Heart Disease History

Heart disease is defined as any disorder that affects the heart. The acknowledgment of the existence of heart disease spans several centuries. However, its causes, symptoms and effects did not become known until the 20th century. Heart disease is in a class of medical conditions labeled as cardiovascular disease (disorders of the heart or blood vessels).

Characteristics

• Heart disease is characterized by either the abnormality of the heart or the abnormality of the blood vessels supplying the heart; these conditions adversely affects the organ's function. Risk factors of developing heart disease include high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, smoking, obesity, diabetes and physical inactivity. Heart disease is associated with ailments such as stroke (the disturbance of blood supply to the brain) and heart attack (disturbance of blood supply to parts of the heart itself).

Ancient Times

• The earliest evidence of any human knowledge of heart disease is from the ancient Egyptians. According to archaeologists, inhabitants of ancient Egypt thought of the heart as the seat of a person's wisdom and personality. This included imagining major bodily fluids--such as blood, saliva and semen--originating from the heart and distributed throughout the body. However, there is little or no evidence that ancient Egyptians suffered substantially from actual heart disease.

Middle Ages

• There is little or no evidence that people suffered substantially from heart disease in the Middle Ages, either. For instance, researchers studying the health of the English who lived in that time concluded that only a few were inflicted with cholesterol-related diseases, which include heart disease. Such relative absence in populations during medieval times can be attributed to natural, organic food with minimal amounts of carbohydrates and fats. Also, people of the time were more active and mobile, making their living through some sort of physical activity.

The Industrial Age

• The Industrial Revolution, however, changed all that. With the introduction of faster modes of transportation like automobiles, and machines--such as washing machines, elevators and vacuum cleaners--that could take care of many everyday activities, physical activity was greatly reduced. Moreover, automation rendered the process of making fatty foods such as hamburgers and ice cream easier and faster. Consequently and eventually, the rate of heart disease grew, particularly in the mid-20th century. It got so bad that the World Health Organization once declared heart disease the world's most serious epidemic.

Modern Age

• Thankfully, with the rise of heart disease, members of the medical profession sought out the causes of the disorder. Starting in 1948, the Framingham Heart Study identified the common factors or characteristics that contribute to heart disease, as well as other cardiovascular diseases. The researchers accomplished this by choosing participants between the ages of 30 and 62 who showed no signs of cardiovascular problems.

Progress

• Although sedentary lifestyles and fatty diets are still problems in today's world, the field of cardiology (the study of disorders of the heart) has grown greatly to meet the challenges heart disease presents. Eating foods low in cholesterol and fat, as well as exercising frequently, are extremely helpful in avoiding heart disease.