Heartbeat and heart rate
The heartbeat is the movement or sound generated in the arteries by the contraction of the heart muscle to deliver blood throughout the body. The heart rate is the number of heart beats per unit of a specific time, usually measured by a minute, (Pulse / minutes). The heartbeat measurement depends on the contraction of the ventricles (the lower two chambers of the heart) and not the atria (the upper two chambers of the heart), and is usually measured by the wrist.
Heart rate
The number of heart beats varies from one person to another, and varies according to their movement and activity. The normal heart rate of a person is at rest at the age of ten or more – according to the National Institutes of Health (US) – between 60- 100 beats / min. The average heart rate of professional athletes ranges from 40 to 60 beats per minute. These rates vary depending on several factors, including: weight, age, use of medications, sitting or sitting, or ambient temperature, Heart rate, for example, a person may be subjected to a frightening position leads to increased heartbeat in that period .
A slow heart rate (less than 60 beats per minute) may not necessarily mean a health problem. Some people may use some medications, such as Beta-Blockers, A pulse per minute in resting mode means that a person has Tachycardia, which is caused by a person’s health problems.
Factors affecting heart rate
There are a range of factors that affect the heart rate, namely:
- Ambient temperature: As the temperature and humidity rise, the heart rate may rise by no more than 5 to 10 pulses per minute.
- Body position (relaxed, sitting or standing position): The heart rate usually rises at the first 15 to 20 seconds after standing, but quickly returns to normal after about two minutes.
- Psychological condition: If a person is in a state of fear or anxiety, for example, this may lead to increased heartbeat.
- Body size: The size of the body may not necessarily affect the rate of heart rate, but obesity can make the rate of heart rate high not more than 100 beats / minute.
- Some drugs: For example, drugs that reduce the adrenaline hormone slow down the heart rate, and drugs that increase thyroid hormones accelerate heart rate.
How to measure heart rate
There are many ways to measure heart rate, most notably:
- Method 1: Place the fingers of the index finger and middle on the other hand (or someone else’s wrist) under the thumb, feel the place of the chimes and then start after the chimes for fifteen seconds, then multiply the result by 4 to get the number of beats per minute.
- Method 2: Place the fingers of the index finger and center on the end of the neck from the top to the left or right of the trachea, and the location of the chimes, and then start after the chimes for ten seconds, and then hit the result number 6 to obtain the number of beats per minute, measured heart rate in resting mode, The best time for this is in the morning after waking up and before you do from bed.
Causes of accelerated heart rate
Heart rate acceleration is a heart rhythm abnormality that beats more than normal in rest. It is normal for the heart to beat rapidly during sport, or as a physiological response to psychological stress or shock. However, in heartbeat, Upper or lower heart faster than usual in resting mode. This is due to several reasons:
- Fracture of the heart tissue.
- Congenital heart disease, which affects the transmission of signals or nerve impulses through the heart muscle.
- Anemia.
- Playing sports.
- Stress or sudden psychological pressure.
- High or low blood pressure.
- Smoking.
- Fever and fever.
- Drink lots of alcoholic beverages.
- Drink plenty of caffeine-rich drinks.
- Side effects of some medications.
- Drug abuse such as cocaine.
- Disturbance in levels of mineral salts in the blood.
- Hyperthyroidism.
- In some cases, the cause of the heartbeat may not be determined.
Symptoms of heart rate acceleration
There may not be any symptoms in the case of accelerated heart rate, where this is not detected only when measuring the rate of heart rate or the work of ECG (Electrocardiography) at the doctor, but there are other cases showing some of the following symptoms, such as:
- Shortness of breath.
- rotary.
- Heart palpitations, so that the patient feels his heartbeat strong and irregular.
- pain in chest.
- Fainting or loss of consciousness.
- It is important to check with your doctor if you have any of the above symptoms.
Target heart rate
Target heart rate is the rate of heart rate to be maintained during the exercise of people each according to his age of aerobic exercise, so that between 60-85% of the upper limit of the heart rate. The upper limit of the heart rate can be calculated by subtracting the age from 220, and the following table shows the heart rate for each age group:
| Age (years) | The rate of the target heart rate | Average upper limit of heart rate |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | 100-170 pulse / min | 200 beats / min |
| 30 | 95-162 beats / min | 190 beats / min |
| 35 | 93-157 pulse / min | 185 beats / min |
| 40 | 90- 153 beats / min | 180 beats / min |
| 45 | 88- 149 beats / min | 175 beats / min |
| 50 | 85- 145 beats / min | 170 beats / min |
| 55 | 83-140 pulse / min | 165 pulses / min |
| 60 | 80- 136 beats / min | 160 beats / min |
| 65 | 78-132 beats / min | 155 beats / min |
| 70 | 75-128 pulse / min | 150 beats / min |
- It is worth mentioning that some high pressure medicines cause lower upper heart rate, thus the target heart rate range.