“I had an irregular heartbeat for the last 10 years, and it exhibited every day,” she explained. “It bothered me a little bit and then I’ve had a harder time singing in the last five years … everything kind of tightening up as I was trying to sing. I remember a couple times telling Vince, ‘I feel like I’m suffocating.’ It’s the weirdest thing, I’m breathing as deep as I can, but in my mind none of that had to do with my heart.”
Her surgery was a preemptive procedure, intended to fix a genetic heart condition discovered by accident. She was at a regular checkup in late 2019 with her husband, country star Vince Gill, when Gill’s cardiologist encouraged her to do some tests.
The tests revealed a dangerous birth defect called partial anomalous pulmonary venous return (PAPVR), which if left untreated, could have disastrous results. Grant was told she needed to have surgery before she turned 60, when the risks of a sudden heart attack increased exponentially.
“If I have got something wrong, anybody could have something wrong,” Grant said. “My message would be, ‘Take a minute and take care of yourself.’ You don’t know that something is wrong unless you make sure it’s right.”
Soap Opera legend Susan Lucci underwent emergency heart surgery in October for a major blockage in her arteries that could have ended in a fatal heart attack.
She admitted in People magazinethat she ignored the warning signs for three months.
Sometime last autumn, she had felt a tightness in her chest but “told myself, it’s nothing, it will go away. And it did.” Roughly 10 days later, the pain returned, “radiating around my rib cage. I thought maybe I had fastened my bra too tightly.”
Then on October 23, while at the Tory Burch boutique at the Americana Manhasset shopping center, the pain came back, intensified. “It felt like an elephant pressing down on my chest,” she told the magazine, adding that the store manager offered to drive her to Roslyn’s St. Francis Hospital, which specializes in cardiology.
The tests revealed that the actress had 90 percent blockage in the heart’s main artery, which doctors call “the widow maker,” and 70 percent blockage in another branch.
“Ninety percent blockage – I was shocked,” Lucci said.
The 72-year-old actress had to undergo surgery, during which her doctor inserted two stents into her arteries to help increase blood flow back to her heart.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death among women today, killing approximately 400,000 women a year, according to the latest statistics from the American Heart Association.
Susan Lucci who has devoted decades to a daily Pilates workout and a heart healthy Mediterranean diet, was unaware that her father’s heart disease meant she was also at risk. Her father, Victor Lucci, had suffered a heart attack in his late forties. “I always thought I had my mother’s genes,” says Lucci of her mother, Jeanette, now 101 years old.
Diabetes is a powerful risk factor for heart disease in women as reported on the American Diabetes Association’s website. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in women with diabetes. Women with diabetes are 2 times as likely to have a second heart attack and 4 times more likely to have heart failure than women without diabetes.
Many women with type 2 diabetes already have heart disease when they are diagnosed or have many of the risk factors such as high lipids levels, high blood pressure, abdominal obesity, and abnormalities in blood vessel function.
Clued Inn is a TOTALLY free and TOTALLY unique way to learn about Diabetes & Heart Disease on National Diabetes Alert Day on Tuesday, March 26, 2019 sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim. Our goal is for participants to have a fun, gaming adventure as we take the mystery out of the link between diabetes and heart health and encourage people to discover their risk for diabetes. Space Limited. BOOK NOW
“A woman’s closet can foster strong relations by serving as a reminder to ones nostalgic roots and past, communicating an authenticity of its own,” says Rich In Love Fashion Blogger, Spokesmodel, Author and fabulous Diabetes Advocate,Doris Hobbs who joins us tonight on February’s Diabetes Late Nite podcast with music by George Michael at 6 PM, EST.
What does your wardrobe say about you?
We hope it says, ‘GO RED!” since February 3 marks National Wear Red Day, a holiday to raise awareness for cardiovascular disease in women. It’s also the start of American Heart Month. The holiday was created by the American Heart Association and the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute in 2003.
Did you know heart disease is the leading cause of death for women in the U.S., according to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention?
Type 2 diabetes independently increases the risk of heart disease in pre-menopausal women and those in the first years of menopause, according to a study presented at the American Heart Association High Blood Pressure Research Scientific Sessions 2013.
“What’s most alarming is that many women don’t realize that heart disease can be prevented. In fact, 90 percent of women under the age of 50 who have heart attacks have at least one risk factor that they can control, like smoking or being overweight,” Laura Bush said in 2005. “When it comes to heart disease, education and prevention can save lives. Studies show that by eating well, exercising, not smoking, maintaining a healthy weight, and visiting their doctor, women can reduce their risk for heart disease by as much as 85 percent. But surprisingly, only about three percent of American women actually do all of these things.”
“To reduce the risk of heart attacks, we recommend screening women with type 2 diabetes at younger ages, even if they don’t have other known risk for heart disease,” says Nestor Garcia, M.D., Ph.D, investigator from Blossom DMO, Cordoba, Argentina and CONICET, an Argentine government agency in Buenos Aires.
Did you know research has shown that wearing red clothes can make women more attractive to men?
Doris Hobbs shares her fabulous Vintage fashion sensibility to encourage you to ‘Go Red’ with a classic, timeless look!“For those of you who contemplate how you might recreate the same ensemble, the trick is to garnish yourself with one piece of leopard rather than a head-to-toe; I personally find an accessory such as a hat or handbag to be ideal. A fine example is in the 1963 film “Charade,” where Audrey Hepburn who exudes elegance in a pointed leopard hat, pearl earrings and red coat,” says Doris Hobbs.
Here’s information on Doris Hobbs’ head-to-toe Vintage look for Valentine’s Day:Doris Cobb is pictured in a’Conversation Starter Dress’ from Bitter Root Vintage. “I removed the red bow to expose the the black beaded button, to play off of the beaded earrings,” says Doris. Doris’ Hat is by Judy Bentinck, the award winning London-based couture milliner.“The hat is called, “Estella”and I love how the baby cheetah print provides a playful yet elegance vibe for such a romantic evening.”All of Doris’ accessoriespictured are vintage and can be easily found at department stores everywhere.
LOVE FASHION?
Play along tonight when we challenge Doris Hobbs to play our ‘BUY, BORROW, BURN!’ Fashion Game from 3 looks featured on the 23rd Annual Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards’ Red Carpet. Our three looks are: Michelle Dockery in Elie Saab, Claire Foy in a Valentino, a Jimmy Choo bag and shoes, and Tiffany & Co. jewelry. and Nicole Kidman in Gucci. Choose which one of the three dresses you would ‘BUY’ for yourself, which one you would ‘BORROW’ for a friend, and which one you would ‘BURN!’ with a match (Nicole Kidman’s shoulder parrots – we’re looking at you!)
Don’t miss Diabetes Late Nite inspired by George Michaelon Tuesday, February 7, 2017, 6-7 PM, EST. Enjoy our first-ever Valentine’s Day Party featuring Chef Ward Alper aka ‘The Decadent Diabetic’, ‘Rich In Love’ fashion blogger Doris Hobbs, the Charlie’s Angels of Outreach, Poet Lorraine Brooks and Laura Laria.This podcast is part ofDiabetes Podcast Week in support of the ‘Spare a Rose, Save a Child campaign’.
“I’m thrilled to support such a worthwhile cause by participating in Diabetes Podcast Week again this year, ” says Max ‘Mr. Divabetic’ Szadek.
The “Spare a Rose, Save a Child” campaign encourages people to buy one less rose this Valentine’s Day and donate the value of that flower to children with diabetes. Donations go to Life for a Child, an International Diabetes Federation program which provides life-saving diabetes supplies, medication, and education that children in developing countries need to stay alive.
