Page 11 - Dignity Health | Be well | Spring 2013
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A leader in healing hearts
The Mercy Heart Center offers the North
State a comprehensive range of heart
care services. Some highlights include:
An experienced team of board-
certified interventional cardiologists,
cardiovascular surgeons and
cardiology hospitalists
State-of-the-art digital heart
catheterization that detects heart
disease in its early, most treatable
stages
A cardiac rehabilitation center with
exercise machines, music and a
friendly staff
Free community seminars covering
heart-health topics
Speed—Mercy Heart Center can
diagnose and clear a blocked artery in
less than 90 minutes
Mercy Medical Center Redding is an
award-winning center—see page 16 for
details.
Not
all heart attacks are fatal,
but about 4 in every 10 result in
a lost life. Why do some people
survive a heart attack and others
don’t? A person’s body weight
might be the key.
The journal
Heart
reports that
researchers followed more than
6,000 men for nearly 15 years.
During that time, the group had
1,027 nonfatal and 214 fatal heart
attacks. The difference between
men who survived and those who
didn’t was their body weight.
Obese men had a higher risk of dy-
ing of a heart attack, regardless of
whether they smoked or had high
blood pressure or high cholesterol.
It has long been known that excess
Men, obesity
and heart attacks
weight leads to high blood pres-
sure, high blood cholesterol and
diabetes. All three of those prob-
lems increase the risk for heart
disease. But the study suggests
that obesity alone—whether or not
it leads to these other conditions—
may contribute to serious, deadly
heart attacks.
Exactly how obesity does this
isn’t clear. The researchers think
inflammation may be the culprit.
Fat tissue constantly leaks harmful,
inflammatory compounds into the
blood. These compounds can dam-
age blood vessels near the heart.
The bottom line: Even if your
blood pressure and cholesterol are
under control, aim for a healthy
weight to protect your heart.
Cardiology
hospitalists care
for your heart
Mercy Medical Center Redding is
the first in the region to offer 24/7
coverage by a readily available
cardiologist dedicated to hospital
patients. Cardiology hospitalists
are physicians who follow patients
throughout their hospital stay. This
ensures prompt diagnosis and
treatment by an experienced, board-
certified cardiologist—whether it’s an
emergency or a less urgent situation.
To learn more about the Mercy Heart
Center, visit
redding.mercy.org
or call
888.628.1948
.
Mercy Heart Center
11
Dignity Health North State
WEIGHT CATEGORY
BMI (kg/m
2
)
RISK
normal weight
18.5–24.9
normal
overweight
25–29.9
increased
obesity
30–34.9
high
severe obesity
35–39.9
very high
morbid obesity
> 40
extremely high
Your body mass index (BMI)
tells you how healthy your weight is:
Know your BMI
