Sandi Toksvig: ‘I’m going to die’ – Presenter’s health fears before making drastic changes

23/02/2022

Sandi Toksvig 'embarrassed' by what she does for a living

We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info

Starting her career in comedy before moving to children’s television, Sandi has also fought hard as a political activist, having co-founded the Women’s Equality Party back in 2015. Having trimmed her size down from a 22 to a 10 in just a year, Sandi has also been the intrigue of many who want to lose weight. And luckily for them, the star opened up about her dramatic weight loss and the family history of heart attacks that motivated her to start in the first place.

After her partner Debbie Toksvig voiced concerns about her health, Sandi decided it was time to make a change.

With three children to take care of, and a family history of heart attacks she knew that she needed professional help, and sought the advice of weight loss expert Louise Parker.

“I was never interested in how I look. The number one thing in my whole life is my children and I want to be there for them,” Sandi said in an interview with Good Housekeeping.

“My dad died of a massive heart attack when he was 59, as he didn’t look after himself. My brother had a heart attack [a few years] ago … and you start thinking.

“I sat on Louise’s sofa and told her: ‘I’m going to die.’ And she said to me: “Not on my watch, Sandi’.”

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) explains that those with a family history of a heart or circulatory disease may have a greater risk of developing conditions that can lead to a heart attack or stroke.

It is important to note the difference between an inherited condition and a family history. The former is caused by a fault (or mutation) in one or more of your genes that are inherited from parents.

The latter is a condition caused by a combination of your genes and habits you share with your family. And it is this combination that can increase your risk.

Similar traits and habits that can increase your risk of developing the same condition as a close family member include:
Environment – living in an area with a high level of air pollution
Lifestyle – smoking, being physically inactive or being stressed
Diet – having excess weight or having more than the daily recommended intake of salt, sugar, fat and alcohol.

A heart attack is a life-threatening condition that the NHS calls a “serious medical emergency”. It occurs when the supply of blood to the heart is suddenly blocked, usually by a blood clot.

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a condition known for forming blood clots. The disease causes your coronary arteries to become narrowed by a gradual build-up of fatty deposits called atheroma.

If a piece of atheroma breaks off, a blood clot forms around this to try and repair the damage to the artery wall. As well as a heart attack, CHD can also cause angina and heart failure.

Due to the serious nature of a heart attack, it is important to recognise the signs and symptoms, in order to alert the emergency services as fast as possible.

The NHS explains that the most common symptoms of a heart attack include:

Chest pain – a feeling of pressure, heaviness, tightness or squeezing across your chest
Pain in other parts of the body – it can feel as if the pain is spreading from your chest to your arms (usually the left arm, but it can affect both arms), jaw, neck, back and tummy
Feeling lightheaded or dizzy
Sweating
Shortness of breath
Feeling sick (nausea) or being sick (vomiting)
An overwhelming feeling of anxiety (similar to a panic attack)
Coughing or wheezing.

While the most common symptom in both men and women is chest pain, women are more likely to have other symptoms such as shortness of breath, feeling or being sick and back or jaw pain.

If you think you or someone you know might be having a heart attack, the BHF recommends calling for an ambulance and then doing the following:

Sitting down and staying calm
Taking a 300mg aspirin if you have one within reach
Waiting for the paramedics.

In hospital, treatment for a heart attack depends on how serious it is. The two main treatments include:

Using medicines to dissolve blood clots
Surgery to help restore blood to the heart.

What is important is to get blood flowing to the heart muscle once again in order to reduce the amount of damage caused. Surgical options include coronary angioplasty which re-opens the blocked coronary artery by inserting one or more stents. Or coronary bypass surgery which helps to restore normal blood flow by using a blood vessel from your leg, arm or chest in your heart to bypass the blocked artery.

Like Sandi, in order to prevent and minimise the risk of having a heart attack, certain lifestyle choices can be adopted. These include:

Eat healthily
Be physically active
Keep to a healthy weight and lose weight if necessary
Don’t smoke
Cut down on alcohol
Control high blood pressure
Control cholesterol levels
Control blood sugar levels (if you have diabetes).

Source: Read Full Article