from an acute coronary event (eg heart attack or angina pectoris).
"For some sufferers - and only in consultation with the attending physician - the dose of the remedies in winter must be adjusted because the blood pressure in the cold season is often higher". The timing of taking the medication is also important: since most patients get raised after getting up, they should usually take their tablets in the morning before going out into the cold.
