The health expert debunked the method, claiming it could actually worsen the situation and endanger your life even more.
An NHS doctor has issued an urgent warning telling people not to do this one thing if they think they are having a heart attack as it could make the situation “far worse”. The expert shared his advice, debunking a potentially dangerous theory shared online.
Speaking on social media platform TikTok, Doctor Karan Rajan – who is best known as Dr Raj, explained more. He was responding to a woman claiming that if you start coughing in short sharp bursts it could “save your life”.
“You’re going to every single second breathe very hard in, cough as hard as you can out,” she said. Dr Raj emphatically warned against this.
He told his more than five million followers: “Here’s a life lesson from a doctor. If you think you’re having a heart attack, do not do this because you can make the situation far worse. There are some instances in which this technique can be helpful, but a heart attack is not one of them.
Dr Raj continued: “The advice suggested in this video – forcing yourself to cough or a forced exhalation – is a type of Valsalva manoeuvre, which can stimulate the vagus nerve and reduce your blood pressure and slow down your heart rate. This can be useful in treating certain heart rhythm abnormalities like a supraventricular tachycardia, but not a heart attack. A heart attack occurs due to reduced blood flow to the heart muscle.
“Usually because of a blockage in a coronary artery and this can lead to oxygen deprivation and damage to the heart muscle. By doing this forced exhalation, forced coughing, you end up dumping the blood pressure and heart rate.
“So the blood flow to the heart muscles will decrease even more. And you worsen the oxygen deprivation and you accelerate damage to the heart muscle.
“This vagal manoeuvre might temporarily alleviate symptoms like chest discomfort or palpitations by slowing down the heart rate, but that’s just masking symptoms and may actually delay the early recognition of a heart attack and timely medical intervention don’t do this.” Instead he urged people to seek immediate medical help if they think they are having a heart attack.
According to the NHS, symptoms of a heart attack include:
- Chest pain – a feeling of pressure, heaviness, tightness or squeezing across your chest
- Pain in other parts of the body – it can feel as if the pain is spreading from your chest to your arms (usually the left arm, but it can affect both arms), jaw, neck, back and tummy
- Feeling lightheaded or dizzy
- Sweating
- Shortness of breath
- Feeling sick (nausea) or being sick (vomiting)
- An overwhelming feeling of anxiety (similar to a panic attack)
- Coughing or wheezing.
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The chest pain is often severe, but some people may only experience minor pain, similar to indigestion. “Call 999 immediately if you think someone might be having a heart attack,” the health body says. “The faster you act, the better their chances.”
