Information from www.health.gov
What Is Heart Disease?
When people talk about heart disease, they’re usually talking about coronary heart disease (CHD). It’s also sometimes called coronary artery disease (CAD). This is the most common type of heart disease.
When someone has CHD, the coronary arteries (tubes) that take blood to the heart are narrow or blocked. This happens when cholesterol and fatty material, called plaque, build up inside the arteries.
Several things can lead to plaque building up inside your arteries, including:
- Too much cholesterol in the blood
- High blood pressure
- Smoking
- Too much sugar in the blood because of diabetes
When plaque blocks an artery, it’s hard for blood to flow to the heart. A blocked artery can cause chest pain or a heart attack.