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New Study Connects Cold Weather And Heart Attack Risks

CHICAGO (CBS)--A new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association says a winter day may be enough to trigger a heart attack.

"There was a higher incidence of heart attacks in colder weather, which is something we knew but not in this large a scale," Charles Davidson, the clinical chief of cardiology at Northwestern Memorial Hospital said.

We know that cold weather can cause the arteries to be more constricted, attracting more plaques at that time in that period of time," Davidson said. we also know in cold weather the flu is more common."

Davidson said this study is not limited to cold weather.

"The study found an increased chance of heart attacks on days with low barometric pressure, on windy days, cloudy days and cold days," Davidson said. "That makes sense since some of those weather conditions go hand in hand."

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