Study finds firefighters have higher heart attack risk

By BBC News  April 4, 2017  

A recent study from the University of Edinburgh found that firefighters have a higher risk of heart attacks due to heat exposure. 

The research, which was funded by the British Heart Foundation (BHF), examined 19 non-smoking, healthy firefighters randomly selected from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. Subjects participated in exercises, including a mock rescue, which exposed them to extremely high temperatures while wearing heart monitors.

Researchers found that core body temperatures remained high for three to four hours following exposure to the fire. They also found that blood became "stickier" and was about 66 per cent more likely to form clots. 

Heart disease is one of the leading causes of death within the fire service. BBC News reports. | READ MORE