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Heart diseases in children, how the signs change in children and when you should be alarmed

2022-09-15 00:48:17Lifestyle SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
Heart diseases in children, how the signs change in children and when you should
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Heart disease in children is not related to lifestyle, unlike in adults. Therefore, children do not develop heart disease through any fault of theirs or their parents. However, once heart disease is diagnosed, timely intervention is essential for good outcomes. And for this, patients should consult a pediatric specialist and follow the advice given for treatment.

"Congenital heart defects are developmental abnormalities and are usually not due to any health problems or mistakes during pregnancy."

Unfortunately, even today, we see children who have been diagnosed with a hole in the heart in infancy and advised early surgery, and the parents have not taken the child for surgery because of their belief that the heart disease will resolve itself, or that the child is too young for cardiac surgery. And with this delay, the child develops late complications such as pulmonary hypertension that may even become inoperable.

Should children be tested for heart disease?

Not all children need routine heart-related tests. Children should have regular check-ups with their pediatrician and if the pediatrician suspects heart disease in the child, they are then referred to a pediatric cardiologist. The Pediatric Cardiologist will then evaluate the child in detail and perform an echocardiogram to diagnose the heart defect and begin treatment.

The most common heart defects in children are congenital heart defects, which the child is born with. Major congenital heart defects can be detected by fetal echocardiography during pregnancy itself. After the baby is born, critical heart defects can be diagnosed and treated within hours of birth.

What are some signs that a child's heart health needs attention?

Symptoms and signs are: babies do not feed well, fatigue during feeding, low weight gain and excessive sweating indicate congenital heart disease. Some babies will have bluish spots on their lips, tongue and nails when they cry. Older babies may present with recurrent pneumonia, fatigue and shortness of breath on exertion.

Are cases of children with heart problems common?

In the general population, only about 8-10 babies out of 1,000 live births are born with heart disease. So, about 1% of all children have congenital heart disease. A small percentage of children have acquired heart diseases such as Kawasaki disease and Rheumatic Heart Disease, and in the last two years, post-Covid MIS-C (inflammatory syndrome) that affects the heart.

How much exercise should children do each day?

Children should be encouraged to play sports and outdoor games, and their screen time and TV viewing time should be limited. No minimum or maximum hours or amount of exercise is recommended, but 1-2 hours of daily outdoor activity is helpful in instilling and encouraging a healthy lifestyle early in life. Of course, exercise and outdoor activity will need to be balanced with work and school studies as the child grows.
Children with heart disease may have limitations in how much they can and should exercise, and this should be discussed with their pediatric specialist.

What is a heart healthy diet? Are there any foods that children should eat every day?

A heart-healthy diet is what equips an individual to fight heart disease. He recommends that a child's diet be nutritionally diverse with foods from a variety of food groups, including fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy, lean protein, nuts, legumes, and plant-based oils. Such a diet helps maintain a healthy weight and stable metabolism while providing all the nutrients to meet a child's daily RDA (recommended dietary allowance) requirements. Foods that are high in calories but low in nutrients, such as sweets and sugary drinks, foods with saturated fat, trans fat and a large amount of sodium should be consumed in moderation or avoided.

A child with congenital heart disease has a high metabolism which causes faster burning of calories and therefore needs to be fed high calorie foods. Eating frequent meals rich in calories and nutrients helps to meet this increased demand. High protein foods such as milk or dairy, meat, legumes, cabbage and nuts should be included. For older children it is best to avoid salty, fried, sweet and junk foods.

Foods containing omega 3 fatty acids have a protective effect, so foods such as fish, flaxseed and flaxseed oil, nuts, canola, soybeans and soybean oil, chia seeds and green leafy vegetables should be regularly included in the diet. diet.


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