HEART ATTACKS KILL 3 DEER HUNTERS IN MICHIGAN IN TWO DAYS, IN FIRST WEEK OF DEER SEASON
I’ve never been a hunter. I’ve known a host of them in my life. But I was only really impressed with one who only ever used a bow and arrow. I think he’s an investment banker now. But hunting is popular, and deer hunting is especially popular across most of the United States. To be fair, venison can be a tasty meal. But hiding in a blind for hours in the cold waiting for a deer to appear, then tracking it some distance, then shooting it, and then dragging its carcass back to my truck seems like a lot of trouble. And all that trouble might explain how 3 Michigan deer hunters died in the first two days of the very first week of deer season from heart attacks.
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And that’s actually kind of shocking. It’s not the first time one or more deer hunters have dropped dead from a heart attack. But 3 in the same state and the same week should get other hunters’ attention. The ages of the 3 were 57, 65 and 83. But it was the older two who suffered their heart attacks when they were doing the arduous work of dragging the bodies back to base. In other words, they had already spotted, tracked and killed them. Yet the younger man at 57 was simply found dead at the “bottom of his tree stand.”
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DEER HUNTERS NEED TO BE IN BETTER SHAPE, NO DRINKING, AND KNOW WHEN THEY’RE IN TROUBLE
So what’s going on with this sudden onset of deer hunters having heart attacks all at once? A few things. It’s not new that cold temperatures makes anyone more likely to have abnormal heart rhythms, especially with arduous exercise after the adrenalin rush of a successful kill. Alcohol, which some hunters always imbibe in the field, can also increase the risks of heart attack in these circumstances. But overall, deer hunters need to be in shape such as cardio work, hydration, and pacing themselves. Yet they especially need to know the warning signs of a heart attack before one kills them.
And those signs? An uncomfortable pressure, squeezing or pain in the center of your chest for more than two minutes, or pain that spreads to your shoulders, neck or arms. And don’t forget being dizzy, feeling faint, sudden sweating, nausea or shortness of breath.
