Exposing the Killer
The Oprah Winfrey Show | January 01, 2006
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Two seemingly similar hearts lie under cloth number one. But, as Dr. Oz shows, you can't let outward appearances fool you. Dr. Oz says that as big as a woman's heart can be in its emotional capacity, it's actually smaller than a male heart. The average female heart is only about the size of a fist. In the first heart (left) Dr. Oz and Oprah examine, the blood vessels feel soft and supple, almost like angel hair pasta. But, the second heart (right) isn't so healthy. Just by touching the exterior of the heart, Oprah can feel a hardened section of the organ, which Dr. Oz explains is plaque. Plaque can cause hardening of the arteries, and Dr. Oz warns that these internal issues may not be detectable in a normal heart scan. Everyday symptoms like belly pain and shortness of breath can be signs that your heart is in trouble . "[The heart] is our most poetic organ," Dr. Oz says. "It's our internal metronome—from the moment you're 8 weeks of age in your mother's stomach, it's pumping for you." |
