GREENSBORO, North Carolina — About 610,000 people die every year from heart disease. One of the keys to beating it is educating yourself.
So here's what Consumer Reports broke down the different stages of heart disease.
High Blood pressure: You've heard of it. But you might not know when your heart strains to push blood through, it can damage your blood vessel walls, creating places for cholesterol to get stuck.
Atherosclerosis: When that cholesterol mixes with high blood pressure and other factors. That creates clogged coronary arteries or atherosclerosis.
Angina: This is the one you need to keep an eye out for. It causes chest pain whenever people with it, exert themselves.
Heart Attack: This is the next step after Angina. So if you know someone dealing with chest pain whenever they exert themselves, get them to the doctor as soon as possible.