Which is the Deadliest Day of the Year?

Though many days are in the running such as New Year’s Eve, New Year’s Day or Christmas Eve, the number one (1) deadliest day of the year, according to the American Heart Association is, Christmas Day or December 25th. This is the date with the highest number of heart attacks.
Believe it or not the second most deadliest day is December 26th, followed closely in third place by January 1st. December comes in as the most deadliest month of the year. Researchers have not been able to determine the specifics why December is the most deadly, but many hypothesize certain behaviors and outside influences can have an impact. Nonetheless, taking prudent actions during this holiday season can improve your risk. Consider the following suggestions:

Overeating and Drinking
Over consumption of higher fatty foods, increased levels of alcohol and salt to our diet, can put extra stress upon your digestive and heart systems. Enjoy these foods in moderation and try to balance your diet.

Weather
Cold weather is extremely hard on the heart. It increases blood pressure because of the constricting of the blood vessels due to the cold. Also blood clots occur more often in cooler temperatures. All this puts additional stress on your heart. Try and avoid too much physical exertion or strenuous exercise in cold environment.

Pressure Deadlines
The extra pressure of work deadlines as well as shopping adventures for gifts can increase the stress to the body. Again moderation and some type of balancing of these activities will help alleviate or reduce your stress levels.

Medications
When traveling to friends and relatives do not forget to pack your medications. This happens more times than not, and people will generally go without their medication for several days. Make sure to pack all medications as well as your physician’s phone number if you need him to call in an urgent RX for you when you are out of town.

Denial
Patients with symptoms of a heart attack in December are prone to just try and wish the symptoms away, or attribute them to some other cause. It’s the Holiday’s! Willfully ignoring the symptoms will not make them go away. Seek immediate medical attention. Delaying can make the situation much worse and even lead to death. Just because it is the holidays, do not think you are immune to a heart attack. If you have the symptoms call 9-1-1 immediately!