In addition, smoking is another activity which is self inflicted that increases the likelihood of getting coronary heart disease. The exposure to the fumes produced from the smoke cause free radicals (homolytic fission: bond breaks evenly leaving two reactive radicals) (1). These radicals promote the growth of plaque inside arteries causing atherosclerosis. Consequently, this problem starves the heart of oxygen if the blood vessels become extremely restricted (2). Furthermore, carbon monoxide gases exhibited from cigarette smoke intoxicates the heart’s consumption of oxygen because the gas reacts with the haemoglobin rather than the oxygen that is needed for respiration (7). This social activity is not derived from birth nor is it genetic. Therefore it is definitely the persons fault for getting coronary heart disease if it was from the effects of smoking.
Further more, a not so obvious but very common cause for coronary heart disease is stress which a person undertakes during everyday life (1). Many doctors have recognised an occurrence in heart attacks when prior to the problem there was severe emotional trauma with the patient involved. This is because when someone is suffering from stress their blood pressure dramatically increases. This not only causes the blood vessels to stiffen due to the high hydrostatic forces but it also increases the work rate of the heart due to when your blood pressure is too high, your heart has to work much harder to pump enough blood and oxygen to your body's organs. As a result, the heart muscle stretches and thickens. In extreme cases, the heart stops functioning properly and it fails to cope with the body’s demand of oxygen and can eventually fail (4). Therefore, it is simple to understand that if people led a more relaxing lifestyle the probability of getting coronary heart disease is reduced(6). This is because the body has simply less problems to cope with when there are no chemistry alterations to the body when it undergoes stress. Otherwise, symptoms such as blood pressure cause devastating effects to the coronary blood vessels.
However, whilst there are obviously valid reasons for contracting coronary heart disease from the type of lifestyle which the person caused by themselves, there are many who live perfectly healthy standard of living and still get the disease (1). Therefore, there are uncontrollable factors.
The first obvious issue is the hereditary matter. It is often inherited blood disorders which cause the problem rather than the heart being directly affected itself. Often down the family tree there are traits of high blood pressure often leading to eventual hard disease in some families(3). This is proof of the fact that lifestyle does not always directly affect whether you will get heart disease, because you can still get it from just having hereditary genes which can cause the illness (Such as hereditary high blood pressure).
Further more, the race of the person can have a varied effect on the likely hood of getting coronary heart disease (8). It is a fact that African Americans have much worse high blood pressure than Caucasians and consequently a much higher risk of having coronary heart disease. African Americans may have lower levels of nitric oxide. Nitric oxide keeps blood vessels flexible and open (9). This is another example of a possible reason for getting heart disease without having a lifestyle which would encourage the disease (8). It is out of the control of the patient that the disease can occur without even being careless with your health.
Finally the age and gender of the person can ultimately influence the possibility of suffering from coronary heart disease. Men have a greater risk of high blood pressure until the age of fifty five, when their respective risks are similar (6).Nevertheless, the possibility of getting the disease is increased as the age of the person becomes greater (4). This is because when the cholesterol circulates around the body it begins from birth until death. Unquestionably, as age increases the arteries become less elastic and more cholesterol attaches itself in the process mentioned earlier in the essay (1). Therefore, the efficiency of the coronary blood vessels decreases as age increases because blood flow is restricted to supply blood to and from the heart reducing the transport of substance to allow the heart to respire (oxygen and glucose to the heart and carbon dioxide taken away as a waste gas) (2).From this it is easy to understand how it is incorrect to assume that you can get coronary heart disease just by your lifestyle. One can live a healthy life but old age can eventually cause damage the coronary arteries causing heart disease.
In conclusion, from analysing the statement and researching coronary heart disease the idea of the heart disease is a self inflicted illness is only partly correct because heart disease can be from having an unhealthy or stressful lifestyle. However, there are also hereditary, gender, age and racial factors that need to be taken into consideration when working out the causes of the disease. Nevertheless, inherited traits along with environmental risks can both contribute to causing heart disease and the same symptoms.
Bibliography
1. The website
2. The website
http://healthlink.mcw.edu/article/931375421.html
3. The leaflet
“Eating for your heart” by British Heart foundation, issued September 2001
4. The encyclopaedia
Britannica 2004
5. The Book
“Advanced biology, Page 158, issued 2000 by Grace Monger
6. The leaflet
“Blood pressure” by British Heart foundation, issued September 2001
7. The website
http://www.lifeclinic.com/focus/blood/articleView.asp?MessageID=579
8. The website
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/16/sosteacher/biology/32764.shtml
9. The website
http://www.reutershealth.com/wellconnected/doc14.html
