top of page

CPR First Aid | Take steps against heart


Centuries before bacon cheeseburgers, cigarettes and couch potatoes, people had clogged arteries that can lead to heart attack and stroke.


How do we know this? Mummies told us.


No, not the groaning, wrapped-in-gauze, walking-with-arms-straight-out mummies that come to life in scary movies we'll be watching this Halloween season.


For more than a decade, experts have been using modern medical technology to examine mummified remains of people who lived and died thousands of years ago. They've found atherosclerosis, a cardiovascular disease linked to unhealthy modern lifestyles.


"We were surprised," said Dr. Randall Thompson, a cardiologist with St. Luke's Health System in Kansas City and professor at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine. "It turns out this disease has been with us a long time."

Thompson is a member of the Horus Study Group, an informal collection of experts who trace their fascination with the subject to a visit to Cairo's Egyptian Museum in 2008. A group of doctors visited the mummy of Merneptah, a pharaoh who lived 3,200 years ago.


"The sign said he died in his 60s and he had arthritis, dental problems and atherosclerosis," Thompson said. "We said, 'Pshaw, that's a disease of modern times. And how would they know, anyway?'"


Atherosclerosis occurs when fatty deposits called plaque buildup in arteries over time. It can obstruct blood flow or dislodge, causing a heart attack or stroke. Some of the risk factors you can't control, like age and family history of heart disease. But others – such as smoking, lack of exercise, obesity and an unhealthy diet – are all thought to be consequences of present-day bad habits.

The seeming anomaly led researchers to perform CT scans on mummies, many of whom still had calcium deposits in their arteries – a clear sign of the plaque buildup indicating atherosclerosis.


"It looks just like it does in modern patients," said Thompson, who was the lead author of a 2013 study in the British medical journal The Lancet that found atherosclerosis in Egyptian and Peruvian mummies, as well as ancient remains from the southwestern United States and the Aleutian Islands. Subsequent research has reinforced the findings.

So what happened to their arteries?


"We know the initiation of atherosclerosis and its propagation over time is a complex process," said Dr. John Wilkins, a cardiologist and associate professor at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. "Many factors we know, and some we don't."


Wilkins, who has not been involved in the mummy research, said those factors break down into two categories: environmental and genetic or biological.

"Human biology hasn't changed over the last several thousand years," he said. "That leaves the question whether there were enough environmental factors back then for people with a predisposition to atherosclerosis to cause it early in life. Clearly, the answer is yes."


Thompson said theories of what may have contributed to ancient atherosclerosis include smoke from cooking fires, poor living conditions that led to frequent infections and inflammation, and even stress.


"Life was tough in ancient times," Thompson said. "We think we have stress today. Imagine things like pestilence and food insecurity and constant wars."

As the research continues, the Horus group – named for the ancient Egyptian god who had the head of a falcon – would like to be able to compare mummy DNA to what is in our genes today.


"We've not been able to get good ancient DNA to look for genetic markers," Thompson said. "We'd like to see if there's anything that corresponds with the risk factors today."


Whatever caused our ancestors' atherosclerosis, experts agree there's limited evidence that the disease is what killed them. One simple reason: They didn't live that long.


"They were dying of too many other things at a younger age to realize what would have been their cardiovascular destiny," Wilkins said. "They most likely died with atherosclerosis, not of it."


That may be the mummies' main message.


"Humans have a certain tendency to develop atherosclerosis," Thompson said. "There are certain things you can't control, but that makes it important to control the things you can, like diet and exercise and not smoking."

Wilkins agreed.


"Knowing your cardiovascular risk factors, keeping them in an optimal range, and following a heart-healthy lifestyle gives you a very high probability of living a long and healthy life," he said. "Longer than those mummies."


Learn more about CPR First Aid.


26 views

7 Comments


BFVY IRTO
BFVY IRTO
Jan 07

代发外链 提权重点击找我;

蜘蛛池 蜘蛛池;

谷歌马甲包/ 谷歌马甲包;

谷歌霸屏 谷歌霸屏;

谷歌霸屏 谷歌霸屏

蜘蛛池 蜘蛛池

谷歌快排 谷歌快排

Google外链 Google外链

谷歌留痕 谷歌留痕

Gái Gọi…

Gái Gọi…

Dịch Vụ…

谷歌霸屏 谷歌霸屏

负面删除 负面删除

币圈推广 币圈推广

Google权重提升 Google权重提升

Google外链 Google外链

google留痕 google留痕

Like

BFVY IRTO
BFVY IRTO
Dec 25, 2024

代发外链 提权重点击找我;

游戏推广 游戏推广;

Fortune Tiger Fortune Tiger;

Fortune Tiger Slots Fortune…

谷歌马甲包/ 谷歌马甲包;

谷歌霸屏 谷歌霸屏;

מכונות ETPU מכונות ETPU;

;ماكينات اي تي بي…

آلات إي بي بي…

ETPU maşınları ETPU maşınları;

ETPUマシン ETPUマシン;

ETPU 기계 ETPU 기계;

Like

WKDU TRBD
WKDU TRBD
Dec 19, 2024

google seo google seo技术飞机TG-cheng716051;

03topgame 03topgame

gamesimes gamesimes;

Fortune Tiger Fortune Tiger;

Fortune Tiger Slots Fortune Tiger…

Fortune Tiger Fortune Tiger;

EPS машины EPS машины;

Fortune Tiger Fortune Tiger;

EPS Machine EPS Cutting Machine;

EPS Machine EPS and EPP…

EPP Machine EPP Shape Moulding…

EPS Machine EPS and EPP…

EPTU Machine ETPU Moulding Machine

EPS Machine EPS Cutting Machine;

Like

WKDU TRBD
WKDU TRBD
Dec 17, 2024
Like

WKDU TRBD
WKDU TRBD
Dec 17, 2024

google seo google seo技术飞机TG-cheng716051;

03topgame 03topgame

gamesimes gamesimes;

Fortune Tiger Fortune Tiger;

Fortune Tiger Slots Fortune Tiger…

Fortune Tiger Fortune Tiger;

EPS машины EPS машины;

Fortune Tiger Fortune Tiger;

EPS Machine EPS Cutting Machine;

EPS Machine EPS and EPP…

EPP Machine EPP Shape Moulding…

EPS Machine EPS and EPP…

EPTU Machine ETPU Moulding Machine

EPS Machine EPS Cutting Machine;

Like

554 Boston Post Rd. Unit 1, Milford, CT 06460

12443 San Jose Blvd, Suite 303, Jacksonvillle, FL 32223

1136 Route 22 West. Suite 103, Mountainside, NJ 07092

3 West Main Street, Suite 208, Elmsford, NY 10523

171 Market Square, Suite 201, Newington, CT 06111

4 North Washington Ave. Bergenfield, NJ 07621

Wingren Plaza, 4225 Wingren Dr. Suite 210, Irving, TX 75062

147 West Merrick Road, 2F, 

Freeport, NY 11520

71 East Avenue, Suite T, Norwalk,  CT 06460

658 Newark Avenue,  Jersey City NJ 07306

5835 Callaghan Road, Suite 601, San Antonio, TX 78228

224-15 Union Turnpike, 2F, Oakland Gardens, NY 11364

2531 NW 41st. Street Bldg B, Gainesville, FL 32606

513 W Mt. Pleasant Ave. Suite 222, Livingston, NJ 07039

2171 Jericho Turnpike, Suite 195, Commack, NY 11725

West Springfield, Massachusetts

181 Park Avenue, Suite 8,

West Springfield, MA 01089

Our Client Reviews

  • Facebook - Black Circle
  • Twitter - Black Circle
  • Google+ - Black Circle
  • YouTube - Black Circle
  • Pinterest - Black Circle
  • Instagram - Black Circle

HealthForce Training Center provides high-quality training and the latest American Heart Association programs customized for health and non-healthcare providers. Our mission is to provide a fun and stress-free learning experience that can equip individuals with the knowledge and skills to be confident with their medical care and emergency situations.

AHA Disclaimer: The American Heart Association strongly promotes knowledge and proficiency in BLS, ACLS, and PALS and has developed instructional materials for this purpose. Use of these materials in an educational course does not represent course sponsorship by the American Heart Association. Any fees charged for such a course, except for a portion of fees needed for AHA materials, do not represent income to the Association.

American Hearth Association
United States Flag icon
email icon
phone icon
1-866-CPR-9593
1-866-277-9593
debit/credit cards

© 2024 Synergy Healthcare International |Healthforce Training Center
 

bottom of page