High cholesterol: Nutritionist reveals top prevention tips

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If the blood flow to your heart muscle is blocked by too much cholesterol, you’re going to have a heart attack. You may have already had one, and could be on track for a more deadly occurrence. Experts at Penn Medicine pointed out that a heart attack may not be painful at all. Known as a “silent heart attack”, it can be just as damaging as the heart-wrenching pain one assumes a heart attack will feel like.

The majority of heart attacks might only involve “mild pain or discomfort in the centre of your chest”.

Some people might describe this sensation as a little bit of pressure, a little squeeze, or a sense of fullness.

These symptoms might disappear and reappear over time, and might be disregarded as heartburn.

However, even if you have the smallest suspicion that something isn’t right with you, trust your intuition and book an appointment with your doctor.

A heart attack may cause pain and discomfort in other areas of the body, away from the chest, which can make it very confusing.

If you feel discomfort in your arms, back, neck, jaw, or stomach, don’t ignore it.

It’s possible these could be subtle signs that you’ve had a heart attack.

Breathlessness could also be another warning sign that you’ve had a heart attack.

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If walking up the stairs feels like you’ve run for a marathon – without any other medical reason for this – something is up.

This is also true if any activity you once could do with ease is now burdened with a breathlessness feeling.

It could be a sign that the heart is unable to pump blood effectively around the rest of the body.

“Shortness of breath can occur with or without chest pain,” the experts at Penn Medicine pointed out.

This “common sign of a silent heart attack” may also be accompanied by a feeling of dizziness or lightheadedness.

One other indication of a silent heart attack is “waking up in a cold sweat, feeling nauseated, and vomiting”.

Knowing the signs of a silent heart attack is no good if you ignore them should they happen to you.

Any of these four warning signs should be overseen by a medical professional as soon as possible:

• Chest fullness or discomfort
• Discomfort in other areas of your body
• Difficulty breathing and dizziness
• Nausea and cold sweats.

If you’d like to minimise your risk of a heart attack – whether it’s silent or not – it will help to know your cholesterol levels.

A simple blood test can determine whether you have high cholesterol or not but, either way, it’s best to:

• Eat less fatty foods
• Exercise more
• Stop smoking
• Cut down on alcohol.

Fatty foods include:

• Meat pies, sausages and fatty meat
• Butter, lard and ghee
• Cream and hard cheese, like cheddar
• Cakes and biscuits
• Food that contains coconut oil or palm oil.

Instead, opt for oily fish, wholegrain, nuts, seeds, fruits and vegetables.

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