With heart attacks being one of the leading causes of death it is important to know what causes heart attacks, so that one can know if they are at risk for a heart attack and what can be done to prevent one from happening.

Heart attacks are usually caused by something known as CAD, or coronary artery disease. This is essentially the build up of plaque and tarter in the arteries that lead to the heart. When the build up becomes to great a clot is formed. Sometimes that clot is very small and hardly causes any problems, but in other cases the clot becomes large enough to obstruct blood flow to the heart. This is when a heart attack occurs.

Another problem that causes heart attacks is that of a condition known as micro-vascular disease. This is problems with the blood vessels in the heart. Although it can occur in men and women, women are more likely to experience this type of heart attack then men.

Those that are at risk for heart attacks are those people that are overweight, have high blood pressure, experience high cholesterol, smoke and drink excessively, and those that don't work out regularly. Age does play a factor in heart attack victims, as after the age of 45 in men and 55 in women, it becomes more of a risk of having a heart attack then those that are younger. Anyone that has a family history of heart attacks are also at risk.

The last cause of heart attacks, and a very rare form of heart attacks if that of a severe spasm. The spasm occurs in an artery that leads to the heart and cuts off any blood flow to the heart causing the heart attack to occur. This can be caused by stress, exposure to very cold temperatures, taking of drugs, or smoking. This is a very rare form of a heart attack and one that doctors very rarely experience.

By knowing what causes a heart attack and who might be at risk many people can take the proper precautions such as eating healthy, working out, stop smoking, etc to prevent a heart attack from happening. Although one can't stop one completely taking the right steps to preventing one will help in the long run.