Can Asthma Increase My Risk for Heart Disease?

Millions of Americans suffer from asthma, and millions more suffer from heart disease, two common chronic diseases with potentially life-threatening complications. Although one is a respiratory disease and one affects your heart, recent research shows a link between these two common medical problems — a link that shouldn’t be ignored.

At Allergy Associates of Utah, our team helps patients with asthma manage their disease so they can improve their health and reduce associated medical risks. In this post, we’re helping patients understand how their diagnosis of asthma may play a role in their heart health as well. 

Inflammatory effects

Both asthma and heart disease involve inflammation: In asthma, inflammation affects the airways, constricting them and making it harder to breathe. In heart disease, inflammation can affect the heart muscle directly, and it can also affect the blood vessels, leading to a condition called atherosclerosis, a risk factor for heart attack and other cardiovascular problems.

When exploring the relationship between asthma and heart disease, researchers looked specifically at inflammation to determine if the inflammatory effects associated with asthma might also influence heart health. What they found is that people who have asthma do tend to have an elevated risk of heart disease.

One recent study found that patients with asthma not only had overall higher levels of inflammation, but they also showed higher levels of plaque buildup in their arteries, a hallmark of atherosclerosis and a leading cause of coronary artery disease (CAD).

Asthma attacks and heart strain

For people who have asthma, avoiding asthma attacks is the focus of their asthma action plans. Asthma attacks put a strain on your respiratory system, and severe attacks can be deadly.

What’s more, severe attacks can also be bad for your heart health. That’s because when you have an asthma attack, your airway narrows, reducing the amount of oxygen that reaches your lungs. 

That means your heart needs to pump harder to make sure your organs are getting the oxygen they need to function normally. Not surprisingly, pumping harder puts more strain on your heart, and over time, added strain can lead to heart disease.

Protecting your heart

If you have asthma, one of the best ways to manage your symptoms is to have an updated asthma action plan tailored to your symptoms, lifestyle, and asthma triggers (things that make your symptoms flare up). Fortunately, your action plan can help your heart, too.

When you follow your plan, you reduce asthma symptoms and flare-ups, improving the respiratory “side” of your disease and decreasing the potential risk of heart strain that can occur during severe attacks.

Asthma medications and lifestyle changes also help reduce the inflammation that underlies the disease. Lower inflammation protects your blood vessels, reducing your risk of atherosclerosis while protecting your heart health in the long term.

Manage your asthma more effectively

If you have asthma, having an updated action plan in place is essential for protecting your respiratory system and your heart, too. To find out if your plan is up to date or to learn how we can help you manage your asthma more effectively, request an appointment online or over the phone with the team at Allergy Associates of Utah in Sandy and West Jordan, Utah, today.