Skip to content

Top Navigation

Health.com Health.com
  • Health Conditions A-Z
  • News
  • Coronavirus
  • Diet & Nutrition
  • Fitness
  • Beauty
  • Mind & Body
  • Lifestyle
  • Weight Loss
  • Newsletter
  • Promo

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences this link opens in a new tab
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Health.com

Health.com Health.com
  • Explore

    Explore

    • Is Your Doctor Gaslighting You? Here's What to Do

      How to handle a physician who doubts or dismisses your symptoms. Read More Next
    • 9 Signs It's More Serious Than the Common Cold

      Doctors explain how to tell if you have a head cold or something more serious that requires medical attention, such as the flu, strep throat, meningitis, or mono. Read More Next
    • How Your Period Changes During Your 20s, 30s, and 40s

      From easier cramps to a heavier flow, here's a guide on what to expect decade by decade. Read More Next
  • Health Conditions A-Z

    Health Conditions A-Z

    See All Health Conditions A-Z

    12 Anxiety Symptoms That Might Point to a Disorder

    The symptoms of anxiety can be hard to detect. Here are the ones you need to pay attention to, and how to know if you may have an anxiety disorder.
    • Allergies
    • Anxiety
    • Birth Control
    • Breast Cancer
    • Coronavirus
    • Chronic Pain
    • Cold, Flu, and Sinus
    • Depression
    • Digestive Health
    • Diabetes (Type 2)
    • Eczema
    • Eye Health
    • Fibromyalgia
    • Heart Disease
    • Headaches and Migraines
    • Oral Health
    • Pregnancy
    • Psoriasis
    • Sexual Health
    • Skin Conditions
    • Sleep
    • Thyroid
  • News

    News

    See All News

    Shannen Doherty Reveals Stage 4 Breast Cancer Diagnosis—Here's What It Means

    "I'm petrified," the actress said when she shared the news that her breast cancer came back. Here's why a stage 4 breast cancer diagnosis can be so frightening.
    • Celebrities
  • Coronavirus
  • Diet & Nutrition

    Diet & Nutrition

    The Best (and Worst) Diets of 2020, According to Experts

    FYI: The keto diet is not number one.
    • Food
    • Nutrition
    • Vitamins and Supplements
    • Groceries
    • Restaurants
    • Diets
    • Keto Diet
    • Mediterranean Diet
    • Whole30
    • Recipes
  • Fitness

    Fitness

    See All Fitness

    10 Moves for a Cardio Workout at Home—No Equipment Required

    Stay in your living room and still spike your heart rate.
    • Cardio Workouts
    • Strength Training
    • Yoga
    • Ab Workouts
    • Arm Workouts
    • Leg Workouts
    • Butt Workouts
    • Fitness Gear
  • Beauty

    Beauty

    See All Beauty

    These 13 Women Prove Every Body Is a Bikini Body

    We're loving their inspirational, body-positive messages.
    • Skincare
    • Makeup
    • Hair
    • Nails
  • Mind & Body

    Mind & Body

    See All Mind & Body

    Why Do People Lie? We Asked an Expert

    Here's the truth about lying.
    • Body Positivity
    • Self-Care
    • Misdiagnosed
    • Invisible Illness
    • LGBTQ+ Health
    • Health Diversity and Inclusion
    • Resolution Reboot
    • Wellness Warriors
  • Lifestyle

    Lifestyle

    20 Things You Should Throw Away for Better Health

    Clean out expired products and clutter to make way for a healthier you.
    • Healthy Home
    • Pets
    • Family
    • Relationships
    • Style
    • Holidays
    • Sex
    • Gifts
    • Money
    • Tech
    • Medicare
    • Best Life Now
  • Weight Loss
  • Newsletter
  • Promo

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences this link opens in a new tab
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Home Chevron Right
  2. Heart Disease Chevron Right
  3. 15 Weird Things Linked to Heart Attacks

15 Weird Things Linked to Heart Attacks

Updated January 27, 2021
Skip gallery slides
Save Pin
Credit: Getty Images
When it comes to heart attacks, greasy food and sedentary living aren't the only factors to blame. Here are some less common heart attack risks you may not have considered.
Start Slideshow

1 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Heart attack risk factors

Credit: Getty Images
  • When it comes to heart attacks, most people think a steady diet of greasy food and sedentary living is to blame.
  • While it’s true that diet and lifestyle play a role (not to mention, family history), there are other, less common factors linked with heart trouble.
  • Here are some weird things that you would never think could potentially harm your heart.

1 of 16

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Your neighborhood

Credit: Getty Images

A 2001 study in The New England Journal of Medicine found that people in lower-income neighborhoods were up to three times more likely to have heart disease than peers with similar incomes, education, and jobs living in wealthier communities.

The researchers looked at

heart attacks over a 9-year period in people aged 45 to 64 living in four states.

“It’s very true and something you can’t do much about other than change where you live or spend time in places where the air quality isn’t so toxic,” says Malissa J. Wood, M.D., co-director of the Corrigan Women’s Heart Health Program at the Massachusetts General Hospital Heart Center.

2 of 16

3 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Antibiotics

Credit: Corbis

One 2012 study linked the popular antibiotic azithromycin (commonly dispensed in packages called Z-Paks), to a higher risk of heart attack death, particularly in people with heart disease.

The evidence was not strong enough to change current practice, says Dr. Wood, although it is a good idea to talk with your doctor about alternative antibiotics if you have heart disease.

3 of 16

Advertisement

4 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Calcium supplements

A 2012 study of 23,000 people in the journal Heart found that those taking calcium supplements had a higher heart attack risk than those who didn’t, although dietary intake didn’t seem to be a problem.

(Consult your doctor about taking calcium; some research suggests calcium can protect the heart.)

“I tell patients to get calcium in their diet,” Dr. Wood says. “Eat oily fish twice a week along with other foods that have calcium and get outdoors for vitamin D.”

4 of 16

5 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Infection

Credit: Istockphoto

If you are diagnosed with flu or another respiratory tract infection, your odds of having a heart attack are five times higher during the three days after diagnosis than it would be otherwise. The reason: Infections can bring on an inflammatory response, which can trigger a heart attack or stroke. A flu vaccine may help protect against infection-induced heart stress.

5 of 16

6 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Psoriasis

Credit: Getty Images

“In certain patients, psoriasis is a risk factor for heart attack comparable to diabetes,” says Joel M. Gelfand, MD, assistant professor of dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania. Patients with severe psoriasis, a skin condition that usually requires medical treatment, are more likely to smoke, be overweight, and have high blood pressure, but Dr. Gelfand’s research shows that psoriasis is an independent risk factor. He points out that psoriasis is an autoimmune disorder that may cause chronic inflammation, which can trigger a heart attack.

In fact, autoimmune diseases are a risk factor in general. Dr. Wood says the number-one cause of death among people with

lupus is heart attack.

6 of 16

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Relationship issues

Credit: Getty Images

A negative relationship with your significant other can be bad for your heart, literally. According to a study by epidemiologists at University College London, relationship problems can up your risk of having a heart attack by 34%.

7 of 16

8 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Low HDL cholesterol

Credit: Getty Images

A study of nearly 7,000 people led by a researcher at Indiana University analyzed the relationship between HDL, or good cholesterol, and major coronary events. The study concluded that low HDL was the third strongest predictor of coronary events, after prior heart disease and age.

“If young people have heart attacks, I can almost always tell you they have low HDL,” says Dr. Wood, author of Smart at Heart. Dr. Wood says there are ways to increase good cholesterol. The two most powerful tools? Exercise and weight loss.

8 of 16

9 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Kidney problems

Credit: Getty Images

A study of elderly patients in Rotterdam in the Netherlands found that having weak kidneys, even without full-blown kidney disease, can put you at a significantly higher risk for heart attack.

Another study of 10,000 men found that those with chronic kidney disease had a two-fold greater risk of heart attack than those who didn’t.

9 of 16

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Urban living

Credit: Getty Images

Exposure to heavy traffic—whether you're traveling by car, bike, or public transit—may double your risk of a heart attack, according to a German study. Another earlier study found that death from cardiopulmonary causes was nearly twice as high among people living close to a major road.

10 of 16

11 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Stopping aspirin

Credit: Getty Images

Numerous studies have shown that heart patients are at an increased risk of heart attack for at least a week after stopping aspirin therapy or other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). "If you have or are at risk for heart disease and want to stop taking aspirin, do so gradually and under the supervision of a doctor," warns Matthew Sorrentino, MD, a cardiologist at the University of Chicago.

11 of 16

12 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Depression

Credit: Getty Images

The link between depression and heart attacks is well documented, says Dr. Wood. Heart attack survivors who are depressed have a higher risk of having another compared to those without depression, she says.

A 2009 study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology found that women with depression were twice as likely to develop heart disease over time than those who weren’t depressed.

12 of 16

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

13 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Your boss

Credit: Getty Images

In one 2005 study, researchers followed British government workers and found that people who didn’t think their bosses considered their viewpoints or who felt that they weren’t part of decision making were more likely to develop heart disease than those with more control.

Other studies have linked job strain with a 23% increase in risk as well.

13 of 16

14 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Gum disease

Credit: Getty Images

Studies have shown that people with gum disease can have up to 25% greater risk of heart disease than people with good dental health.

The connection is thought to be mouth bacteria, which can trigger chronic inflammation in the blood vessels. “If you have disease in the vessels in one place in your body, you have them in other vessels as well,” Dr. Wood says.

14 of 16

15 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Diabetes

Credit: Getty Images

Although most people with diabetes fear complications like amputation or vision loss, one of the greatest risks is actually heart disease.

People with diabetes are about two to four times as likely to die of heart disease than their same-age peers without diabetes.

The good news is that

healthy eating and exercise can help reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke for people with diabetes.

15 of 16

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

16 of 16

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Prostate cancer treatment

Credit: Getty Images

Hormone treatment for prostate cancer can increase the likelihood of sudden death from heart attack, according to a 2006 observational study by researchers at Harvard Medical School. The researchers say the finding does not prove a direct link between the two but that it should be taken into account when considering prostate cancer treatment.

16 of 16

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 16 Heart attack risk factors
2 of 16 Your neighborhood
3 of 16 Antibiotics
4 of 16 Calcium supplements
5 of 16 Infection
6 of 16 Psoriasis
7 of 16 Relationship issues
8 of 16 Low HDL cholesterol
9 of 16 Kidney problems
10 of 16 Urban living
11 of 16 Stopping aspirin
12 of 16 Depression
13 of 16 Your boss
14 of 16 Gum disease
15 of 16 Diabetes
16 of 16 Prostate cancer treatment

Share options

Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Login

Health.com

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • About Us
  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Contact us
  • Advertise this link opens in a new tab
  • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
  • Sitemap

Connect

Follow Us
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People this link opens in a new tab
  • People en Español this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Shape this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
  • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
Health.com is part of the Meredith Health Group. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. All rights reserved. The material in this site is intended to be of general informational use and is not intended to constitute medical advice, probable diagnosis, or recommended treatments. All products and services featured are selected by our editors. Health.com may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.health.com

View image

15 Weird Things Linked to Heart Attacks
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.