Even though it's no longer Go Red Month, the topic of raising awareness for women's heart disease still needs to be talked about. Heart disease and heart attacks are preventable, but require awareness, planning, and a heart healthy lifestyle.
Dr. Diana Bitner, a nationally recognized menopause specialist from Spectrum Health, and Dr. Thomas Boyden, Spectrum Health's Medical Director for Preventative Cardiology, talk about new services that can help patients reduce the risk of heart disease.
Heart disease occurs when plaque builds up in the arteries and around the heart. The plaque builds up it gathers in the walls of the vessels making them stiff, and then inside the vessels blocking blood flow. When the blood can't flow efficiently through the veins, the heart muscle can die from lack of oxygen, leading to a heart attack.
Traditional risk factors like high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol and smoking play a big role in contributing to heart disease. However non-traditional risk factors like weight, eating habits, psychological well-being, stress, and physical activity, also play a part in heart health and are often overlooked.
At the Preventive Cardiology Clinic, patients can go through a thorough assessment on the factors that lead to heart disease, and work out a treatment plan to not only decrease the risk of heart disease, but make sure they get put on the road towards a healthy lifestyle.
Being healthy is a lifelong process, but every step towards a healthy lifestyle is one step away from heart disease.
Dr. Boyden's office is located at 2902 Bradford Street Northeast. Patients are welcome to self-refer and schedule an appointment by calling (616)-885-5000.
Dr. Bitner's office is located at 3800 Lake Michigan Drive Northwest, Suite A. To schedule an appointment with her, call (616) 267-8225.
All information was provided by Dr. Diana Bitner and her blog. Read more.
