So much for the “me” generation. A study by the American Heart Association reveals that Generation Y patients, specifically those 18-22, who have diagnosed heart defects, are not seeking medical care or checking in with a cardiologist.
The AHA found that more than a fifth of us with “severe congenital heart disease don’t see a cardiologist,” citing a Canadian study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
A congenital heart defect can exist for your entire life and kill you without warning.
The risk of having a heart defect is 3-times more likely in families with a genetic history — parents pass it on to children.
The AHA specifically points out that while most Americans know about acquired heart disease — the kind you get from lifestyle, diet, etc. — most don’t know about congenital heart disease. That’s the kind you’re born with and can kill you even if you have the healthiest diet and exercise plan there is.
For more on this topic, check out the website of the American Heart Association.
My guess would be fear, monetary concerns, or a combination of the two. The reason I don’t get treatment for most of my medical issue is that I simply can’t afford to go to the doctor even though I have insurance. Though admissibly, my health concerns are chronic but not life-threatening. Last year, for instance, my white count was slightly high for several months, but I felt fine. Eventually I just stopped going for blood draws because it was costing me an arm and a leg and nobody could figure out what was going on. Probably some sort of low-grade infection but I’ll never know. However, if it were something like a heart defect, I probably would be more vigilant.
Young people are often more in denial about their potential mortality. I hope that if anyone who knows he/she has a congenital heart defect reads this that it hits home and they see a doctor and fight for treatment if necessary. Everyone has a right to have life-threatening conditions addressed, regardless of ability to pay.