Heart Attack: After the Corona epidemic, heart attack cases are increasing rapidly across the world. Earlier, cases of heart attack were seen only in the elderly, but in the last two years, this disease is also being seen in youth of 18 to 20 years of age. Over some time, many TV and Bollywood stars have also said goodbye to the world due to heart attacks. After Corona, most of the cases of heart attacks are seen in those people who exercise and take a healthy diet. Health experts say that the chances of having a heart attack are higher in the morning. Amidst the increasing cases of heart attacks, it is natural to ask the question of whether a person can have a heart attack while sleeping. To know the answer to this question, we talked to Dr. Bimal Chhajer, a cardiologist and former consultant of AIIMS and founder of Saul Heart Center.
Can you have a heart attack while sleeping?
Dr. Bimal Chhajer says that due to an increase in blood pressure, chances of heart attack and stroke are higher. The incidence of heart attacks is increasing across the world and as the number of cases is increasing, the cases of heart attacks in sleep are also increasing. Heart attacks in sleep affect about 10% of individuals, with the most common time being the morning when the surge of neuro hormones in the body is high. People who suffer from diabetes, high blood pressure, obstructive sleep apnea and obesity are at greater risk of heart attack during sleep.
Doctors say that there is a risk of heart attack during sleep because when a person sleeps, all the muscles present inside the body relax, which also includes the muscles present inside the neck and throat. While sleeping, the neck tissues of a person work more which puts pressure on the air passages of the body, due to which we are not able to breathe freely. Due to open breathing, we either snore or stop breathing. Due to all this, there is a lack of oxygen in the body, due to which the possibility of heart attack increases.
Another cause of heart attack while sleeping is chronic obstructive sleep apnea disorder. The blood pressure of every person falls while sleeping and if someone has sleep apnea, the blood pressure may not fall but high blood pressure may occur because every time the oxygen level inside the body falls, the blood pressure increases and adrenaline increases. All this can put excessive stress on the heart and make it work harder to normalize blood pressure. This increases the stress on your heart because you have to work harder to maintain blood pressure and in such a situation you may have problems like heart attack and stroke.