Many factors can put you at risk for heart disease. Knowing your risks is the first step to avoiding a heart attack or stroke. Common heart disease risks include high cholesterol, high blood pressure, smoking, obesity, and diabetes. Several health conditions, your lifestyle, age, and family history, can increase your risk for heart disease. The more risk factors you have, and the greater the degree of each risk factor, the higher your chance of developing coronary heart disease. According to the American Heart Association, about half of all Americans (47%) have at least 1 of 3 key risk factors for heart disease. Heart disease symptoms can include pain or discomfort in the chest, breathlessness, tiredness, slow or rapid heartbeat, exercise intolerance, and more. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States.
Some risk factors cannot be controlled, such as the age of family history. Research suggests that black adults have a higher risk of heart disease compared with white. Diabetes and high blood pressure are more common in African Americans than in another ethnic groups. Certain genetic heart diseases increase the risk of sudden death. For example, familial hypercholesterolemia is a genetic condition that causes high cholesterol. Left untreated, heart attacks happen in 50% by age 50. Genetic counseling can help identify family members who carry the gene and are also at risk. Knowing your family history of heart disease, such as who has been diagnosed with heart disease, how old they were, and genetic testing for heart conditions can help you and your doctor determines what to watch out for. Many diseases and disorders run in families, and the more you know about what could be lurking in your genes, the better chance you have of making choices that could affect your health positively.
But experts believe you can lower your risk by changing the factors you can influence. High blood pressure is a significant risk factor for heart disease and is even often called a “silent killer.” That’s why essential to measure it regularly. You can lower your blood pressure with lifestyle changes or medicine to reduce your risk. If you have diabetes, this condition causes sugar to build up in the blood. The risk of death from heart disease for adults with diabetes is higher than for adults who do not have diabetes. That’s why essential to control diabetes. Obesity is linked to more elevated “bad” cholesterol and triglyceride levels and lower “good” cholesterol levels and can lead to high blood pressure and diabetes, so don’t be overweight.
Here are some healthy habits you can practice to protect your heart:
Monitor your blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar
Maintaining a healthy weight and a high BMI can have an irreversible impact on the heart and blood vessels leading to heart problems.
Eat a heart-healthy diet low in sodium and trans fats
Don’t smoke; it causes severe damage to blood vessels and the heart
Get regular physical activity
Lower your stress level; poor stress management can boost the underlying problem.
It is important to implement healthy lifestyle choices that help improve one's cardiovascular health! For more information about heart disease prevention, please call AMA Medical Center at (781) 581-6181 or contact us online.
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