PHOENIX, July 11 (Phoenix Times Online) — A resting heart rate is one of the easiest health numbers to check at home, and doctors say it can offer a useful clue about what is happening in the body.
The American Heart Association, Cleveland Clinic, Harvard Health, the British Heart Foundation and Yale Medicine all describe a normal adult resting heart rate as 60 to 100 beats per minute. A rate that stays above 100 at rest is usually called tachycardia, or a fast heart rate.
What a fast resting heart rate can mean
A higher resting pulse does not automatically mean a heart problem. Medical organizations list several possible causes, including stress, anxiety, caffeine, dehydration, fever, poor physical conditioning, pregnancy and some medicines.
The American Heart Association also says a fast resting heart rate can be linked to heart-related problems, including heart disease, heart attack or heart failure-related damage to the heart muscle, severe bleeding and very low blood pressure. Other possible causes named by the association include anemia, chronic lung disease and excessive caffeine intake.
Other health systems point to similar causes. Harvard Health says causes of a fast pulse can include anemia, overactive thyroid, fever, caffeine or other stimulants, anxiety and poor conditioning. Cleveland Clinic and the British Heart Foundation also list infection and overactive thyroid as possible causes.
When doctors start paying attention
Harvard Health says clinicians usually do not worry in otherwise healthy people unless the resting heart rate is consistently above 100 beats per minute. Henry Ford Health’s Dr. Keteyian says people should see a doctor if they have an unexplained resting heart rate above 100 or below 50 that cannot be explained by regular exercise or another obvious factor.
Yale Medicine cardiologist Srijan Shrestha, MD, says a fast resting heart rate may come with palpitations, shortness of breath, dizziness or lightheadedness. But it may also cause no symptoms at all.
That is why doctors often look for the reason behind the number instead of treating the number alone.
Common causes doctors look for
Yale Medicine says anemia can be related to menstruation and blood loss. In older adults, Dr. Shrestha says it may come from small gastrointestinal bleeds or colon cancer.
Other sources in the brief also point to infection and thyroid disease as common reasons a resting heart rate may stay high.
How to check your resting heart rate
Yale Medicine says a pulse can be checked at the wrist, inside the elbow, neck or top of the foot. The usual method is to count the beats for 15 seconds and multiply by four. If the pulse feels irregular, Yale Medicine says to count for 30 seconds and multiply by two, or count for a full minute.
What treatment can look like
Yale Medicine says treatment usually focuses on the underlying cause. For example, doctors may use iron supplements for anemia or medication for hyperthyroidism.
For most adults, the key point is not panic but pattern. A resting heart rate that stays above 100 beats per minute can be a sign that something in the body needs attention, but medical sources say the cause may be temporary and not always related to the heart itself.
