Hearts, like any other part of your body ages over time and is at risk of developing different cardiovascular diseases later on in life. Aging is inevitable, but most of the heart problems can be avoided by living healthier lifestyles.
The old adage, prevention is better than cure is most appropriate when it comes to dealing with your heart. People think of hospitals only when sickness is knocking at the door. It would be best if you didn’t wait for symptoms of cardiac problems for you to visit a cardiologist near you.
What Age is Appropriate?
In ideal circumstances, children and the youth do not necessarily have problems with their hearts or need frequent checkups. But it would be best if you didn’t ignore when your child starts complaining about chest pain and fast heartbeats.
But it is reasonable to have a yearly checkup from our cardiologist near you once you hit middle-age. From middle-age till later years, you have to make these visits a habit.
Preventive care is quite essential, but you should restrict it to routine tests like checking for blood pressure, blood sugar, and blood cholesterol levels. It is vital to know these numbers because they point out how healthy your body is at that moment.
Unless you are exhibiting heart attack symptoms or other cardiac problems, you do not need to expose yourself to unnecessary procedures.
Even though there is no age limit, and anyone can profit from visiting a cardiologist, there are instances where some people will benefit more. Let us look at some of these categories and see if you fit in any of them.
1. Personal History of Early-age Heart Conditions
It is unusual to have heart problems like strokes and heart attacks when you are young. It is not proper to see people who are not in their mid-sixties or older suffering from such diseases. Though, there are cases where people in their 30s, 40s, and 50s, who have suffered and are suffering from certain heart diseases.
Patients suffering from early-age heart conditions need more aggressive care than most. There can be many underlying issues, including congenital problems, and, therefore, need screening for additional factors.
If you have a heart attack or stroke before the age of 55 in men and 65 in women, you should also advise your family members to visit our cardiologist.
2. Family History of Heart Diseases
Patients who fall in this category most probably have a family member or a parent who suffered from a specific heart condition. In other words, the heart problem can be because of genes carrying the disease are passed on from parent to child.
Genetic testing has to be done to ascertain if you are at risk of getting a heart disease. If you have a strong family history of specific heart diseases, you can benefit from a routine checkup regardless of your age.
The mistake is that most people in this category tend to think that they are somehow immune, and they aren’t at risk like their other family members. At times, your cholesterol and blood sugar levels are in the normal range. When it comes to genetics, you have to go deeper than routine tests.
3. Serious Cholesterol Disorders
Patients in this category have high cholesterol levels that cannot be remedied by diet or lifestyle changes. There is a hint of genetic factors that are behind this disorder.
4. Many Unchecked Risk Factors
In this category, you will find people who have typical risk factors that lead to heart problems. The risk factors are:
- Obesity
- Diabetes
- High blood pressure
- Unhealthy or Poor diet
- Smoking
- High blood cholesterol levels
- Stress
- Physical inactivity
All of the above on their own are risk factors, but there are times when some of them combine (which happens quite often) and can increase the level of difficulty when it comes to preventing or treating the heart conditions.
Diseases like congestive heart failure, angina, heart attack, and coronary heart disease are generally caused by the risk factors listed above.
Additionally, there are times when you might experience specific symptoms that will make you visit our cardiologist regardless of your age. These symptoms are as follows:
- Chest pain
- Chest pressure
- Shortness of breath
- Pain in the jaw, neck, throat, back or upper abdomen
- Numbness, pain, coldness or weakness in your hands or legs
Currently, there isn’t an ideal age to see a cardiologist, especially if you fall in any of the categories listed above. But you need our preventive cardiologist in Altus Emergency Center to help you decipher if you are on the right path or not.
