Your Heart and Disease

Slightly larger than a fist, the heart beats 100,000 times and pumps approximately 2,000 gallons of blood per day. The heart has four chambers through which blood is pumped. When the heart beats, four valves open and close to let blood flow in only a single direction.

Those suffering from cardiovascular disease have hearts that do not function like normal, healthy hearts. Two major causes of cardiovascular disease include atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries due to cholesterol build-up) and high blood pressure.