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Heart Disease and Stroke: The World's Leading Killers

> Heart disease and stroke - the principal components of cardiovascular disease - are the first and third leading causes of death for both men and women in the United States, accounting for nearly 40% of all deaths. Over 927,000 Americans die of cardiovascular disease each year, which amounts to 1 death every 34 seconds.

> The UK has one of the highest rates of death from heart disease in the world - one British adult dies from the disease every three minutes - and stroke is the country's third biggest killer, claiming 70,000 lives each year.

Ref: BBC

> Stroke deaths will double in the next 20 years, say researchers who estimate the disease will kill 286,000 Americans in 2023.

Ref: American Heart Association, Inc.

Some facts on the cost of the disease to healthcare systems around the world

> The economic impact of cardiovascular disease on the U.S. healthcare system continues to grow as the population ages. In 2003, stroke cost the United States an estimated $51 billion in lost productivity and health care costs, including $12 billion in nursing home costs. As the U.S. population ages, the impact of stroke may increase.

Ref: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

> The cost of heart disease and stroke in the United States was projected to be $394 billion in 2005, including health care expenditures and lost productivity from death and disability.

Ref: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

> New research funded by the British Heart Foundation estimates the true cost of heart disease in Britain today to be over £7 billion.

Ref: British Heart Foundation

The above statistics bring into focus the tremendous strain that this disease puts on healthcare systems and also about the urgency for better preventive and treatment measures. Through this case study, we will first try to understand how modern science tries to approach this problem. This is in contrast to how the science of Spirituality deals with it.

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What are the causes of heart diseases?

1. According to Modern Sciences

The most common cause of heart disease is narrowing or blockage of the coronary arteries, which supply blood to the heart itself. This happens slowly over time.
Some heart diseases can be present at birth.
Hypertension.
Abnormal function of the heart valves.
Abnormal electrical rhythm of the heart.
Weakening of the heart's pumping function caused by infection or toxins.

Ref: MedlinePlus

2. According to Ayurveda

Ayurveda is a time tested medical science described in the ancient holy Vedic scriptures of India. It addresses the physical illnesses at a deeper level, i.e. at the level of the five cosmic elements For example, in case of infection the modern medical science prescribes antibiotics to kill germs. This means that if the illness is at the level of the basic cosmic element, for example, the Absolute Earth element (pruthvi tattva), then the remedy is also at the same level. But the ancient science of Ayurveda goes a step further and takes steps to modify the illness at a deeper level that is at the level of the Absolute Water element in which the germs breed.

According to modern medical science the bodies of all human beings and animals are made up of biological or organic molecules of proteins, fats, carbohydrates and their constituents, i.e., amino acids, fatty acids, glycerin, sugars like glucose, fructose, galactose and vitamins, minerals and water.

Ayurveda has categorised these various biological molecules into three biological particles namely the three humours i.e. wind (vata), bile (pitta) and phlegm (kapha).

According to modern science the amino acids and proteins are made up of atoms of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. Carbohydrates and fats are made up of atoms of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.

Similarly the wind humour particles are made up of the Absolute Air and Ether elements. The bile humour particles are made up of Water and Fire elements. The phlegm particles are made up of Earth and Water elements.

Ref: Fundamental principles of Ayurveda by Dr. V.B. Athavale M.D., D.C.H., F.A.M.S. and Dr. Kamlesh Athavale.

2A. Heart diseases related to the wind humours (vata doshas) are known as vataja heart diseases

• Causes: Fear, unhappiness, worry, anxiety, excessive work, fasting etc.

• Symptoms: Bursting and pricking type (needle pricking) of unbearable pain.

• Leads to: Vataja diseases cause contraction of the coronary arteries leading to angina (angina pectoris)

2B. Heart diseases related to the bile humours (pitta doshas) are known as pittaja heart diseases

• Causes: Anger, worrying, working in the sun, exercise and adverse effects of smoking etc.

• Symptoms: Burning sensation in the chest, feeling of chest being full of smoke

2C. Heart diseases related to the phlegm humours (kapha doshas) are known as kaphaj heart diseases

• Causes: Laziness, less physical work, excessive diet and excessive consumption of oil and fats.

• Symptoms: Heaviness in the chest.

• Leads to: Kaphaj diseases lead to atherosclerosis and if there is formation of thrombus in coronary vessels it leads to a heart attack.

3. According to the science of Spirituality

3A. Result of past actions:

Since birth man keeps on performing good or bad actions. One such cause of getting heart diesease is due to result of past actions like always gossiping over shortcomings of others.

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3B. Due to ghosts (demons, devils, negative energies etc.):

The following table describes the symptoms of heart disease that are caused by ghosts (demons, devils, negative energies etc.) from the corresponding 7 levels of hell (paataal).

Symptoms of Heart disease	The chronological number of the paataal region of the ghost responsible for the symptom	Special features
1. Blood Pressure (numbness and coldness in extremities)	4	Creation of meshwork of black fibres in coronary vessels by ghost, thus initiating the flow of black energy.
2. Heart ailment (tremulousness of the body)	5	Creation of centre in heart (Anaahat) chakra and emission of black energy over heart musculature.
3. Breathlessness followed by vomiting	5	Contraction and dilation of blood vessels due to Energy of Will of the ghost, thus causing irregularity in blood circulation.
4. Contraction of the body and stiffening of the muscles	6	Creation of icons (yantra) by ghost by black magic and their confinement to the centres causing contractions of the corresponding vessels.
5. Sweating resulting in reduction in vital energy (praanshakti)	6	Creation of illusory bushes in the blood vessels by ghost using its supernatural powers, which dilate the vessels.
6. Death	7	Creation of a thin black layer over the heart and reducing the septum by black magic, thereby reducing its efficiency and stopping the movement of heart valves and muscles thus causing death.

How does one diagnose a spiritual cause of heart disease?

Diagnosis of the spiritual cause of heart disease is possible only by a spiritually evolved person who has attained the spiritual level of at least 70%. A person with active sixth sense (subtle perception ability) can perceive the root cause, however before attaining spiritual level of 60% one has to verify the diagnosis with a spiritually evolved person. The average person in today's world is at a spiritual level of 20%.

How does one treat this spiritual cause of heart disease?

According to the science of Spirituality the spiritual root cause of any illness is twofold:

One is because of increase in tama component with a concomitant decrease in the sattva
The other is the attack by a specific ghost (demon, devil, negative energies etc.)

Hence the specific spiritual remedy is based on the alleviation of these two causative factors as per the case.