FROM
watching It’s a Wonderful
Life to enjoying time with family and
friends, it’s easy for the holidays to
tug at your heartstrings.
Unfortunately, it’s also easy for the
holidays to have a far less pleasant
Your heart
and the holidays
Don’t ignore heart attack symptoms
Research shows that the risk of
having a heart attack goes up
during the winter holidays.
efect on your heart.
Research shows that the risk of
having a heart attack goes up during
the winter holidays and that heart-
related deaths are highest around
Christmas and New Year’s Day.
According to the American
College of Emergency Physicians,
possible causes for this dangerous
seasonal surge in heart problems
include:
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Eating too many rich and salty
foods.
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Forgetting to take daily
medications.
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Waiting too long to seek medi-
cal help for potential heart trouble
out of concern that it may disrupt
holiday plans.
Act fast.
If you suspect a heart
attack, call 911 quickly. Most at-
tacks cause pain or discomfort in the
center of the chest that lasts for
more than a few minutes and
may come and go. Te pain
may even be mild.
Other symptoms include:
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Discomfort in one or
both arms, the neck, back, jaw, or
stomach.
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Sweating, nausea or dizziness.
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Shortness of breath.
If there’s a chance you or someone
else might be having a heart attack,
fnd out for sure. Tat way, you’re
more likely to be around to enjoy
next year’s holiday season.
Additional source: American Heart Association
A J OURNAL DE VOT ED TO HEALTHFUL L I V I NG
™
FA L L 2011
INSIDE
4
Perspectives on our Cancer Center
7
Community health classes
8
Get involved
WELCOME
to the fall edition
of CMH Health
Compass. In this
issue, you will
learn about heart-
smart eating this
holiday season,
see why back-
to-school should
mean a visit to
your pediatrician, and fnd out how
prevention goes a long way in men’s
health. You will also discover how
art and collaboration create a healing
environment in the new CMH/OHSU
Cancer Care Center. From all of us at
CMH, have a healthy holiday season.
Erik Torsen, CEO
Erik Thorsen,
CEO
C E O L I N K
It’s feeling
like fall!