MEMPHIS, Tenn — Director of Cardiovascular Services at St. Francis Hospital Amanda Wroblewski sat down with ABC24 to discuss how the rising temperatures in Memphis can affect people with heart issues.
"The heat affects your heart by making your heart work harder," Wroblewski said. "When your heart works harder, it increases your risk for a heart attack, heat exhaustion, heat stroke."
She said this could potentially affect "a lot of people," especially in the Memphis area.
"We have a high population of patients who have high cholesterol, who have heart disease, who are on a lot of medications," she said. "Medications can affect the way your body responds."
She said it is very important for patients who have heart disease to check with their doctors about how much sun exposure they should have and how much they should drink in response to the medications that they are on.
She also offered tips on how people can prevent heart problems during hotter temperatures.
"Some simple things that people can do to protect their hearts this summer is they can increase their water. If they are able to, they need to talk to their physician. They can wear light colored clothes, breathable fabrics. They can limit their caffeine and alcohol as these increase their risk for dehydration. They can stay indoors during peak hours, which is about 10 AM to about 4 PM. They can exercise early or late to avoid those peak hours," she said.
Wroblewski encouraged family members to check in on loved ones of patients who have heart problems to "make sure that they are following these simple kind of things."