Cardiovascular deaths are one of the leading causes of deaths all over the world. India witnessed the death if 2,873,266 in 2021, due to cardiovascular diseases according to the World Heart Federation.

These incidents can happen anywhere and to anyone. This means that the chances of you experiencing a cardiac event alone are also there. So, how does a person deal with it? Can you even realize that you are having a heart attack if you are alone? Is there even a chance you can make it out alive in that situation?

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Not only can you recognize the signs of a cardiac event alone, but you can also increase your odds of living through it, if you make the right choices. Knowing this critical information can save your life, even if you do not think you will have an experience like this. In a recent post Dr Christabel Akinola, an Academic Family Physician from Canada, gave key aspects of how to survive a heart attack if you are alone.

She emphasized that if you're at home alone and feel like you're having a heart attack, you only have a few seconds or minutes to save your life. Knowing what to do immediately is crucial.

How To Improve Your Odds Of Surviving A Heart Attack

A man at his office one Monday suddenly started sweating and feeling dizzy. Then came the tell-tale sign: chest pain or tightness that moved to his left shoulder and jaw. Because his wife was a doctor, he immediately recognized these symptoms as a heart attack. He quickly took specific steps that saved his life:

• He called a colleague right away to tell them he was having a heart attack and needed help.
• He chewed a pill immediately.
• When his colleague arrived, they found him lying down with his legs raised on a table.

How To Survive A Heart Attack Before Medical Help Arrives?

Dr Akinola explained in the post that the pill he took was aspirin. Taking aspirin during a heart attack is extremely important because it can reduce your risk of death by 25%. Aspirin works by reducing the size of the clot causing the heart attack and improving blood flow. An important point to remember is: Chew the aspirin for faster absorption, it gets into your system more quickly through your mouth than if you swallow it whole.

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This is an idea backed by one of the leading cardiologists in India, Dr Balbir Singh. In an exclusive interview with Healthandme, Dr Singh explained that if there is a history of cardiovascular diseases in your family, carrying an aspirin can be a lifesaver “Asprin, just a dissolvable disprin (a different form of aspirin that contains the same active ingredient acetylsalicylic acid) you can put it in a glass of water and drink. A 325 mg tablet that can save a life.”

Everyone should have low-dose aspirin at home and know how to use it. Make sure your family knows this, too, explained Dr Akinola in the post.

Elevating Your Legs: In the above-mentioned case the man learned that raising the legs helps improve blood flow back to the heart. While this is mainly a supportive action, it can help stabilize you until medical help arrives. Other steps you must take along with aspirin and elevated legs are,

Call Emergency Services

Call emergency services immediately. Put the phone on speakerphone so you can talk while doing the next steps.

Use the Coughing Technique (Temporary Help)

This technique can temporarily help keep blood moving until help arrives:

• Take a deep breath to fill your lungs with oxygen.
• Cough forcefully, as if you're trying to clear your lungs of something.
• Repeat this cycle every 2 seconds: deep breath and then a strong cough.

Stay Calm and Ready

Stay as calm and still as possible. Panic releases adrenaline, which makes your heart work harder and worsens the strain. Make sure you also unlock your door and keep your phone close by so rescuers can reach you easily.

Dr. Akinola reminds us that the three most life-saving actions are: Taking an aspirin, calling emergency services immediately, and coughing. Sharing this information could save a loved one’s life.

For years, the appendix was brushed off as a useless leftover from human evolution. Many of us grew up believing that it served no real purpose and was better off removed at the first sign of trouble. But science now tells a more interesting story. This small, finger-like pouch attached to the large intestine quietly supports gut health and immunity in ways that were long overlooked.

What exactly is the appendix?

The appendix is a narrow tube connected to the cecum, located in the lower right side of the abdomen. It usually measures between 7 and 10 cm, although its size and position can vary widely from person to person. In some people, it may be just a couple of centimeters long, while in others, it can extend much further. This variation is also why appendicitis pain can sometimes feel confusing or atypical.

Not useless after all

The biggest shift in understanding the appendix came from research into gut bacteria. The appendix appears to act as a safe storage space for beneficial microbes. During bouts of severe diarrhea or intestinal infections, large amounts of gut bacteria are flushed out. The appendix helps reintroduce these good bacteria once the illness passes, helping the digestive system recover faster.

It also plays a role in immunity, especially during early life. The appendix contains lymphoid tissue, which exposes immune cells to substances passing through the gut. This helps the body learn how to respond to harmful invaders while tolerating harmless ones. While humans can survive perfectly well without an appendix, its presence offers subtle support to the immune and digestive systems.

Why appendicitis happens

Despite its benefits, the appendix is still prone to inflammation. Appendicitis is one of the most common abdominal emergencies worldwide. It usually occurs when the appendix gets blocked, often due to hardened stool, infection, or rarely, abnormal growths. Once blocked, bacteria multiply, causing swelling, pain, and infection.

The classic warning sign is pain that starts near the belly button and gradually shifts to the lower right abdomen. This may be accompanied by fever, nausea, vomiting, and loss of appetite. Ignoring these symptoms can be dangerous. If left untreated, the appendix can rupture, leading to serious and potentially life-threatening complications.

Busting Common Myths

There are many myths surrounding the appendix. One of the most common is that fruit seeds or spicy food cause appendicitis. There is no evidence to support this. Another misconception is that appendicitis can settle on its own. While pain may temporarily reduce, the underlying inflammation usually worsens.

Many people also worry that removing the appendix will harm digestion or require lifelong dietary restrictions. In reality, most people return to normal eating habits and daily routines after recovery, with no long-term health issues.

How appendicitis is treated

Surgery remains the most reliable treatment for appendicitis. Today, minimally invasive techniques such as laparoscopic or robotic surgery are widely used. These involve small incisions, less pain, quicker recovery, and shorter hospital stays. In complicated cases, open surgery may still be required.

In selected cases of mild, uncomplicated appendicitis, antibiotics may be used initially. However, studies show that while symptoms may improve, there is a higher chance of recurrence within months. For this reason, surgery continues to be the definitive, long-term solution for most patients.

Recovery after appendix removal is usually smooth. Many patients are able to walk the same day and return home within a day or two. Light meals are recommended initially, and heavy lifting is avoided for a few weeks. Long-term lifestyle changes are rarely needed, and most people forget about the surgery entirely once healed.

Delhi's air quality remained in "very poor" category, and the AQI stood at 342 at 8am, as per the Central Pollution Control Board. The 24-hour average AQI was logged at 412 under the "severe" category on Tuesday evening when Delhi's quality peaked to record the fourth severe air day in the month of December. With the air quality levels remaining continuously in the "very poor" category, Delhi's Chief Minister Rekha Gupta held a pollution review meet.

What Was Discussed In The Pollution Review Meet By Rekha Gupta?

A review meeting was held to discuss the rising air pollution levels in Delhi on Monday at the Delhi Secretariat. The meeting was attended by the officials from various departments, which also included the Public Works Department (PWD), Transport, Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), Environment, and others.

Post meeting, Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said that the CM sought responses from multiple departments to discuss various aspects of pollution in the national capital. Sirsa also confirmed that a follow-up meeting will be scheduled on Thursday to continue the discussions on various steps that should be taken to bring down the levels of Delhi's AQI.

Rely On Public Transport - As A Solution To Delhi Pollution

On Sunday, a day before the meeting was held, Delhi's CM spoke on relying on public transport as a solution to Delhi's pollution. She said that the government aims to make the metro network "so comprehensive that people do not need to rely on private vehicles even for last-mile connectivity”.

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Delhi's Pollution Is Now A Public Health Risk

An analysis by the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2023 found that air pollution is city's single largest health risk. The deaths rose from 15,786 in 2018 to 17,188 in 2023.

Another study published in Scientific Reports, a five-year study titled Respiratory Deposition of Particulate Matter in Delhi: A Five-Year Assessment of Exposure Patterns and Health Risks tracked how particulate matter settles inside the respiratory system and found that men's exposure can be up to 1.4 times higher, especially while walking or commuting. The study noted that men on average spend more time outdoors while working, commuting, or walking in traffic-heavy areas. This leads to an increase in exposure.

A different study published in Frontiers in Public Health, explored the data of 2,96,078 women and girls between the age of 16 to 55 years in Taiwan and correlated it with the long-term air pollution data between 2000 and 2013. None of these women had any history of dysmenorrhea before the survey had began.

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Furthermore, a study published in Nature Communication notes that after four hours of exposure to particulate matter, it was found that people's ability to perform routine tasks and interpret emotions were highly impacted.

If Delhi is able to cut its local pollution by 50 per cent, the pollution too could drop by 50 per cent. The emission should happen across the airshed. However, the focus should be for a long-term action on the source of emission and not short-term optics like cloud seeding, smog towers, water sprinkling or air purifiers.

In fact, as per a study published in Sustainability (MDPI), an open access journal, which mapped Delhi's air quality between 1990 to 2022 and found that transports emit around 10 to 30% of pollution, whereas agricultural residue burning, which is a seasonal source of pollution leads to less than 3% of pollution, whereas firecrackers, another seasonal source, leads to less than 1% of pollution.

Do you feel an awful soar in your throat? Have you noticed that anyone you speak to are also complaining of the same symptoms? All of them, and you, seem tired, have a sore throat and no energy for days and weeks to follow. This might be what people are called "mystery disease" or the "mystery throat virus". However, this is actually the adenovirus.

Most patients with bad throat, explain experts have adenovirus, which is a common virus that spreads throughout the year. However, unlike the flu and COVID, which now have their own prescribed medicines, adenovirus has none.

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What Exactly Is Adenovirus?

Adenovirus is a virus that has more than 60 different strains, which is why it is able to cause a variety of symptoms. Adenovirus refers to a group of common viruses that usually trigger cold- or flu-like illness. It spreads easily because it is far more resilient than many other viruses. Ordinary soap, water, and standard disinfectants do not reliably destroy it, allowing it to persist in the environment. As a result, infections often cluster in places where people spend time close together, such as daycares and military barracks. The virus spreads through the respiratory tract, can be shed in stool, and can survive for some time on contaminated surfaces, according to the CDC.

The reason for its spread right now is due to the surge of flu cases in the southern hemisphere which has influenced the outbreaks in the northern hemisphere. Another reason is the lower flu vaccinate rates, which has now made a large number of population more vulnerable to infections, overall, including adenovirus.

What are The Symptoms Of Adenovirus And What Makes It Very Contagious?

While a lot of the symptoms mimics of those in flu or COVID, including shortness of breath, a sore throat and or a runny nose. However, there are certain unique symptoms of adenovirus that include:

• Diarrhea
• Pink Eye or conjunctivitis
• Ear infection or otitis media
• Swollen lymph nodes
• Pneumonia
• Stomach pain
• Nausea
• Vomiting

Other rare symptoms could also include impact on your bladder or nervous system. As viruses in your bladder can also cause urinary tract infections, and the same virus in your nervous system can cause condition that can affect your brain. These conditions also include encephalitis and meningitis.

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What makes this virus unique is that it can spread through easily. Adenovirus is highly contagious. It can spread from one person to another through shaking hands, kissing, or even hugging. The virus could also spread through sneezing, coughing, and if by any other means respiratory droplets transfers to other person in air. It can also spread by touching contaminated surface, and you can get the virus by touching your eyes, nose, or mouths if you do not wash your hands.

The virus can also spread through stool of an infected person. For instance, you can be infected while changing your baby's diaper. It can also spread through unchlorinated water, and a person can be infected with the virus if he or she swims in a pool without adequate chlorine.

Adenoviruses are resistant to many common disinfectants. Therefore, they can remain infectious on surfaces for a long time.

When Should You See A Doctor?

If you are generally healthy, and feel a little down, but do not have shortness of breathe or a high fever, you are safe to go, with supportive care at home. However, pay close attention to those who are already on medical attention, or those who are immunocompromised, or are infants.

If you are sick, have a high fever, and experiencing shortness of breath, it is best to consult your doctor. However, do not show up to your doctor's office, call first.