Risks Factors and Caring for Heart Diseases in Elderly Patients

   Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Cardiovascular diseases are very common and a major cause of death in all ages especially in people over the age of 65 years. According to the research reports of World Health Organization (WHO), every year 17 million deaths are caused due to some form of heart diseases worldwide. There are various kinds of heart diseases including high blood pressure, strokes, coronary artery disease, arrhythmias etc. The coronary artery disease is the major cause of death in heart patients in America. If there is an elderly patient with heart disease at your home, assisted care services can be of intense help to control the situation and better observation of the patient in every aspect.

Risk Factors for Patients Suffering from Heart Ailments

Hypertension (High Blood Pressure): High blood pressure often seen in obese patients can cause strokes, increases the risk of contacting other cardiovascular diseases and even heart attacks.

Cholesterol: Bad cholesterol or plaque formation in the blood vessels restricts the smooth passage of the blood and other fluids conveniently to the heart. Extreme cholesterol levels in the blood vessels can cause heart attacks. 

Type 2 Diabetes: As per the estimation of the American Heart Association, about 65% of diabetic patients are at the risk of developing some form of heart diseases later in their life. The elderly people are more prone to diabetes due to decreasing insulin release.

Obesity: Obesity or extreme fat concentration in the body can eventually lead to rise in cholesterol levels in the arteries. During old age, people gain weight due to lack of physical activities as they retire from work or reduced involvement in family affairs.

Lack of Physical Activities: Inactivity throughout the day actually raises the chances of encountering strokes and heart attacks. The professionals offering palliative care for coronary heart disease also consider that these patients need some physical activity. You can surely trust them for taking your elderly parents to walk or mild exercising.  

Caring for Elderly People with Cardiovascular Diseases

Life with cardiac ailments is quite hard especially for elderly people who are in need of regular caring due to changes in lifestyle, physical activities, diet patterns, and other factors. They may not be in a position to handle their regular independent activities on their own as they could in their young age. If the family members are not in a position to look after them due to workload and other commitments, they can readily take the help of professionals offering elderly care for heart patients. Besides this, here are some factors to be considered seriously.

Diet: The diet routine will not be same if the patient is diagnosed with heart complications. The diet course is imposed by the doctor in charge of the treatment depending upon the level of complication. In general, the patients are recommended to take low fat and salt intake in their regular food. The diet is inclusive of lean proteins, low fat dairy products, lots of vegetables and fruits, and whole grains. 
     

Exercises: Some kind of physical activity is very important for the patients with heart diseases especially those with cholesterol and overweight complications. While rigorous exercising is not always possible due to ageing issues, regular walking and mild exercising as per doctor’s advice is essential. This helps to improve blood circulation, keep the weight in check and gain advantage of keeping heart attacks at a bay.

The family members and the caregivers also need to take care that if the elderly patient has smoking or alcohol consumption habits; this has to be restricted largely. Smoking and drinking increases the chances of heart failure that can be even worse and at times life threatening.