According to the American Heart Association, more people die of heart attacks in the last week of December than at any other time of the year.
While it's important to be aware of the signs of a heart attack and take steps to reduce your risk all year round, it's especially important in the coming weeks of December, according to this organization that focuses on heart and brain health.
Several scientific studies confirm the deadly phenomenon of “Christmas holiday heart attack.”
According to an article published in the journal Circulation, more heart attack deaths occur on December 25th than any other day of the year, followed by December 26th and January 1st.
Meanwhile, a study in the British Medical Journal that reviewed more than 16 years of data on heart attacks among people in Sweden found an overall 15 percent increase in heart attacks during the winter holiday season.
He highlighted that heart attacks increased by 37 percent on December 24 (Christmas Eve), peaking at 10 p.m., and were most common in people over 75 years of age, people with diabetes or pre-existing cardiovascular disease.
Added to this is a study presented at the British Cardiovascular Society meeting in June which found that more severe heart attacks occur on Mondays than on any other day of the week, and that this year December 25 (Christmas) falls on a Monday.
The association's article emphasized that this could be particularly important for people in Hispanic and Latino communities.
According to the American Heart Association's 2023 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics Update, more than half of all Hispanic men and more than a third of women have existing cardiovascular disease, which puts them at increased risk of a heart attack or stroke.
Of the more than 30,000 heart disease deaths among Hispanics in 2020, more than 8,000 were directly attributable to heart attacks, the report continued.
With information from Prensa Latina
Latest posts from Radio Angulo (see all)