Dr. G Dimpu Edwin Jonathan, Consultant  Interventional Cardiologist, Aster RV Hospital,

Bangalore

The unexpected and tragic death of Indian shooting star and renowned Olympics coach Jaspal
Rana, aged 49 years, has left the entire sports world stunned. The renowned coach, who was
associated with sports throughout his life and recently won gold for his pupil Manu Bhaker, lost
his life to heart problems after experiencing pain in the chest while travelling by air.

One worrying trend from past two decades or so is that heart attacks, that used to show up
more often in people in their 50s and 60s, are now increasingly being spotted in those in their
30s and 40s. One major contribution is chronic stress plays a huge role, there are enough
studies to suggest chronic stress can trigger inflammation that is comparable to the
inflammation caused by smoking.

A lot of people today are basically under constant pressure to perform, and often without
getting enough recovery time from sleep and rest. On top of that, more and more individuals
are leaning on energy drinks to help them keep pushing, like, to do more and more. In the end
it all stacks up and creates inflammation in the body, and that becomes the setup for
cholesterol to start collecting in the arteries that feed the heart.

Chronic stress also pushes people into something called maladaptive coping. They know they
should be doing healthier things, but after a stressful day they might go for burgers, pizza, ice
cream, smoking or alcohol just to feel better quickly. That keeps the inflammation going and it
also adds extra injury to the artery walls. Put together, chronic stress, maladaptive coping, and
sometimes a genetic predisposition, is helping drive heart attacks happening as early as the 30s,
or even the 40s.

If you’re above 30 to 35 years of age, especially if you’re living under chronic stress, or you have
a family history of young people having heart attacks, it’s wise to get routine blood tests and
also sit down with a cardiologist to gauge cardiac risk. A sign that’s often overlooked is a kind of
heart attack that shows up and feels exactly like gastritis or classic heartburn.

When heartburn comes with extreme tiredness, giddiness, nausea, vomiting, or even profuse
sweating, please don’t delay get an ECG done right away, to rule out a heart attack. For
anyone with a family history of heart attacks, waiting until symptoms appear isn’t a smart
strategy.

Regular blood tests, including cholesterol as well as sugar levels, plus monitoring blood
pressure, together with a cardiac risk assessment by a cardiologist, can help surface problems

early. On top of that, managing stress, making sure sleep is adequate, exercising regularly, and
avoiding smoking are all key prevention steps.