Diet, Exercise & Disease

• How does eating to much food affect you?

  Can make you overweight and possibly obese - can lead to type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure or heart disease
• How do you reduce your risk of developing cardiovascular disease?

  regular exercise
• How does regular exercise lower your risk of developing cardiovascular disease? (3)

  • lowering cholesterol levels and reducing fatty deposits in the blood vessels
  • building muscle tissue, which increases your metabolic rate and means you are less likely to be overweight
  • improving the blood supply to the heart so that the heart is fitter
• What are the 4 ways to treat cardiovascular disease?

  • Stents
  • Statins
  • Replace faulty heart valves
  • Transplants
• What is a stent inserted?

  inserted into blocked coronary arteries to keep them open
• What are the advantages of stents? (2)

  • widens the artery – allows more blood to flow, so more oxygen is supplied to the heart
  • less serious surgery
• What are the disadvantages of stents? (2)

  • can involve major surgery – risk of infection, blood loss, blood clots, and damage to blood vessels
  • risks from anaesthetic used during surgery
• What are Statins?

  drugs that reduce blood cholesterol levels, slowing down the deposit of fatty material in the arteries
• What are the advantages of Statins? (3)

  • effective
  • no need for surgery
  • can prevent CHD from developing
• What are the disadvantages of statins? (2)

  • possible side effects such as muscle pain, headaches, and sickness
  • cannot cure CHD, so patient will have to take tablets for many years
• Heart valves that leak or do not open fully, preventing control of blood flow through the heart, can be replaced with biological or mechanical valves
• What are the advantages of replacing faulty heart valves? (2)

  • allows control of blood flow through the heart
  • long-term cure for faulty heart valves
• What are the disadvantages of replacing faulty heart valves? (2)

  • can involve major surgery – risk of infection, blood loss, blood clots, and damage to blood vessels
  • risks from anaesthetic used during surgery
• If the heart fails a donor heart, or heart and lungs, can be transplanted artificial hearts can be used to keep patients alive whilst waiting for a heart transplant, or to allow the heart to rest during recovery
• What are the advantages of heart transplants? (2)

  • long-term cure for the most serious heart conditions
  • treats problems that cannot be treated in other ways
• What are the disadvantages of heart transplants? (4)

  • transplant may be rejected if there is not a match between donor and patient
  • lengthy process
  • major surgery – risk of infection, blood loss, blood clots, and damage to blood vessels
  • risks from anaesthetic used during surgery
• What is a faulty heart valve?

  heart valve that doesn’t open properly or leaks
• Define health.

  state of physical and mental well-being
• What is a risk factor?

  aspect of lifestyle or substance in the body that can increase the risk of a disease developing