The Latest Mikey Network News

Identifying Signs of a Heart Related Emergency and What To Do To Help

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During heart month we’ve discussed many ways that you can help attain a heart-healthy lifestyle through diet and exercise. These are important areas of focus to every Canadian as heart disease is still one of the leading causes of premature death for both men and women in Canada. Although we have talked about ways that you can help to prevent heart disease from occurring, we haven’t discussed how to identify and react if you’re faced with a heart-related emergency. Below we have laid out common signs and symptoms of a heart attack and a cardiac arrest, and what you can do to help.

Signs and Symptoms of a Heart Attack

Identifying signs and symptoms can vary for both men and women, so it’s especially important to listen to your body as the signs tend to be much less noticeable in women. If you experience any of the signs below call 9-1-1 immediately.

Signs of a Heart Attack

Men and Women

  • Chest discomfort (pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain, burning or heaviness)
  • Sweating
  • Upper body discomfort (neck, jaw, shoulder, arms, back)
  • Nausea
  • Shortness of breath
  • Light-head

More Prevalent In Women

  • Indigestion type feeling, or band of tightness in the upper back region.
  • Dizzy, lightheadedness, or shortness of breath with exertion

What To Do If You Are, Or You See Someone Experiencing A Heart Attack

  1. Call 9-1-1
    • This is highly important as you want to get professional medical help to yourself or to the person you’re treating.
  2. Stop all activity
    • Sit or lie down in whatever position is most comfortable.
  3. Take nitroglycerin or Aspirin
    • If you have either of these items available to you, take them. If you have nitroglycerin, take your normal dosage. If you have Aspirin, chew and swallow a tablet. ***Important*** make sure that you or the person you’re treating are not allergic to either of these items before ingestion.
  4. Rest and wait
    • Wait and stay calm for help to come. If you’re by yourself and you know of someone close by who may be able to help you, try to call out to them for assistance.

Signs and Symptoms of a Cardiac Arrest

Signs of a cardiac arrest can happen much more rapidly, as cardiac arrest is defined as the heart stopping, and it’s no longer transferring blood to the rest of the body. It’s extremely important to get help for a cardiac arrest, as the inability to transfer blood to vital organs, can cause death within minutes.

Signs of a Cardiac Arrest

  1. Sudden collapse
  2. Unresponsive to touch and sounds
  3. Not breathing or they’re making gasping sounds.

What To Do If You See Someone Experiencing A Cardiac Arrest

  1. Call 9-1-1 immediately
  2. Yell or try to locate an AED 
    • If you have someone else with you, get them to look for and fetch an AED. AED’s are often available in public places, so if you can’t find one, try to locate an information desk and ask if there is one available.
  3. Start CPR
    • Begin chest compressions by pushing down hard and fast in the centre of the chest. If you become tired, try to sub in another bystander until help arrives.

Mikey Young at Heart App

To better prepare yourself in case of a heart-related emergency, we encourage you to sign up and download the Mikey Young at Heart app. Although the app is meant primarily for high school students, it can be used to educate anyone on how to perform CPR and how to properly use an AED.

Recently, a Mikey Young at Heart student was able to save a life which she credits to the training that she received in the app.

 

Mikey Network Celebrates Family Day

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At the Mikey Network, we truly understand the value that family has, as it encompasses so much of the projects and programs that we do as an organization. One of them being the Mikey’s Kids program, which provides MIKEY’s (AED’s) to families that have children with life-threatening heart conditions.

Our experience working with these families is rewarding beyond measure, as providing a MIKEY offers a child protection in case of a sudden cardiac arrest, and offers the family peace of mind to know that their child is safe in case an incident were to occur.

If you’re interested in learning more about the Mikey’s Kid’s program, go to https://mikeyskids.org/. It has tools, resources, and stories of Mikey Families.

Our work doesn’t rely solely on just families with heart-related illnesses though, as there are 6,500 children and teens that experience SCA in Ontario every year.

Knowing that youth are particularly vulnerable when their hearts skip a beat is alarming, which is why we created the Mikey Young at Heart Program to help give peace of mind to families in the community as well as make our schools safer.

The MYAH program works in two parts. One area focuses on the placement of AED’s in schools all over Ontario, while the other part focuses on educating students on how to perform CPR and how to use an AED, through the MYAH app.

To date, 500 MIKEY AED’s have been placed in schools including the Toronto District School Board, Peel District School Board, Halton District School Board, Halton Catholic District School Board, and the Limestone District School Board. While the MYAH app has had 2,479 students signed up to date.

If you would like to share a special story about your family with us, please reach out to us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

 

 

Heart Healthy Recipes For Heart Month

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Life today isn’t easy. We’re often caught up in a multitude of activities, which we spend much of our day trying to juggle. We’re running kids to a sporting event, caught up with running a side business, or are consumed by school work. Although all of these activities are beneficial in some way, they can also take a toll on your diet if you don’t consciously plan your meals. Day to day it may not seem impactful, but over time it can grow to affect your heart health.

Instead of opting for something easy, like chips, or grabbing takeout, the solution is to try to plan out your meals ahead of time. To help you, we’ve reached out to our registered dietitian, Marsha Rosen, to provide us with some heart-healthy recipes to help you stay on track and maintain a heart-healthy diet.

Heart Healthy Dishes

Spinach and Green Pea Soup

Grilled Chicken Strips

Corn, Potato and Shrimp Chowder

Carrot, Parsnip and Edamame Salad

If you’re interested in more heart-healthy recipes, go to the Heart Healthy Recipes section of our site; you’ll find recipes to use for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Recipes From Our Resident Expert, Marsha Rosen, RD
Here are some heart healthy recipes provided by Marsha Rosen, RD (Registered Dietitian). Marsha is Mike Salem’s sister and in addition to offering private nutrition counselling, Marsha provides group lectures, seminars and cooking demonstrations, and is a sought-after contributor to health-related publications.

If you have nutrition question for our dietician, you can email Marsha here…

Do you have a heart healthy recipe that you would like to share? Send your recipes to info@mikeynetwork.com

 

Congenital Heart Disease Awareness Week

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From February 7th to the 14th, is Congenital Heart Disease Awareness Week in Canada. Although the disease is not well-known to many Canadians, it is one of the most common birth defects, affecting one in every one hundred children. At the Mikey Network, we understand the impact that this disease can have on individuals and families, as we regularly deal with young men and women who have CHD.

For those that don’t know, the word congenital means “present at birth”. The congenital heart defect occurs when the heart or the blood vessels near the heart don’t develop normally before birth.

There is no known cause for the disease, but in traceable cases, it is often caused by:

  • Viral infections such as measles.
  • Inherited
  • Down Syndrome
  • Drug or alcohol abuse during pregnancy

Although it is one of the more common birth defects, the survival of children with the disease has greatly increased thanks to medical advances in Canada and around the world.  Today, more than 90% that have (CHD), survive well into their adult life.

To learn more about CHD, we recommend the following resources.

Canadian Congenital Heart Alliance – Great resource for both children and adults that are affected by the disease.

University of Ottawa Heart Institute – Provides great insight into CHD, and defines symptoms and specific forms of the disease. They also have a clinic that provides care to adults with congenital heart defects once they become adults.

Canadian Adult Congenital Heart Network – pools the knowledge and experience of congenital heart disease professionals.

 

February is Heart Month!

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This February is Heart Month in Canada. Promoted by Health Canada, this month aims to raise awareness for heart-related illnesses and causes, while encouraging Canadians to take steps to improve upon their own heart health.

The significance of Heart month is still not lost on Canadians, as Heart disease is still one of the leading causes of death in Canada. In 2017 alone, heart disease affected 2.4 million Canadian Adults.

Fortunately, we can all reduce the risk of heart disease by making healthier lifestyle choices, including quitting smoking, eating a healthy and balanced diet, getting the proper amount of sleep, exercising regularly and monitoring our blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

Throughout the month of February, we will be sharing heart-healthy tips on our blog, as well as on our social media channels to help you to improve your heart health. Below are some key heart health tips that you should aim to keep all year round.

Heart Healthy Tips

  1. DO NOT SMOKE: if you have never smoked, don’t start. If you do smoke, quit. You will increase your life by 5 years for every year you are smoke free.
  2. Enjoy a balanced, nutritious diet. Limit fat intake to between 15% and 30% of your total number of daily calories.
  3. Exercise regularly, 20 minutes 3-4 times per week, or a minimum of a brisk walk daily.
  4. Moderate your intake of alcohol. Guidelines by Health Canada suggest limits of two drinks per day…either 12 oz. Beer, or 5 oz. Wine or 1.5 oz. Spirits.
  5. Limit your intake of salt and caffeine. (No more than the equivalent of four regular cups of coffee per day.)
  6. Try to get 8 hours of sleep each night.
  7. Have regular check-ups with your physician. Early detection is the key to a successful solution.
  8. Keep a positive attitude and wear a smile… it takes only 22 muscles to smile, but 37 to frown.
  9. Make time for leisure activities such as reading, hobbies, sports, TV etc.
  10. Invest in CPR and AED education and training, and encourage your family and friends to do the same.