Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1955-09-30
BY ALTON L. BLAKESLEE
Associated Press scienee Reporter


can you best care for your heart.
to minimize your chances Of q
heart attack?
Living . full. active. good and
sensible life may be . main rule.
No experts can lay down sure.
hard-and-fast rules. Not enough
is yet known about the funda-
mental cause of the heart at
tack process.
But they do have tips. And
some authorities are finding good
reasons TO doubt many Of the
beliefs most Of ls hold about
heart attacks. Beliefs such IS
these:
That exercise is bad. and after
20 you should slow way down.
That tense business executives
are most likely to sudden death
from heart seizures.
That most heart attacks fol-
low exertion-golf. tennis. SHOW
cling snow, the dramatic incl
dents you read or hear about.
Instead. half Of al attacks app
pear to come during sleep and
resting.
Experts Opinions Differ
That we should blindly follow
the advice to take It easy" to-
avoid heart attacks.
That hard work kills you.
That playing golf on Friday
had anything to do with Presi-
dent Eisenhower's heart attack
the next day.
You can easily and differences
Of opinion among heart experts.
Here are some Of the challeng-
Ing newer viewpoints:
DR.. Paul d. White. famous
Boston cardiologist who attended
Mr.. Eisenhower:
Speaking Of the Presidents
solhng: MY own feeling Is that
golf has been often wrongly
blamed, that those who play
golf and have an attack at 65I
might have had an attack ct IS
II they hadn't played golf. We
don't think that exercise itself
Is responsible.
I'm fact, I am Of the impress
sion that 1t really helped to delay
the onset Of this (attack) than
to cause it. OF course, very
severe accidents or strains may
have a precipitating effect. but
they aren't the fundamental
cause, and we are still studying
the question Of cause"
Hcredity Plays Part
In a talk a couple Of years ago.
Or. White said. 1.-THE general
warning to stop all vigorous ex-l
ercise at 40 seems to me to bel
ridiculous and, more likely than
not. actually to lead to an in-E
crease Of coronary arterioscie-
rosis." (This is the disease proc
ess in which fatty deposits form
in the inner Innings Of arteries,
narrowing them. Heart attacks
usually come when blood clotl
is trapped In such arteries ana
blocks the flow OF nourishins
blood to the heart muscleo
Heredity, DR.. White has said,
plays q part. There's some evil
dence that too rich . diet can
be involved. That question is
not answered yet. but he said.
many OF US believe that over
eating Is the most important
faulty way Of life in this country
today"
Aggrayating factors may in.
clude excessive. prolonged nerv-
Gus tension, excessive overweight.
excessive tobacco. As positive
measures, he mentioned CON
scious effort to acquire equanim-
ity, habits of relaxation and re-
pose. and . program OF health
exercise"
1,7eo Gases studied
DR.. Arthur M. Master. we'll |
known New York cardiologist: |
As tips: Be your age. II you're |
"a, don't act a. Avoid obesity.
Avoid excessive smoking and
drinking. Avoid infections, and
II you get them, knock them out
with wise drug treatments. BE
physically active. After 40, take
less strenuous exercise, but don't
choose inactivity.
Studying 1.700 persons who
had coronaries. DR.. Master and
his associates found 50 per cent
Of attacks came while these peo- |
pie were sleeping or resting; Il
per cent at ordinary mild acti- |
witty: . per cent In moderate |
activity, except for walking: l6l
per cent in walking: only z per
cent during unusual or severe
exertion. They concluded severe
effort couldn't be much PIN !
pointed as . cause Of the timing
Of an attack.
A for occupation. the analysis