Air Pollutants and Risk Of Heart Attack
The association between air pollution and risk of myocardial infarction (or heart attack) remains controversial. However, Los Angeles County receives an ‘F’ grade for particle pollution according to the recently released 2013 State of the Air report by the American Lung Association.
In the February 15, 2012 issue of JAMA (Journal Of The American Medical Association), a meta-analysis of data from 34 published studies found that all main air pollutants, with the exception of ozone, were associated with an increased risk of heart attack. These main pollutants include: carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide.
Studies like these help drive home the concept that we are living in a very polluted and toxic time compared to any other era in our history. Because of this constant, unavoidable burden, it is very important to evaluate your risk for heart disease, and if you have any of the risks, work with your doctor or nutritionist to reduce these them.
For example, at my clinic I do an advanced lipid profile testing that looks not only at an extended lipid panel, but also metabolic syndrome markers and also genetic markers for heart disease. Tests like these can help a patient determine their overall risk for heart disease and decide how serious they need to be about reversing their risk.
With no patient co-pay, this advanced profile is completely covered by almost all insurance plans including (believe it, or not) HMO, MediCAL, Medicare and Kaiser! If you or a family member is concerned about risk for heart disease, choosing this test is highly recommended.
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