Dhaka, Nov. 24 -- Heart attacks are frightening. Even if it does not kill us, it scares us for life and reduces our quality of life. But why do they happen?

Heart attacks result from loss of blood supply to the cardiac muscles. Like any other part of our body, they need oxygen for their survival. So when the arteries carrying blood to the heart are narrowed by a build-up of cholesterol or other substances, the muscles are starved of their nutrients and gradually weaken. This is known as ischemia.

Eventually, the muscles die entirely, and the blood supply is not restored, resulting in an infarction that manifests as a heart attack.

Heart attack is a global killer. In Bangladesh, the risk of death from cardiovascular disease is about 15 ...