Legendary Rocker Tom Petty Dead at 66 After Going Into Cardiac Arrest

October 03, 2017

Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men and women in the U.S. The most common symptom of heart disease is sudden death. This is the stark reality for the nearly half-million Americans who, without prior warning, suffer a heart attack each year.

During the early morning hours of October 2, 2017, legendary rock star Tom Petty was taken to UCLA Medical Center after going into cardiac arrest at his home in Malibu, California. He had been found not breathing and unconscious, although EMTs were apparently able to find a pulse. When he arrived at the hospital there was no brain activity detected and at 11:30 p.m. he passed away, surrounded by friends, family and members of his band.

According to TMZ, Tom Petty had a do-not-resuscitate order. A chaplain was called to his bedside and he was taken off life support. Tom Petty was 66 years old.

Petty’s continent-spanning 40th anniversary tour had just concluded September 25 and his musical legacy will live on in perpetuity. As his music echoes through the canyons of time, will the cautionary tale of his death also resonate with his millions of fans? The stakes are high. Every year, nearly 1 in 3 deaths in the U.S. is attributed to cardiovascular disease.

In order to prevent premature heart disease-related death from happening to you, take note of other common signs of a heart attack. One obvious indicator is chest pain or discomfort. This can range in severity and duration, but it should not be ignored. Nor should general upper body discomfort be disregarded as being a mere sign of aging. Shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, cold sweats, sudden dizziness and unusual tiredness are also common symptoms.

Older people may encounter many of these symptoms and view them as general age-related maladies. However, if you encounter one or more of these symptoms you should take alarm and have someone call an ambulance immediately.

There are heart attack risk factors that everyone should be aware of, especially men over age 45 and women over 55. Tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke puts you at higher risk of cardiovascular disease. If you have high levels of triglycerides and low high-density lipoprotein (HDL), it is likely that you have a greater risk for a heart attack. Illegal drug use, sedentary lifestyle, obesity, untreated diabetes and other unhealthy lifestyle choices are also major risk factors.

It’s possible to have a heart attack even if you eat right and exercise, but such cases are the exception rather than the rule. Researchers from the Henry Ford Health System, in Detroit, and Johns Hopkins, in Baltimore, found that people who were physically fit were 40 percent less likely to die within a year following their first heart attack compared to those who were out of shape. The association was so strong, the researchers compared low fitness to other traditional risk factors, such as smoking, high blood pressure and diabetes, for early death following a heart attack.

If you want to reduce your risk of a heart attack, you should absolutely pay attention to your diet and exercise habits. A study of women found six guidelines that can make you nearly "heart attack-proof," according to research published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Women who adhered to all six guidelines lowered their heart disease risk by 92 percent. Based on that, researchers estimated that more than 70 percent of heart attacks could be prevented by implementing the following:

1. Healthy diet	2. Normal BMI (body fat percentage is actually more accurate)
3. Getting at least 2.5 hours of exercise each week	4. Watching television seven or fewer hours per week
5. Not smoking	6. Limiting alcohol intake to one drink or less per day

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