Am i at risk of heart attack?

29 Comments

I am 42, I smoke, I have been eating an unhealthy diet for my entire adult life so far, bacon, transfats, the wrong types of carbs, sugar, etc., and I'm an opiate addict. I just read about Rick Ross's near fatal heart attack, and he's 42, same age as me. It just hit me how much at risk of heart attack I could be at.

However, I got concerned about a year ago at one point, and I went and got tested, treadmill cardio test and heart screening, and they found nothing wrong. But I'm still not sure how much that really means. What do some of you think?

Help us keep this site organized and clean. Thanks!

[ Report Post ]

Comments ( 29 )

FroggyBunBunzz

6 years ago

lmao. Duh like are you serious just listen to yourself its obvious.

Comment Hidden ( show )

1

1
- Anonymous Post Author
  
  6 years ago
  
  What's that mean? Your response is sorta pricklike. I may smoke and eat junk food all the time, but I'm also only 42 and not overweight, so the answer is not as obvious as it may seem, and my cardio tests came back normal last year. My uncertainty about this is enough to where I'd like to gather as many opinions as possible, including from you guys.
  
  Comment Hidden ( show )
  
  0
  
  0
Babygirl17

6 years ago

You are at a risk of heart attack. Sorry man. I'm at a risk like all the other people in the world is too!

Comment Hidden ( show )

0

0
Anonymous Post Author

6 years ago

Thank you. I am going to stop smoking and eat a healthy diet now

Comment Hidden ( show )

0

0
[Old Memory]

6 years ago

Personally I'd be more worried about becoming diabetic with that diet.

The thought of having to inject myself with insulin every day or having complications that could result in being in a coma or going blind is terrifying.

Comment Hidden ( show )

0

0
- Anonymous Post Author
  
  6 years ago
  
  Yeah, with all the sugar and unhealthy carbs in my diet for so long, becoming a diabetic is a risk. And being a diabetic raises the chances of heart problems itself. I'm more afraid of being blind than going into a coma or dying, because when you're in a coma or dead, you're no longer experiencing going through hell. Being blind would be a complete hellish experience.
  
  Comment Hidden ( show )
  
  1
  
  1
  - [Old Memory]
    
    6 years ago
    
    The dying part scares me the least. If anything, I hope assisted suicide is legal by then if I ever went blind.
    
    Comment Hidden ( show )
    
    0
    
    0
Aethylfritha

6 years ago

Yes definitely. You can reduce your ridk though by quitting smoking, ease up on the crap food and start some exercise. Believe me i also realize my lifestyle is not good! I dont smoke but i go back and forth from anorexia to binge eatting.

Comment Hidden ( show )

0

0
Ellenna

6 years ago

The damage done by an unhealthy diet, lack of exercise and smoking often doesn't show up for years. Anecdotal evidence about people you know is no evidence at all because there have always been the lucky few who somehow avoid the consequences of not looking after themselves properly: check out statistics. I don't know the stats for heart disease off the top of my head, but I do know the ones about smoking, which show that FIFTY PERCENT of smokers will die of a smoking related disease. Not very good odds, eh?

I can give you a good example about smoking: I smoked for nearly 50 years off and on, would quit sporadically and then fall off the wagon, telling myself I'd quit for good when it began to affect my health. A couple of years after I quit for good I was diagnosed with emphysema, which is not curable and doesn't show up for years.

Comment Hidden ( show )

0

0
- Anonymous Post Author
  
  6 years ago
  
  I'm sorry to hear about you getting emphysema. I guess that even though you had quite for 2 years, 50 years of on and off smoking caused some irreversible damage. I'm sorry that you got it now, my grandmother had emphysema too. What is it about us smokers where it's so hard to stay away from it? That nicotine addiction grabs you by the balls.
  
  Comment Hidden ( show )
  
  0
  
  0
  - Ellenna
    
    6 years ago
    
    Thanks for yr kind thoughts! Yeah, it's a bastard addiction to kick, but I'm proof it's possible, I just wish I'd done it decades earlier or better still, never started smoking.
    
    It's just too easy to fall off the wagon: many many times I'd be smoking again after having "just one drag" of a friend's cigarette, then a whole smoke, then starting to buy them again because I've "borrowed" so many. Now I have to move away from smokers because the smoke affects my lungs to badly.
    
    There's a lot more help now for people wanting to quit: prescription drugs, gum, patches, lozenges. Allan Carr's books are great too.
    
    Comment Hidden ( show )
    
    0
    
    0
    - Anonymous Post Author
      
      6 years ago
      
      No problem. Yes, nicotine patches or gum can help smokers quit.
      
      Comment Hidden ( show )
      
      0
      
      0
Anonymous Post Author

6 years ago

I'm getting more than a second opinion from all of you, but if you're meaning from a doctor, I've been to a doctor and gotten the cardio treadmill tests done with the probe and computer heart screening done 3 different times now and they all came back normal. But, as one of them was done one year ago, the other two were done like 5 years ago and 7 years ago. So I've always been continuing to check up on my heart health. I guess that the mistakes that I made was that when the tests came back ok, it made me think that it was ok to keep not being careful with my lifestyle.

Comment Hidden ( show )

0

0
[Old Memory]

6 years ago

Bad diet always puts a person at risk of heart attacks, and many more health problems, but doesn't mean they must have one.

It's even worse if a person has a family history of such diseases.

Don't think that you're in the clear just because the doctor says you're healthy now. You should gradually reform your diet starting today or tomorrow- that's just my advice.

Comment Hidden ( show )

0

0
- Anonymous Post Author
  
  6 years ago
  
  I am definitely going to stop smoking and eat a healthier diet now. I just hope that there's not too much permanent damage. And if you get normal cardio test results, doesn't that at least cut down the chances of something happening?
  
  Comment Hidden ( show )
  
  0
  
  0
  - [Old Memory]
    
    6 years ago
    
    Getting normal cardio test results seems to indicate that not too much permanent damage has been done.
    
    Good luck on living a healthier lifestyle, although it's really up to you, not luck.
    
    Comment Hidden ( show )
    
    0
    
    0
    - Anonymous Post Author
      
      6 years ago
      
      Yeah. I am still going to stop smoking, eat healthy, and start some light cardio excersise. I won't do too much cardio , because that can trigger a heart attack if you do too much too soon when you're still out of shape.
      
      Comment Hidden ( show )
      
      0
      
      0
Anonymous Post Author

6 years ago

I was hoping to get better responses than what I've gotten so far here.

Comment Hidden ( show )

0

0
- Emokate
  
  6 years ago
  
  Yes you are at risk.
  
  Comment Hidden ( show )
  
  0
  
  0
  - Anonymous Post Author
    
    6 years ago
    
    If I quit smoking and started a much healthier diet of only good carbs, no trans fats, and lots of fruit and veggies, would my risk of stroke or heart attack go down significantly, or at this point, is there already too much permanent damage?
    
    Comment Hidden ( show )
    
    0
    
    0
    - Emokate
      
      6 years ago
      
      It goes down and gets better as time passes I guess. Stay healthy, try to kick the methadone too.
      
      Comment Hidden ( show )
      
      1
      
      1
      - Anonymous Post Author
        
        6 years ago
        
        I smoke and eat unhealthy, but one good thing is that I don't drink. I can't drink cause I'm on methadone and you can't mix the two, well you can, I've known people who have, but I'm not gonna play with that fire, besides I have a couple of times and the alcohol ruins the feeling from the methadone, and the two combined did make me feel quite sick.
        
        Comment Hidden ( show )
        
        0
        
        0
      - Anonymous Post Author
        
        6 years ago
        
        I'll have to wean myself off the methadone, or else I'll have withdrawal, and I know that the chances of heart attack or stroke are higher during withdrawal because one withdrawal symptom is higher blood pressure.
        
        Comment Hidden ( show )
        
        0
        
        0
Nickvey

6 years ago

bacon has saturated fats not trans fats found in polyunsaturated seed oils. what bacon has that makes it bad is nitrates added for color and shelf life. smoking is a deadly habit that can cause cancer and heart disease . bacon wont give you heart disease it will give you colon cancer. carbs and sugars will cause obesity helping you get cancer. opiate addiction could get you murdered faster than any medical problem, what is a rick ross? has to be thousands of rick rossses

Comment Hidden ( show )

-2

-2
- Anonymous Post Author
  
  6 years ago
  
  Rick Ross is a rapper. Google him and read about his heart attack he just had. Opiate addiction won't get me murdered, I go to methadone clinic. Carbs and sugars do raise heart disease risk. I'm not sure how high my risk is at age 42 when I smoke and have been eating the wrong foods for over 20 years.
  
  Comment Hidden ( show )
  
  0
  
  0
EuphoniumLizz

6 years ago

My dad smoked and are a lot of junk food in his life. Felt fine and was healthy otherwise until recently. He went to the hospital with a stroke. After a week in the hospital he slipped up and didn't take care of himself and had another one.

After some tests it showed up that he has had multiple mini strokes through out his life. One could have killed him and no one would have known until it was too late. Doctor's he went to before missed all of them.

Praise the Lord he is doing better without a lot of permanent damage but he had to start taking better care of himself. If you are worried,get a second opinion at a specialist to discuss risk factors if nothing else try to make healthier choices so you don't almost drop dead like my dad almost did.

Comment Hidden ( show )

-1

-1
- Anonymous Post Author
  
  6 years ago
  
  How old was your dad when had his stroke?
  
  Comment Hidden ( show )
  
  1
  
  1
  - EuphoniumLizz
    
    6 years ago
    
    The most recent one he was 65. There is evidence he has had mini strokes over the course of a few years according to his new doctor. We are not sure when his first was.
    
    You are still young so you are probably at a lesser risk but still don't be like my dad and ignore your health it isn't worth it
    
    Comment Hidden ( show )
    
    0
    
    0
    - Anonymous Post Author
      
      6 years ago
      
      I don't think that there's that much chance of something happening at age 42, but as you can see, there are a number of responders on this page who are saying that I have a real risk, after all I've stated that I smoke and have spent the last 20+ years eating a diet high in animal fat, processed foods, trans fats, and tons of bad carbs (white breads and pastas, cakes, candy, etc.) and not enough good carbs (whole grains, fruits, and veg).
      I guess that at 42, the risk isn't as high as it would be if I carried on doing the same thing for another 20 years (if I'd make it that long if I were to continue doing the exact same things). I mean, I have known people who were 70 who spent their entire lives smoking and eating whatever and had never had one stroke or heart attack, but then when I was in school, I had a friend who's dad dropped dead from a heart attack at age 35, and my friend said the reason was because he smoked and didn't watch what he ate. If I were to follow him, I would've died 7 years ago. I can't really go by what has or hasn't happened to others because everyone is different. If I continue my habits, I could get a heart attack in a year, or I could not get a heart attack for 30 years, you never know, everyone's different. But I'll clean up my habits, because with my habits how they've been, the chances are still higher.
      
      Comment Hidden ( show )
      
      0
      
      0

Are You Normal?

Am i at risk of heart attack?