Dr. S.Ravi Shankar

A flu shot can prevent a heart attack! Here’s how.

Every year, heart diseases become a major reason of death all over the world.  But did you know that a simple vaccine like a flu shot can be instrumental in saving you from a heart attack?

Read on to find how this simple vaccine can save your life...

Influenza or flu has been linked with heart diseases for long and patients suffering from these diseases are always advised to be cautious in the flu season to reduce the risk of heart attacks. The ‘Journal of the American Medical Association’ recently published a study, which revealed that people who have already observed symptoms of heart diseases in them, can diminish their chances of getting a heart attack and stroke by opting to get a flu shot. Among the 6735 participants of the study, 50% were given flu shots. The results observed declared that there was 36% less chance of heart diseases and stroke resulting in death in people who had received this vaccine. Moreover, recent sufferers of a heart attack were proved to be at 55% reduced threat of experiencing another major heart problem after taking the shot.

How can the flu vaccine reduce the risk of a heart attack?

The flu vaccine  works towards strengthening your immune system, and thereby decreasing the risks of a potential stroke.

One theory suggests that if a person is suffering from flu, he/she experiences an increased heart rate, elevated body temperature and augmented oxygen content of the blood, besides an alteration in the consistency in blood, which can give rise to a blood clot. Now, heart attack is mostly caused when an artery of a person is 85-90 per cent blocked by plaque, but a person having flu may be at a risk of getting it merely with 40 per cent artery blockage. The function of the flu shot is to prevent flu, which in turn prevents plaque build up in your body, thereby reducing chances of a heart attack.

Another hypothesis is that the flu shot intervenes with the functioning of the immune system of your body, and helps in developing antibodies, which provide better protection against different types of infections, thus preventing heart attacks and strokes.

'Consult'.