Why More Young Indians Are Collapsing Mid-Workout: The Hidden Cardiac Arrest Threat

Cardiac arrest in the younger population of India is becoming a reality, with research showing that 6 to 8 lakh people each year lose their lives due to SCA in India, and a significant number of individuals are below 50 years of age. Stunningly, an expert has pointed out that up to 12-16 per cent of the sudden cardiac deaths in young Indians can be seen at an earlier age than the worldwide standards.

Several factors have provoked this trend:

All these are aggravated by sedentary lifestyles, more processed food intake, higher incidences of hypertension, obesity, diabetes, and high and consuming more alcohol consumption.

The burden seems to come early among the youths in India when compared to other parts of the world: heart disease normally strikes about 10 years earlier in Indians as compared to Westerners.

There is also a significant role of genetics: currently, approximately 20 percent of sudden cardiac deaths in young Indians are found to be associated with heritable variants, with the most common seen being the MYBPC3 gene (up to 8 percent of South Asians).

The unexplored relationship between lifestyle, stress, and underlying predispositions plays out in local anecdotal reports, with one example of students falling under stress fainting due to caffeine overdose, school work overload, and poor lifestyle choices.

Doctors call to check up routinely, particularly before strenuous exercise

Indian academics and health officials are growing persistently to stress that regular preliminary check-ups are essential:

To curb the increasing incidence of heart attack and SCA in the younger adults (2540 years), cardiologists advocate cardiac screenings in schools and colleges caused by urban stressful lifestyles, unhealthy diets, binge drinking, and sedentary lifestyle habits.

A string of fatalities (lawyers, interns, nurses) in seemingly healthy young persons in Lucknow brought to light medical factors such as genetic channelopathies, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), and viral myocarditis, emphasizing the need to perform early symptom detection, heart screenings, and annual learning of CPR in educational places of learning.

An expert cardiologist recommended that all individuals beginning or increasing gym regimens should take a series of tests, including ECG, echocardiogram, stress examination, biomarkers, blood lipid pattern, and HbA1c, to minimize the chances of provoking latent heart diseases.

Moreover, there is an ongoing community and grassroots movement to increase survival in the case of SCA through campaigns on CPR, the availability of AEDs, and the BLS training.

Protein Powders and the dangers of too much: Striking a Healthy Balance

Protein powders have been the fitness staple in India, but nowadays, it is met with a lot of suspicion:

Others on social sites compare unregulated supplements to the more unsafe drugs. Specifically, one user admits that people can incorrectly assume that all supplements are steroids, which is a situation that raises concerns about abuse and cardiac risk.

More general debates point to the existence of a so-called dual burden of malnutrition in India, where underweight and obesity are being experienced at the same time. Such an imbalance highlights the risks of extreme diets, and focusing too much on supplements that are processed, on heart health.

There are no direct studies on protein powders leading to SCA in India, but the medical opinion is still to be considered: too much of anything, including protein consumption (and, in particular, the consumption of protein synthesized in a lab), can overstress the organs. Together with genetic or heart weaknesses that go unnoticed, this could lead to severe consequences.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for general awareness purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for diagnosis and treatment of any medical condition.

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