World Heart Day: Surge in congenital and cardiovascular diseases among youth raises alarm

Hyderabad: World Heart Day is observed on September 29. The theme for 2024 is ‘Use Heart for Action’. Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) among the youth are on the rise, while infants are also suffering from heart-related problems for different reasons.

The increasing number of congenital heart diseases among newborns remains a pressing issue, with the lack of awareness leading to the loss of lives. More than 2 lakh children are born with congenital heart problems of which 40,000 are critical issues but curable.

The recent few years have witnessed a high number of deaths in young adults for a variety of reasons. With increasing obesity, hypertension, and sedentary lifestyle, particularly among these youth, irrespective of gender, experts urge regular exercise, active lifestyle and awareness to maintain good heart health.

‘Use heart for action’

The World Heart Foundation has selected ‘Use Heart for Action’ as the theme to encourage individuals to care for their hearts and empower them to urge leaders to take cardiovascular health seriously by providing a global platform for action.

Congenital problems are curable

Congenital heart disease (CHD) affects the structure and function of a child’s heart. The prevalence of CHD is around 8.5 to 13.6 per 1,000 children, similar to that of international prevalence.

Dr Sri Phani Bhargavi Dhulipudi, consultant FNB Pediatric Cardiology, Rainbow Children’s Heart Institute, Banjara Hills here said, “Around 40,000 children suffer from critical heart problems. In such situations, the child needs surgery within one month, else they may not even celebrate their first birthday.”

Sadly, the lack of awareness among the parents and the financial burden prevents them from ensuring adequate treatment. The children can become normal and lead a healthy life upon completion of the surgery.

“These problems can be detected in the foetal stage and can occur due to maternal malnutrition, genetic problems like done syndrome, pollution and chemical exposure,” Dr Bhargavi said.

CVD - biggest killer disease in the world

As per reports, CVD kills around 20.5 million people across the globe, making it the biggest killer disease. The prevalence of CVD has increased among the younger population making it an even bigger health concern.

Dr Shafi DM, interventional cardiologist, director, of Tulips Charitable Foundation and senior cardiologist at Ajara Hospital, Warangal said, “There is a paradoxical shift of CVD from the older population to younger population without any gender restriction.”

Four key steps for a healthy heart

With increasing obesity among both males and females in India by more than 100 per cent, the risks of CVD have also increased. The higher number of hypertensive youth and sedentary lifestyle has worsened the condition.

“The younger population must ensure four things to ensure a healthy heart. Spend at least 45 to 60 minutes of dedicated aerobic exercise, quit smoking and alcohol consumption, change their lifestyle and get preventive examination tests like ECG and stress tests when they cross 35-40 years of age,” Dr Shafi said.

The lack of awareness about the seriousness of CVD, terming it an ‘old age condition’ is adding to the sudden deaths among the young population.

Bad sleep pattern

The change in lifestyle includes the quality and duration of sleep among the younger generation, which has changed in the last two decades.

“Most youth go to sleep late and wake up late. Such continuous practice can affect the circadian rhythm. This can lead to irregular heart rhythm known as arrhythmia and cause blood flow defects,” Dr Bhargavi said.

Lack of a balanced diet

While the consumption of processed foods has increased in recent years, people, particularly young girls go hungry for the sake of remaining slim.

“Even 13-year-old girls are desperate to remain slim and fit for different reasons. We need a balanced diet, which includes carbohydrates, protein, fat and other essentials. People must stop consuming processed foods to have a healthy heart,” Dr Bhargavi said.