Colder temperatures ‘may increase risk of heart attack’

Colder weather may increase the chances of people suffering heart attacks, according to a new study.

Research from Lund University has assessed data from more than 280,000 Swedish patients over a 16-year period in what has been described as the largest study ever to investigate the association between heart attack incidence and weather conditions such as air temperature, sunshine duration, precipitation and air pressure.

It was shown that the average number of heart attacks per day was significantly higher during colder temperatures, a trend that was consistent across healthcare regions. On a day-to-day basis, this translated into four more heart attacks in Sweden when the average daily temperature was below zero degrees C, compared to when it was above ten degrees.

Dr Moman Mohammad from the department of cardiology at Lund University said: "The findings were the same across a large range of patient subgroups, and at national as well as regional levels, suggesting that air temperature is a trigger for heart attack."

However, it was also noted that there could be other contributory factors, including the fact that respiratory tract infections and influenza – known risk factors for heart attack are more common in winter, as well as the fact that many people get less physical activity and eat more during the colder months.

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