Cardiac woes of youth surge 30 per cent in decade

A 30-year-old gynaecologist, who had tied the knot just three months ago and was pursuing his fellowship from Kolhapur, suddenly succumbed to a heart attack, shocking not only his family but also the entire medical community. “He didn’t have any kind of addiction. He was a non-smoker and avoided drinking alcohol. He was a good-hearted person. It is really surprising how it happened,” said Dr Sagar Mundada, president, MARD, who knew the doctor.

In a similar incident, Piyush Mamania (39), who was healthy and did not have any kind of addiction, died due to heart attack in 2014 while sitting in his cake shop in front of his son. Heena, Piyush’s widow, said, “Piyush was attending to our cake shop when suddenly, he fainted and fell on the floor. My son who was then nine years old and was sitting with his father, shouted for help. But by the time we took him to hospital, he breathed his last.”

“We don’t know how it happened. In fact, he used to go for morning walks every day. Maybe because of work-related stress, his health was affected,” she said. Now, Heena single-handedly runs the cake shop while taking care of her family and their 11-year-old son.

In the past 10 years, cardiac problems among youngsters in the city have surged 25-30 per cent, according to cardiologists and surgeons. Previously, the average age for being diagnosed with heart problems was between 60 to 70 years which has now fallen to 30 to 40 years. Consumption of junk food since childhood aggravates health and later, occupational stress causes it to deteriorate further.

Dr Pratik Soni, Cardiologist, Wockhardt Hospital, said, “When people, since their childhood, are eating junk food, it blocks 10 per cent of their heart. Later they grow up and consumption increases and the percentage of blockage increases to 40 per cent. Despite 30 per cent rise in the past 10 years, many schools still provide junk food on their premises. In 2000, my youngest patient was a 60-year-old lady and now, a 13-year-old.”

Previously, patients who were into smoking or drining regularly developed cardiac problems. Now, this trend too has changed. Dr Aliasagar Bahrainwala, Cardiac Surgeon, Jaslok Hospital, said, “I have noticed an almost 30 per cent rise in the number of cases between 30 and 40 years. In many cases, there was no history of any kind of addiction. It is all because of bad food habits and lifestyle.”

On Thursday, Union health minister J.P. Nadda stated that non-communicable diseases and lifestyle diseases are the main challenges.