[Kaye:] The Los Angeles Coroner says heart disease and cocaine use contributed to Whitney Houston's death. She drowned in a bath tub. Many people aren't aware that heart disease is the number one killer of women around the world. Dr. Sujatha Reddy joins me now from Chicago to talk much more about this disease. Good morning, Doctor. Let's talk about this.
[Dr. Sujatha Reddy, Premiere Care For Women:] Good morning Randi.
[Kaye:] It is such an important topic certainly for everyone but especially for women. Whitney Houston, she certainly didn't look like the typical heart disease patient. Can you tell us a little bit about what the coroner found to to come to that decision?
[Reddy:] You're exactly right. She was a normal weight, healthy- looking woman so you wouldn't think she could have heart disease. But as you mentioned the coroner found that it was a cardiac or heart event that was complicated by cocaine use. So the cocaine contributed to existing heart disease.
[Kaye:] So the drugs that were found in her system especially the cocaine, that obviously can make something worse. Is there anything else that can contribute to heart disease?
[Reddy:] Yes, there are lots of factors to heart disease, but in this case, you know, the narrowing of her coronary arteries, the atherosclerosis as people heard that term this week probably was survivable but when you add cocaine to it, it can cause high blood pressure, which makes your heart work harder. And it can also narrow already narrow arteries and your heart is not going to get enough blood and you can have a heart attack or an irregular heartbeat. So there is no question that cocaine contributed to what was probably survivable but pre-existing heart disease.
[Kaye:] Yes and we certainly don't know if Whitney Houston had any symptoms or had any awareness that she might have had heart disease. But what symptoms should should other women look out for?
[Reddy:] Yes and this is important. Because symptoms in women are actually very different than they are in men. Women aren't going to have this crushing chest pain that we often hear about. Women may have more a discomfort in shoulders or neck or even in the upper abdomen or in their upper back. They can also feel some nausea, some vomiting, possibly be a little bit dizzy but they may not have that classic, crushing chest pain. So it can be very subtle.
[Kaye:] You know, we hear this and it's described as the number one killer of women but there has to be something that we can do to prevent heart disease.
[Reddy:] You're exactly right. You know you can't fight your genetics but you sure can control your environment because family history is a big risk factor. But a lot of things we can control. One thing is maintain a healthy weight, like Whitney did. If you're at a healthy weight that's going to decrease your risk exercise 30 to 60 minutes a day, that's going to help decrease your risk. Have a healthy diet, one low in saturated fat. Definitely don't smoke. Limit alcohol. And you know, you may be a candidate for aspirin therapy. It's good to contact your health care provider to find out and we heard a lot about aspirin this week that it might even help prevent certain kinds of cancers. So an aspirin a day may help prevent heart disease in this case as well.
[Kaye:] All right, aspirin getting a lot of attention this week for sure. Dr. Reddy, thank you very much. Enjoy your day in Chicago there.
[Reddy:] Thank you, Randi. Take care.
[Kaye:] The man accused in the Trayvon Martin shooting now has a lawyer. But does he have a plan? Coming up I'll speak with criminal defense attorney Holly Hughes about the potential strategy for George Zimmerman's team. But first, our "Travel Insider". Reynolds traveled about an hour north of Atlanta to check out one of the oldest gold mines in the country.
[Reynolds Wolf, Cnn Correspondent:] Let's go. First stop: Dahlonega, Georgia, the Consolidated Gold Mine. At first impression you see this beautiful building here in the parking lot. But it's what's below ground that really captures the imagination. You know this wasn't dug just yesterday. It's been around since 1898. And this is D. Harbert the general manager of the mine. D, how long have people been digging for gold in this part of world?
[Dathan "d" Harbert, Manager, Consolidated Gold Mine:] Well, gold was first discovered in 1828 and in just one year over 15,000 people showed up all looking for gold and it became the first major U.S. gold rush.
[Wolf:] Now what type of mining is this?
[Harbert:] This one here is hard rock gold mining.
[Wolf:] But there are other types, too?
[Harbert:] Oh absolutely. We can grab a gold pan and head out to the rivers and streams.
[Wolf:] All right, D, show me how this is done.
[Harbert:] Fill it up with water. And the heavy gold is falling to the bottom. If you do your job right you should find it right there.
[Wolf:] Gold. Check it out. And I've got sand.
[Harbert:] You better keep your day job.
[Wolf:] Unbelievable. D, thanks for your time.
[Harbert:] Thanks for coming. Come back to Dahlonega.
[Wolf:] All right. We got to hit the road.