what causes it and how does it happen?

Drug addict, bad diet. Just by looking at her and how she looks, Id say drugs.

Wow, that sucks...she was a really good actress, and so young.

Doesn't have to be drugs, I went to high school with a kid who turned out to have a bad heart, he had kept it a secret the entire time. We only found out after he ran a race and dropped dead.

Im sure there will be plenty of speculation. The truth will probably come out within the month.

Don't know her or of her,,but I am so sorry to hear we lost a life here,,,,,who was young.

I just saw it. Man, not only a good actress, but one I thought was pretty. I know she did have a drug problem in the past, but I don't know what caused hers. RIP Brittany!

god love her, rest in peace. what a young girl

If you ever watched HAPPY FEET, she was the voice of the female penguin/love interest.

is it the same as a heart attack and if it isn't what's the difference?

Pretty sure she quit doing drugs, bad diet? Hell, that is more than half the United States population.

-----------------

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardiac_arrest
Cardiac arrest, (also known as cardiopulmonary arrest or circulatory arrest) is the cessation of normal circulation of the blood due to failure of the heart to contract effectively.[1], and if this is unexpected can be termed a sudden cardiac arrest or SCA.

A cardiac arrest is different from (but may be caused by) a heart attack, where blood flow to the heart is interrupted.

Arrested blood circulation prevents delivery of oxygen to the body. Lack of oxygen to the brain causes loss of consciousness, which then results in abnormal or absent breathing. Brain injury is likely if cardiac arrest goes untreated for more than five minutes.[2][3][4] To improve survival and neurological recovery immediate treatment is important.[5]

Cardiac arrest is a medical emergency that, in certain situations is potentially reversible if treated early. When unexpected cardiac arrest leads to death this is called sudden cardiac death (SCD).[1] The treatment for cardiac arrest is cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to provide circulatory support, followed by defibrillation if a shockable rhythm is present. If a shockable rhythm is not present after CPR and other interventions, clinical death is inevitable.

She was 32 years old. Unless she had a coronary disease since birth or other abnormal genetic health problem, then something must have triggered the heart attack. It does not happen just out of the blue for a completely healthy person.

A heart attack is a problem with the heart. Could be arrhythmia an abnormal beat, or it just stops. Cardiac arrest is when the heart stops beating. Some times with people who take too many sleeping pills or other such drugs the heart just stops beating, and they die.

so what's the difference if a heart stops beating in both cases? is there a difference?

If the heart stops beating it's cardiac arrest no matter what the cause. The result is if you don't get it restarted in minutes, you die.

so in a heart attack up above you said that the heart stops beating, i still do not know the difference

A cardiac arrest is different from (but may be caused by) a heart attack, where blood flow to the heart is interrupted.

Heart attack, the blood flow is interrupted. Cardiac arrest, the blood just stops.

Wow

I never heard of her

so I googled it

and I got this classy looking dame