Dr. Virend Somers is a cardiologist at the Mayo Clinic and the first author of the report, which was published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology on July 29, 2008.
Most heart attacks occur during the day, between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. If something unusual happens at night, when the heart is supposed to be resting, Somers and his colleagues have been working for a decade to show that sleep apnea is to blame.
1. If you take an aspirin daily, take it in the evening.
The reason: Aspirin has a 24-hour half-life; so if most heart attacks occur in the wee hours of the morning, the aspirin is more potent in the body.
2. Aspirin can last a long time, even years, in the medicine cabinet (it gets vinegary as it ages).
Please read on…
Something we can do for ourselves—good to know. Bayer makes crystalline aspirin that dissolves instantly on the tongue. It works faster than tablets.
Why do you keep aspirin by your bedside? It’s a heart attack.
There are other symptoms of a heart attack besides pain in your left arm. Intense pain in your jaw, nausea, and heavy sweating. These symptoms can also occur, but are less common.
Note: Chest pain is NOT necessarily experienced during a heart attack.
Most people (about 60%) who have a heart attack in their sleep do not wake up. However, if they do, the chest pain may wake them up. If this happens, immediately dissolve 2 aspirins in your mouth and swallow them with a little water.
After:
– Call 911.
– Call a neighbor or family member who lives nearby. Tell them: “heart attack!”
– Tell him you took 2 aspirin.
Sit on a chair or armchair in front of the door and wait for them to arrive…
