A person may
feel his/her heart pounding, fluttering, or may seem like skipping beats- these
feelings are called palpitations. They may feel scary, but most aren’t serious
and rarely need treatment. Awareness in what makes your ticker race can help
you not panic when it happens and know when to call your doctor.
Different
causes of heart palpitations are:
Anxiety
and Stress- Your
heartbeat can increase by intense emotions as they trigger the release of
hormones. Your body becomes ready to face threat, although you aren’t in
danger. Panic attacks can last a few minutes which are intense bouts of fear
with a racing ticker, sweating, chills, difficult breathing and chest pain
being some of the symptoms. Your panic attack can feel like a heart attack
(myocardial infarction-MI), get immediate medical help if you aren’t sure which
one you are having.
Caffeine-
You may have noticed
or felt that your ticker beats faster after your morning latte, keep in mind
that caffeine is a stimulant that raises your heart rate, regardless of where
you get it from- coffee, soda, an energy drink, or another source. According to
a study, caffeine from coffee, tea, and chocolate isn’t likely to cause
palpitations in people with healthy tickers. But experts aren’t sure whether it
might trigger them in people with heart rhythm problems.
Exercise- There are no two ways about working
out being good for everyone. A mere brisk run or intense indoor cycling class
naturally makes the ticker beat faster that helps it to pump more blood to power
your muscles throughout the workout. Sudden fluttering or pounding of your
ticker could be because you haven’t worked out in a while and you’re out of
condition. Palpitations during exercise can also be caused by an irregular
heartbeat, or arrhythmia.
Nicotine-
Nicotine is the
addictive chemical in cigarettes and other tobacco products that raises the
blood pressure and speeds up the heart rate. Quitting smoking is one of the
best things that can be done for the heart, it might not slow your heartbeat right
away though. It can be difficult to quit smoking- patches and other nicotine
replacement products can help, but they can make your ticker race. Palpitations
can also be a symptom of nicotine withdrawal which tend to stop within 3-4
weeks after you quit.
Fever- Our body, during fever due to an
illness- uses energy at a faster pace than usual which can set off palpitations.
Your temperature needs to be
above 100.4 F to affect your heart rate.
Medicines- Palpitations sometimes occur as a
side-effect of some prescribed and over-the-counter medicines including
antibiotics, antifungal medicines, asthma inhalers, cough and cold medicines,
diet pills, high blood pressure medicines, thyroid pills, etc. If you take one
or more of these types of meds, ask your healthcare provider if it could affect
your heartbeat. Never skip any doses before checking with your doctor.
Low Blood
Sugar- Skipping a
meal can also lead to palpitations. Our body releases stress hormones like
adrenaline to prepare for an emergency food shortage when our blood sugar level
drop which speeds up the heart rate.
Hyperthyroidism- Thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland
in your neck that makes hormones that help manage your metabolism and other things.
Hyperthyroidism or an overactive thyroid gland can make too much thyroid
hormone that can speed up the ticker so much that you feel it beating in your
chest.
Heart
Rhythm Problems-
Sometimes an irregular heart rhythm, called an arrhythmia, such as atrial
fibrillation, supraventricular tachycardia, ventricular tachycardia- can cause
palpitations.
Premature
Ventricular Contractions (PVCs)- PVCs are extra heartbeats that happen when the ticker’s
ventricles squeeze too soon. Occasional PVCs are nothing to be worried about if
your ticker is healthy. You might require treatment if you have cardiovascular
disease and you get these extra beats (they throw off the ticker’s normal
rhythm and makes it flutter or pound in the chest) often.
Some of the
other causes include alcohol, cocaine and other street drugs and hormonal
changes.
See your
doctor if palpitations come more often or you also have symptoms like shortness
of breath, chest pain or pressure, dizziness or fainting. You aren’t required
to worry about palpitations that happen once in a while and last only a few
seconds- if you’re perfectly healthy.
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