Heart disease: Know Your Risk

Understanding your risk of heart disease is the first step to lowering that risk in an effective way. There are many factors to heart disease, such as diet, exercise, lifestyle, and family history, so it’s important to talk to your doctor about all of these factors when narrowing down your risk. Some risk factors, like age, gender, and family history are non-modifiable, while others such as diet and exercise can be controlled or modified in order to lower risk drastically.

Here are a few of the main risk factors to consider:

Age:
According to the Mayo Clinic, risk of heart disease increases with age, meaning men 45 or older and women 55 or older are more likely to have a heart attack or stroke.

Family History:
Your doctor isn’t just being nosey when he asks about a family history. If anyone in your immediate family — meaning parents, grandparents, or siblings — has suffered from an early stroke or heart attack (before age 55 in men, and 65 in women), you may be at a higher risk of suffering from heart disease yourself. This is why it’s important to know if there is history of heart disease in your family, at at what age it occurred.

Smoking:
Listed as one of the “leading preventable cause of disease and deaths in the United States,” smoking is one factor that independently raises risk of heart disease in otherwise healthy people, and can dangerously raise that risk when compounded with other factors like diabetes, obesity, or high cholesterol and blood pressure. Quitting, or not starting smoking at all is one of the best ways to lower your risk of heart disease.

High Blood Pressure:
Over time, high blood pressure can damage arteries, increasing risk of stroke or heart attack. When high blood pressure is combined with other risk factors like obesity, smoking, or excessive drug use, it can be more dangerous.

High LDL Blood Cholesterol:
High levels of LDL or “bad” cholesterol narrows the arteries increasing risk of heart attack or stroke. This is why keeping an eye on cholesterol is so important. “Good” cholesterol can also be a powerful tool to fight against heart disease however, as high levels of HDL works proactively in the body to prevent heart disease.

High Blood Sugar:
High blood sugar, which usually results in Type II Diabetes is a big risk factor because it does not allow the body to process sugar properly, resulting in clogged or damaged arteries. Lowering blood sugar is a great way to lower risk of heart disease.

Diet:
Poor diet is one of the leading controllable risk factors for heart disease. Consuming large amounts of foods high in saturated or trans fats and processed sugars, or a lack of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains will increase your risk. This is why a balanced diet is so important; you don’t need to cut everything right away, but making small steps like replacing some meals or snacks with lower calorie or low fat alternatives, or even just having smaller portions, will go a long way.

Exercise:
Inactivity can be a silent killer. Studies have shown that sedentary lifestyles can lead to increased risk of cardiovascular disease as well as depression, obesity, and type II diabetes. The American Heart Association says that just 30 minutes of activity (anything that gets your heartrate up) performed 3–5 times a week can lower your risk of heart disease.

Now that you know what to look out for in terms of your lifestyle, make sure to talk to your healthcare provider about getting bloodwork done to determine your blood sugar, cholesterol, and blood pressure stats. Getting the full picture will help you fully determine your personal risk factor, as well as how to combat heart disease in the best way possible. You can also try the Mayo Clinic’s Heart Disease risk calculator at home to get an idea of how you measure up. The most important thing is to stay happy and healthy now in order to protect you and your loved ones later.

Written by Olivia Murphy