BBC expert issues heart attack 'increase' warning due to weather change
A BBC doctor is stressing the importance of learning CPR to potentially save lives. And it comes as an often-overlooked risk associated with colder weather could increase the likelihood of heart attacks.
Dr Xand van Tulleken told BBC Morning Live viewers that a dip in temperatures during autumn and winter seasons escalates the risk. He cited a couple's frightening experience where they were compelled to perform CPR following a cardiac arrest.
The physician noted: "As the weather gets colder, you move blood away from your skin. Your blood also thickens, your blood gets a little bit stickier, your blood pressure goes up and of course viruses and things going around like flu can put a big strain on your system. So that's why we see more heart attacks and strokes in the winter."
Beyond just wrapping up warmly, he also recommends maintaining indoor temperatures at 18C or higher, keeping snug both inside and outside the home, and getting vaccinated against the flu. The doctor's advice follows an intense account from a couple who confronted a life-threatening situation where one partner had to administer CPR urgently.
They recounted how Lee had been experiencing chest pains throughout the week, which they initially attributed to anxiety amid the Covid-19 crisis in 2020. However, by Friday night, the symptoms dramatically intensified, leading to a critical intervention, reports the Express.
Amy recounted the harrowing experience, saying: "He started having shooting pains in his left arm. He went grey, which we can now obviously look back on and say textbook heart attack symptoms. But with him only being 31 at the time, we just hoped for the best and went to bed."
However, shortly after they tried to sleep, "he started making this noise," Amy described, noting: "It was like an outward snore and I flicked the light on and that's when I realised he was completely unconscious. I immediately went into panic mode and didn't know what to do."
As the cold weather approaches, increasing the risk of heart attacks, Dr Xand van Tulleken provides a crucial step-by-step guide on performing CPR. The video in this article demonstrates how to perform CPR effectively, with Dr Xand simplifying the process to assist those willing to learn this vital skill.
When Amy dialled 999, the urgency escalated as she discovered Lee wasn't breathing. The operator instructed her to move him onto the floor to begin compressions.
Paramedics arrived within 10 minutes and took over. Reflecting on the ordeal, Amy said: "We ignored the heart attack symptoms which then caused him to go into cardiac arrest and he was fitted with three stents and kept in hospital under sedation and intensive care for a further five days."
Recalling the harrowing experience, Lee said: "In some ways I'm really fortunate that I can remember everything. A lot of people that go into cardiac arrest do experience memory loss - either they lose a memory of the day before or the week before but for me because Amy started CPR so quickly after I went into cardiac arrest within seconds I have full memory of the night."
Amy, who learned CPR through a basic first aid course, stressed the importance of such knowledge saying: "At the time you think you're never going to have to perform CPR on anyone let alone someone you love. Just having that little bit of knowledge of where to put your hands, how hard you need to push, how fast you need to push..." She emphasised: "You can just take 15 minutes out of your day and learn CPR because you just never know."