Congestive Heart Failure
February 27, 2009 by jody
Filed under Diseases & Conditions
I lost my father to congestive heart failure, when he was 85. After his first heart attack we were told that we would only have him for 3 more months at most, this was when he was 60 years old.
When my father came home from the hospital he changed his life style and diet to include more fruits and vegetables very little fat if any and more exercise. Along with all of this he cut his alcohol consumption. Needless to say he lived 25 years longer than expected.
When the heart cannot pump enough blood to the other organs, it is called congestive heart failure. When the blood flow slows going out of the heart, the returning blood through the veins backs up. This change in the flow causes congestion in your tissues.
Some of the symptoms of congestive heart failure are, shortness of breath, swelling of ankles and legs usually, but swelling can take place in other parts of the body as well. Congestive heart failure changes the ability of your kidneys’ to dispose of the fluids and sodium, thus causing the edema.
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