Like there’s not enough things to stress about during the holidays, a new study reports that December is the deadliest month for heart attacks. The study didn’t say anything about more heart attacks in December, just that of those that did happen more people died as a result than in any other month.
Thankfully, the margin of difference is small: 22 percent of December heart attacks were fatal within 30 days, compared to only 20% of heart attacks happening in any other month. That seems like a fairly small difference, but still interesting because one month stands out from the other eleven — why? Researchers are considering many factors, but as of now they aren’t sure what the cause is. Things they’re looking at include stress of the holiday season, vacationing doctors, and possible treatment trends.
The important thing to remember is that the key to surviving a heart attack is receiving fast medical attention. Maybe during the holidays people are so busy they ignore symptoms and don’t go to the hospital as soon as they should? Remember also that heart attacks can present in a variety of ways, it doesn’t always happen with sharp chest or arm pains like in the movies.
Author by Rigel Gregg
