Winter 2026 5 4 myths about heart disease Heart scan offers a heads-up A coronary calcium CT scan is one way to assess your heart disease risk. It measures calcium deposits in your coronary arteries. Along with other information, this helps your doctor decide if you need treatment to prevent that. Ask your provider if a coronary calcium scan is right for you. For your heart Visit TexasHealthHuguley.org/Heart. FACT: Heart disease risk factors, like high blood pressure and high cholesterol, typically lack symptoms you’d notice. “Even people who exercise and eat right may still have risk factors for heart disease,” Dr. Prasad notes. “Seeing your primary care doctor and getting routine evaluations is important.” FACT: Heart attacks can involve a variety of symptoms, including shortness of breath; sweating; nausea; or back, shoulder, jaw, neck or arm pain. “Oftentimes, you won’t have classic symptoms like on TV, where the actor clutches his chest,” says Cardiologist Amit Prasad, MD. If you suspect a heart attack, call 911. MYTH 1 MYTH 2 MYTH 3 MYTH 4 FACT: Heart disease becomes more common with age, but the process often begins in our teens and 20s. “And the way it begins is with very small plaque buildup in the lining of the wall of the arteries,” says Cardiologist Deval Mehta, MD. Risk factors like diabetes, high blood pressure, smoking or a family history of heart disease can accelerate the heart disease process. But even if you’re young, living a heart-healthy lifestyle can help protect your heart. FACT: Heart disease is a leading killer of women and men. After menopause, a woman’s heart disease risk catches up to men’s. “The risk of heart disease increases to where it is the same by the time they are age 65 to 70,” Dr. Mehta says. Only men get heart disease. I’m too young to be affected by heart disease. Chest pain is the only heart attack symptom. I can’t be at risk. I feel fine.
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