Ensure your heart health

Dr Russel Drummond discusses cardiovascular health and well-being.

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Diabetes and the heart

Heart disease is amongst the most dreaded complications of Diabetes. Heart failure is a type of heart disease where the heart cannot pump adequately. Symptoms of heart failure include shortness of breath, chest pain, fatigue and swelling of the feet, ankles and legs. High blood sugar levels (Diabetes) and hypertension (high blood pressure) increase the risk of heart failure. Other factors like obesity, smoking and high blood cholesterol increase the risk of heart failure in people with Diabetes. People with Diabetes require specialised care to prevent, diagnose and treat heart disease.

Western diet and Indian genes

People of Indian origin who move to the UK tend to eat a more westernised diet. This combination of a western diet with Indian genes causes more harm than in people of Indian origin who eat an Indian diet. A western diet increases the risk of atherosclerosis (buildup of fats, cholesterol and other substances in and on your artery walls (plaque), which can restrict blood flow), heart attacks, strokes, occurring at a much younger age.

CVOT

Cardiovascular Outcome Trials (CVOT) were started in 2008 after the US Food and Drug Agency and European Medicines Agency became concerned that one of the historic drugs might be increasing cardiovascular (heart problems) risk. The agencies mandated that all new Diabetes drugs should demonstrate cardiovascular safety as a minimum. In the last 10 years, a quarter of a million people participated in studies demonstrating the safety of new Diabetes drugs.