Cora is a heart. She is going to school today to learn all about what hearts do. Also what happens when they are sick. She is a little bit nervous. She does not know what she will be learning today.

Cora gets to school. Her teacher and the rest of the class are ready. She hurries to her seat. She gets ready. She is excited to be learning about hearts.

A baby can be born with a hole in its heart. The hole makes the blood mix. So that it is no longer all oxygenated. Usually the heart turns carbonated blood into oxygenated blood. When there is a hole, that sometimes does not happen. This mix goes to the rest of your body through arteries. It is not good.

The carbon dioxide hurts the body. If this oxygenated-carbonated blood hits the rest of the body it is not good. If this happens, slowly the organs will get less oxygen. All babies have holes in their hearts. Most close after birth.

How common are heart diseases? About 630,000 Americans die every year from heart disease. That's 1 in every 4 deaths. It is even more common to have a non-fatal heart disease. The arteries can be clogged, or there could be a valve issue. There are several more things that could happen

She is now learning about what can happen to anyone's heart. Their coronary arteries can narrow. The coronary arteries are like the blood's tunnel to the heart. Without it the heart stops working. It is called narrowing of the arteries.