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Russia’s young at massive risk of heart attack
Published: 14 December, 2009, 10:53
Edited: 14 January, 2010, 12:22
The rate of heart attacks in young Russian men has increased tenfold in just twenty years. The recent death of a 22-year-old movie star, caused by heart failure, has highlighted the serious nature of the condition.
Young, talented and seemingly in normal health, 22-year-old Russian movie actor Vasily Lykshin died suddenly in his sleep from a heart attack.
His friend Dima Tikhonov, musician and actor himself, says “It was a shock, we could not believe it. He never complained about his health.”
Actors who shared the screen with Vasily say he’d had a difficult childhood in an orphanage which may have affected his health later, but lived a full life not aware that he had any problems.
Vasily Lykshin was one of around a quarter of a million Russians who die suddenly each year.
However, some of the country's leading heart specialists say that many sudden deaths happen because people are unaware of what's going on inside their chests, and those who worry least are the young.
“The population in Russia is one of the most educated in the world, but not in a medical sense. We need a screening system. Everyone has to go through screening.”
The independent Russian health organization, the League of the Nation's Health, says that the rate of heart attacks among men in their 30s and 40s has increased tenfold in just two decades.
A simple, portable breakthrough
Russian medical scientists have invented a compact high-tech device that gives a comprehensive analysis of the heart within just a few minutes. All it needs is a laptop – so doctors can travel across the country performing cardio check-ups easily.
Doctors say the hardest thing of all is to get a young working man to check his heart. Four out five people who come to be screened are women, but it is actually men who are more at risk.
Doctors explain that the number of heart attacks has gone up so drastically among men in recent years mostly because of an unhealthy lifestyle. Smoking and stress are the major factors. Also, young people think they are too busy, and they pay very little attention to their health until it is too late.
The above mentioned device tracks down heart abnormalities and reflects them in colours. Red is a signal of alert. A man who has red marks on a diagram is advised to visit a cardiologist immediately for a thorough check-up.
Doctors warn that the carefree attitude of other Russians to their hearts can kill. The death of 22-year-old Vasily in his sleep proves people at any age can be at risk.
Global statistics
Cardiovascular diseases today are the biggest killers not only in Russia, but also globally.
Just under 30% of all human deaths are attributed to heart failure.
The Eastern Mediterranean region has the highest statistics in this respect. The red-to-green gradient indicates the number of deaths by region.
In Afghanistan, over 700 people per 100,000 of the population die of heart disease and the figure is almost 600 for Iraq.
Africa and South East Asia are the second and third worst-hit regions on the list. The average index here is a bit under 400.
Next is Europe, with drastic variations throughout the region. In Germany, 200 people out of 100,000 die from heart disease, but in Russia it is more than three times higher, at 645.
The most favorable regions on the list are the Western Pacific and the Americas. Japan only has an index of around 100, one of the lowest for all industrialized countries.
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I am deeply saddened by the loss of this talented actor. The economic trauma of 1990s is showing its damaging effects on Russian people. Russia’s healthy policymakers and the business elite are not doing enough advocate accessibility to relatively cheap healthy food for the entire population.. The Russian society is under increasing weight of the new consumer driven high life and the economic stress. The effect of this dangerous mix is showing even among the young people-who should have been the once with the greatest capacity to resist the harmful effects of these trends. The death of this young man is a warning sign for the Russia’ healthy policymakers and politicians to double and triple their efforts in areas such as diagnostics and medical care but by also undertaking wider promotion of healthy living.
Sarah, it looks as though no one is taking any notice of my comment about Magnesium foods including Black Tea (without sugar) will protect people from heart attacks. I have had Irregular Heart Beat Episodes since Easter 1995. Two Echocardiograms have shown no damage whatsoever. Also Selenium foods protects the brain from strokes.