Heart Disease: The Silence of Young Hearts

This is an English translation of the original Hindi. Translation may have changed the meaning a little; the Hindi original is the authoritative version.

There was a time when heart disease was taken as a mark of old age. But today heart disease, and sudden cardiac events, can occur at a young age as well. Recognising the risk factors early, preventing them, and having timely medical checks therefore matter even in the young. This is not only a medical crisis; it is a sign of the failure of our way of living, of mental pressure, and of the structure of our society.

The shape of the problem

• Heart disease has become the leading cause of death in India.
• Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) is rising among young people in the cities.
• Lack of exercise, oily food and mental stress are its main factors.

Causes

• Diet: deep-fried, processed and packaged food in excess
• A sedentary life: sitting all day, no exercise
• Stress: competition, pressure at work, social expectation
• Lack of sleep: digital addiction and an irregular routine
• Smoking and alcohol: a growing tendency among the young

Effects

• A rise in sudden deaths
• A fall in the capacity to work
• An emotional and financial burden on families
• A loss of confidence, and fear, among the young

Remedies

1. A change in the way of living

Regular physical activity and exercise, according to a person’s capacity and medical condition

• Fresh fruit, vegetables, and food low in fat

Restraint in the timing and quantity of the evening meal, and discipline in the daily routine

2. Nourishing mental health

Meditation, the practice of silence, and the feeling of equanimity

• Conversation with family and friends
• A digital fast, and balanced sleep

3. Regular health checks

Blood pressure and other tests, according to a person’s age, risk and medical advice

• Setting up community health camps
• Making health insurance and counselling available to the young

4. The scriptural view

Measured eating and restraint in food are important in the Jain view of life; they should not be taken as a scientific claim to cure every disease.

In Jain thought, vigilance (apramattata) and restraint are held to be the root of protecting health

• Balance in food, movement, thought and conduct is itself the protection of the heart

A call from the heart

When a young heart stops without any warning, it is not one life that ends but a family that breaks. A mother’s hope, a father’s pride, a sister’s protection, a friend’s smile — all of it falls silent with that heartbeat. We must understand that protecting the heart is not the doctor’s responsibility alone — it is our daily routine, our thinking, and the collective practice of our society.

In an age where the young are taken as the very symbol of energy, in that same age heart attacks in India’s towns and cities are silencing young people before their time. This is not merely a medical problem but a social warning — a sign that forces us to look again at our way of living, our mentality and our collective feeling.

The racing life of the cities, the glare of screens, and a young mind scorched in the fire of competition: today it is growing unaware of the beating of its own heart. Food is no longer nourishment; it has become a synonym for taste and convenience. Exercise is thought a luxury, and silence — which was once the practice of the soul — now means only that there is no network.

The changing picture of heart disease

Heart disease has now become the leading cause of death in India. As the Indian Heart Journal notes, coronary artery disease (CAD) at a young age is a serious medical matter. The available literature underlines the concern about premature CAD in India; but the particular figure of an 18% rise given in this manuscript could not be sufficiently verified, and so it has not been kept here.

Age group	CAD cases	Share of the death rate
25–35 years	A sharp rise	up to 18%
36–50 years	Steadily high	32%
50+ years	Traditionally high	more than 50%

The table makes it clear that the young are no longer only possible patients; they have become active sufferers.

The undercurrent of the causes

The seed of heart disease does not lie in oily food or a lack of exercise alone. It lies in the mentality that lives under the pressure of “now or never”. Sleep is a luxury now, and stress an ordinary condition. The young mind has grown so tired in the race to prove itself that it cannot feel its own tiredness.

The scriptures say — “मिताहारः सर्वरोगनिवारणः” — measured eating is the cure for every disease. Reference: Tattvartha Sutra, sutra 9.6

But today’s eating is not restraint; it is driven by advertising. In Jain thought, vigilance and restraint are held to be the root of protecting life, yet in modern life these values have been left to the books

The direction of a remedy

To come out of this crisis we must not merely increase the number of hospitals; we must change the direction of life. Yoga and pranayama must be made not an option but a necessity. Restraint in the timing and quantity of the evening meal, discipline in the daily routine, and simplicity in food — together these can protect the heart.

Mental health, too, must be given as much importance as physical health. If meditation, the practice of silence, and the feeling of equanimity were to find a place in schools and workplaces, the roots of stress would weaken of their own accord.

Health checks must also become part of our social culture. A regular ECG, blood pressure reading and lipid profile should be a mark not only of finding disease but of alertness towards life.

In India’s cultural tradition the heart is held to be not merely an organ but the centre of feeling, courage and compassion. The heart is the place where the beating of the soul speaks with life. But today those same beats are stopping before their time, among the young above all. This is not only a medical crisis but a social and spiritual warning.

Modern medicine in conversation with the Indian tradition

Modern medical science has made remarkable progress in identifying and treating heart disease. According to the American College of Cardiology’s 2024 report, the average age at which heart disease is detected in India is 42 — about ten years below the global average. That means the disease becomes active in Indians earlier.

But alongside treatment, the Indian tradition has an extremely important part to play in prevention. In Ayurveda the heart is held to be the centre of sattva — where mind, intellect and soul come together. The Charaka Samhita says:

“हृदयं चेतनास्थानं, यत्र प्राणः प्रतिष्ठितः।” (Charaka Samhita, Sutrasthana 30.6)

This view points not only to physical balance but to mental and spiritual balance. If we join the technique of modern medicine to the depth of the Indian way of living, the prevention of heart disease can become a whole practice.

The place of policy and public health

Health policy in India has often been centred on treatment, whereas a lifestyle-born crisis such as heart disease calls for a policy centred on prevention. NITI Aayog’s 2023 report accepted that preventing non-communicable disease in India requires awareness at the community level and improvement in how people live.

Source: NITI Aayog – National Health Blueprint, 2023

The following steps could be effective in this direction:

• Making yoga and nutrition education compulsory in schools
• Arranging stress-management sessions at workplaces
• Making ECG and blood pressure checks regular at community health camps
• Campaigns in the media that encourage a restrained way of living

If policy were to see “health” not merely as medicine but as a philosophy of life, the prevention of heart disease could become a national resolve.

A story that inspires: a young heart remade

Arjun, who lived in a small village in Rajasthan, suffered a heart attack at just 28. A job in the city, stress, irregular meals and lack of sleep had put his life in danger. After struggling for three days in hospital between life and death, Arjun made a decision — he would not merely stay alive; he would stay awake.

He gave yoga a place in his life, kept restraint in the timing and quantity of his evening meal, and returned to his village to set up a health awareness centre. Today he is not only healthy himself; he is showing hundreds of young people the way to protect their hearts.

This story is not of one person but of a direction — where the way of living, awareness and compassion together give the heart the chance to beat again.

A last word

Protecting the heart is not a technical procedure — it is a way of seeing life. If we begin our day with silence, keep restraint in our eating, and keep sympathy in our relationships, then the heart will carry not only blood but feeling.

This chapter is not only a description of a disease but a call — that we listen to the heart within us, understand it, and protect it.