Your heart is a vital organ that allows every cell in the human body to receive oxygenated blood. The way the heart beats says a lot about your overall health and how your heart is working.
There are many amazing facts about your heart and how it beats that you probably don’t know. At the Vein, Heart, and Vascular Institute, cardiologist Dr. Hesham Fakhri knows all about the heart.
Dr. Fakhri helps you understand how your heart works and if it’s beating at a healthy level. If it isn’t, he provides lifestyle tips, medications, and diagnostic testing for arrhythmias and other heart problems.
The heart is a powerful muscle that pumps oxygenated blood throughout your body. It's essential for life, and the way it beats determines the health of all other organs.
It pumps blood through contractions and relaxations, which occur due to the four chambers having valves that prevent the reflux of blood.
The heart receives deoxygenated blood from the body through the veins. Blood enters the right atrium and then pumps into the right ventricle. From there, it enters the lungs where it picks up oxygen.
The heart gets oxygenated blood from the lungs into the left atrium and then to the left ventricle, which pumps it out into your body. The whole cycle then repeats. Valves in the heart regulate the flow of blood in the correct direction.
Each contraction, or systole, is followed by relaxation, or diastole. Systole and diastole are also how we measure blood pressure. It's a continuous cycle that keeps the body's organs and tissues oxygenated and healthy.
Your heart is a remarkable organ that is crucial for life and overall well-being. A healthy heart allows you to do everything you enjoy, while an unhealthy heart causes health problems.
Your heartbeat reveals a great deal about your heart health and can help predict the risk of specific health problems. There are many amazing facts that you may not know about your heartbeat, and they include:
The average person's heart beats about 100,000 times per day, which equals about 2.6 billion beats over a lifetime. Remarkably, the heart works continuously for an average of 75 years to supply the body with oxygenated blood.
The average adult has approximately 5 liters of blood in their entire body. Every minute, the heart pumps out 1.5 liters of blood, which means it recirculates all the blood in the body approximately 18 times in an hour.
One of the most remarkable aspects of the heartbeat is that it originates from the heart's electrical system. That system can still function when the heart is outside the body, which is why heart transplants are possible.
The arteries supply the body with oxygen-rich blood, and the aorta is the largest artery in the body. The aorta is approximately the diameter of an average garden hose.
All sides of the heart work together to pump deoxygenated blood through the lungs, where it reoxygenates, and then back through the body to refuel the cells. When one part of an organ doesn't work correctly, it affects the entire organ.
With every beat, the heart pushes blood through about 60,000 miles of blood vessels. For comparison, that amount of blood vessels could circle the equator at least twice.
Women's hearts are often smaller than men's, meaning they need to beat more often to pump out the same amount of blood. On average, a woman's heartbeat is approximately eight beats per minute faster than a man's.
Despite the heart's impressive capabilities and its crucial role in pumping blood throughout the entire body, it can still be affected by damage and disease. Heart disease is a significant health threat and is the leading cause of death in the world.
Take care of your heart throughout your life to avoid heart disease or a heart attack. A healthy diet, combined with regular exercise, is the most effective way to maintain optimal health.
Call us at the Vein, Heart, and Vascular Institute today to schedule an appointment to discuss your heart health or request a consultation here. We have offices in Tampa, Wesley Chapel, and Sun City Center, Florida.
