HEALTH

Mountain vacations and heart disease? You can, but with some precautions

It is absolutely not true, as most people still think, that people with heart disease can only enjoy holidays at the seaside or in flat places. In fact, even heart patients can safely spend their holidays at high altitudes.

Of course, some extra care must be taken, and above all, it is necessary to arrive prepared at the time of departure, to avoid all possible unforeseen events and to ensure the highest possible level of safety. 

Some advice can be really useful, but apart from thoughtfulness and care, there are no real contraindications for heart patients when it comes to hiking or mountain holidays.

Mountain vacation if you have heart disease: some tips
It is absolutely not true, as most people still think, that people with heart disease can only enjoy holidays at the seaside or in flat places. In fact, even heart patients can safely spend their holidays at high altitudes. Of course, some extra care must be taken, and above all, it is necessary to arrive prepared at the time of departure, to avoid all possible unforeseen events and to ensure the highest possible level of safety. Some advice can be really useful, but apart from thoughtfulness and care, there are no real contraindications for heart patients when it comes to hiking or mountain holidays.
Preparing the body before leaving
Preparing your physique means doing two things before leaving for a mountain resort: first of all carrying out a cardiological examination, and secondly starting to exercise. This is to get in shape for potential physical activity, such as walking and the like. But even more importantly, training allows one to learn more about one's own body, and especially one's own limits, something that is essential for heart patients.
Don't go up in altitude too quickly
This is also one of the main problems for professional climbers, so heart patients must be particularly careful. The higher one climbs, the thinner the air becomes and it is difficult to breathe properly. The body also undergoes real changes: you breathe faster, your heart rate accelerates and your blood pressure increases. The 'dangerous' threshold for heart patients is around 2500 metres. From then on, it is necessary to climb very carefully, giving the body time to acclimatise to the new pressure.
How much to go up each day
Dr. Daniela De Serio, a cardiology specialist at the Santagostino network of specialist outpatient clinics in Milan, together with her cardiology colleagues, recommends climbing a maximum of 500 metres a day once the 2500-metre threshold has been crossed. For the same reason, people with heart problems should also avoid using cable cars and fast cable cars.
Use your head and don't overdo it
People with heart disease, and moreover if they are normally sedentary, should definitely avoid excessive exertion. Also due to the reduced amount of oxygen available in the air, routes and walks should be short and easy, and not cause excessive strain on the physique. Furthermore, it would be best to opt for light but frequent meals, avoiding binge eating at least for the period of the stay.
Medicines should never be forgotten
We could have also put this under point one, but we opted to keep it at the end because it might stand out more. Especially if you decide to stay in remote, isolated or otherwise poorly served places with pharmacies, it is good to check not once, not twice, but a hundred times that you have packed all your medicines. Moreover, it would be better to bring even more than necessary, in case of need.
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