Long back, heart attacks were the biggest killers targeting mostly the elderly. Today, heart attacks are fast becoming a cause for concern among the youth of India as well. The rising cases of heart attacks among teenagers and young adults have underlined growing consequences due to lifestyle factors, which include diet. Poor eating habits, culminating into poor intake of fast foods and sweetened beverages and other junk foods, are some of the major villains behind this disturbing trend. They are most often full of unhealthy fats, sugar, salt, and artificial additives and take a toll on the cardiovascular health of young India, thus setting the stage for heart attacks at more youthful ages..
However, the alarming trends of heart diseases among young adults from India have lately started to appear on screens. Till lately, a trend of this sort was rarely known to be observed in developing countries. Public health has cried out at such an alarming trend for it has been reported that more than 70% of heart attacks take place in the age bracket of those younger than 40 years old. These have been attributed to poor dietary habits adopted by the young generation. They result from changed lifestyles, globalization, and urbanization among the population.
Fast Food: The Silent Killer
But that is not all. For with this increase of fast-food consumption going on within the country of India-more especially within the different urban cities-and with increased access by fast-food giants such as McDonald’s and Domino’s opening shops within the Indian market, most of these businesses compete with indigenous eatery vendors selling fried snacks and street foods. The latter tastes very inviting and does not hurt the wallet much, but surely it registers a heavy price tag on health.
These fast foods contain levels of trans fats and saturated fats, which increase the LDL, or bad cholesterol, and reduce those of HDL, and this can cause atherosclerosis; in such a condition, the fatty sediments result in narrowed and hardened arteries; if it is not treated, it might eventually lead to heart attacks. Furthermore, most fast foods contain sodium thus high blood pressure in a person, which is the major risk factor of heart diseases.
For instance, the fast food burger is full of up to 800 calories in one serving and many unhealthy fats plus salty deposits. Continued consumption sets in the risk factors of obesity, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol levels that develop into cardiovascular diseases.
Sugary Drinks: The Silent Killer
Among the worst consumption practices known to be associated with heart diseases among Indians, these include soda, energy drinks, and artificially flavored fruit juices. The country is also one of the major global sugar beverage consumers, and India is not an exception since the drinks have become part of the diet for many youths.
The best risk factors for typifying sugar drinks are the composition of high sugar content. Such drinks lead to insulin resistance and high triglycerides and also heart disease risk. Sugar consumption leads to obesity: because liquid sugars stimulate hunger less forcefully than does solid food, one absorbs more calories than would have been absorbed had it been actual food. Obesity doubles the risk for developing type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease.
It has been found that one sugar-sweetened drink a day increased the risk for heart disease by 20%. Much is known about dangers of sugar drinks, yet in India, their intake has risen through heavy marketing, affordability, and easy access.
Packaged Snacks: Empty Calorie
Another silent killer of the heart disease calamity in the young people is from the processed snack foods such as chips, biscuits, and packaged cakes. Such snacks are normally structured to contain high sugar content, artificial preservatives, trans fats, and excessive salt. The bad body metabolizing ability results in a dump of unhealthy fats in the blood with a resultant serious increase in developing heart diseases.
The biggest issue with the packaged snack, though, is that it is addictive. Once consumed, it sets in motion the intake of even more fast food, and that’s very far from healthy. Added to that, most manufactured snacks are marketed as either “convenient” or as “healthy.” Declarations of being “low fat” or “high in fiber” may just be a ruse for the actual health effect of these snacks. Fact: most of these foods contain sugar and fat, which have masked culprits who have been responsible for obesity, high cholesterol, and heart ailments.
Poor Diet Threats on Cardiovascular Health
If fast foods, soft drinks, and processed snacks do gain a majority place in the diet, then it is disastrous for heart health in general. Here’s how such diets will lead to heart attacks, among other cardiovascular conditions:
These unhealthy fats increase the LDL, or bad cholesterol, and they also reduce the HDL, that is the good cholesterol. The bad cholesterol will pool in the plaques in the arteries causing atherosclerosis and then continued further to narrowing in the heart and strokes.
- Obesity: This is because the calories obtained from the fast foods and sugary drinks are above those required, thereby resulting in some excess calories. This therefore points to a very close association between obesity and heart disease. Obesity leads to factors such as hypertension, diabetes, and elevates cholesterol levels, all of which are bound to raise the possibilities of having a heart attack.
- Hypertension: The sodium involved from the processing and fast foods is high and causes hypertension, which involves excess pressure on the heart and even the vessels that increase the risk of heart attack or stroke.
- Insulin Resistance and Type 2 Diabetes: White sugars and unhealthy fats make one insulin-resistant-the door to type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is one of the greatest contributers to heart disease.
- Chronic Inflammation: This usually comes with poor dieting which leads to chronic inflammation in the body, which normally builds up inside the arteries with a higher risk of heart diseases.
Healthy Eating Tips
One of the major reasons for a heart attack of this nature among such young Indians, at least in these cases, is poor eating. Healthy eating habits, therefore, come as a no-brainer in such cases. Here are a few tips that might prove handy in improving one’s heart health: 1. Eat More Whole Foods
- Nutrients: Nutrient-rich food sources, comprising fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean meats. Such food sources will readily suffice the body’s needs with enough vitamins, minerals, and fiber, helping to keep the body’s health status perfect. They can also counteract many negative effects on cholesterol and blood pressure levels.
- Healthy Fats: Replace unhealthy fats in junk foods and processed snack foods with healthy fats like olive oil, avocados and nuts. They reduce cholesterol levels and one is potentially very healthy of heart..
- Less Processed Foods and Sugar: All heavily processed foods would be avoided as they add to extreme high sugar and salt and unhealthy fats. Healthy and heart-friendlier home-made snacks comprise fruits, nuts, or even whole grain crackers.
- Rehydrate with Water: Drink water, herbal teas, or freshly squeezed juices without added sugar instead of soda. You do not add extra fat and also help your body to avoid potential insulin resistance and development of heart disease.
- Know your Portion Size: Finally, overeating even healthy foods also cause weight gain. Eat smart, knowing how much to take and the right quantity instead of gobbling all day.
- Consume Lesser Salts: Scientific studies have well established the fact that over-consumption of salt leads to the high rate of blood pressure. What is required is to try less salty pieces of food, junk foods, and other items by using herbs and spices for flavor
- Exercise More: Other than diet, exercise forms the biggest portion of ensuring that one never contracts heart disease. Ensure that you spend half an hour exercising out every day by either engaging yourself in some form of moderate activity, say cycling or walking, or doing various yogas. That way, you won’t have excess weight; it makes it harder for the heart to pump blood to other parts of your body.
Conclusion
The alarming increase in the incidence of heart failure among the young Indians is largely due to their bad nutritional habits, fast food, high sugar beverages, and other processed snacks dominating their platter. All these evil fats, sugar, and salts in food are all coming together to heavily contribute to this new disease in the hearts of all these coming-up teenagers. But when they actually change their diet by increasing whole food and not so much of processed, providing room for healthy fats, and cutting on further sugar consumption, then they find out that such great improvements in heart health are necessary for it to latch on early in the game for cardiovascular diseases. All this comes about due to the healthy lifestyle of the heart and thus, prevention of any heart attack but also leads to general well-being and healthier life for longer.
