What Are The Risk Factors For Cardiovascular Disease?

2023 Author: Lynn Laird | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-08-25 09:49

Prevent ischemic heart disease, relieve migraine, avoid cerebrovascular accident (stroke), how to oppose risk factors for cardiovascular disease. What is your adverse cardiovascular risk profile and why prothrombotic factors with the specific physiology of migraine may increase the risk of vascular events. These are questions whose answers we have tried to decipher in the article below.

What are the risk factors for cardiovascular disease according to researchers?

Mainly, researchers say that what you eat is more important than body mass index (BMI) in terms of your risk of cardiovascular disease. They also report that a healthy Mediterranean-style diet is more important for heart health than weight loss. However, being thinner is not necessarily healthier, especially if the weight loss is due to extreme dieting or other methods that reduce the nutritional value. According to the latest findings, eating a healthy diet may reduce the risks associated with obesity and type 2 diabetes, but not eliminate them. If you're overweight, you don't necessarily need to shed pounds to live longer, but you probably need to change the way you eat.

This is because people with a high body mass index (BMI) are at a significantly higher risk of all-cause mortality than those with a lower BMI. Without doubt, a high BMI is responsible for more than 4 million deaths per year of which more than two thirds are due to cardiovascular diseases.

However, a new study led by Dr. Karl Michaëlsson, a researcher at Uppsala University in Sweden, concludes that people classified as obese can reduce the risk of death to the same level as people with a lower BMI by dieting. healthier and Mediterranean style food.

Foods favored by the Mediterranean diet

Mediterranean cuisine favors nutrient-dense foods such as fruits and vegetables, legumes, nuts, unrefined or high-fiber grains, fish and olive oil over red meat and processed foods.. A few embarrassing figures show that almost half of a demarcated number of people who have been followed for 21 years have died during the period. As the exact cause, researchers have defined poor diet in combination with age and overweight. At the same time, those targeted, still overweight who strictly adhered to a Mediterranean diet were less likely to die. In fact, obese people with a healthy diet were no more at risk than people with a moderate weight and a healthy diet.

Finally, according to this comprehensive study, people with a “normal” BMI but an unhealthy diet also had a higher death rate than those of moderate weight who ate a healthier Mediterranean-style diet.

What the statistics reveal about the risk factors for cardiovascular disease?

Regardless of the type of diet, it turns out to be a predictor of the risk of mortality. Thus, older people in the study cited above who had moderate weight but an unhealthy diet were reported by researchers to be the most likely to die during the study period, much more than obese people who ate poorly.. Are you doing whatever it takes to keep your heart healthy?

After decades of steady decline, the number of deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD) has increased in recent years, according to a leading source like the American Heart Association.

The good news is that about 80% of all cases of CVD - heart disease, heart attack, heart failure, and stroke, are preventable. The key is to control and lower blood pressure and high cholesterol, as well as maintain healthy habits. For example, exercise regularly, follow a plant-based diet, get enough sleep, and not smoke. Heart disease is the leading cause of death worldwide and a major reason for disability.

Since there are many factors that increase your risk for heart disease and you cannot control them all, learn to recognize them at least, to reduce a significant number.

Risk factors for heart disease that you can't control

• Age - your risk of heart disease increases as you get older. Men 45 years of age and older and women 55 years of age are susceptible to complications.
• Gender - some risk factors may manifest differently in women and men. For example, estrogen provides women with some protection against heart disease, but diabetes increases the danger more in women than in men.
• Race or ethnicity - greater or lesser susceptibility is due to the genetic factor. As a result, African Americans are more likely than whites to suffer from heart disease, while Hispanic Americans are less likely to suffer from it. Some Asian groups, like those in the East, have lower rates. At the same time, South Asians have higher rates.
• Family history - you are at higher risk if you have a family member who is suffering or has suffered from heart disease.

How to decrease the risk of heart disease?

Fortunately, there are many things you can do to reduce your chances of enduring heart disease.

Side medical analyzes

• Control your blood pressure as a major risk factor. It's important to get it checked regularly - at least once a month for most adults and daily if you have high blood pressure. Take action, including lifestyle and diet changes.
• Keep your cholesterol and triglyceride levels under control because high cholesterol levels can clog your arteries and dramatically increase your risk for coronary artery disease and heart attack. Lifestyle changes and medications (if needed) can lower your cholesterol levels. Triglycerides are another type of fat in the blood, and their high levels can increase the threat, especially in women.
• Manage diabetes, which represents a double risk for heart disease. This is because over time, high blood sugar levels due to diabetes can damage your blood vessels and the nerves that control your heart and blood vessels. It is therefore important to get tested for diabetes and, if you have it, to keep it under control.

Lifestyle side

• Keep an eye on a healthy weight because being overweight or obese is an important factor causing the risk of heart disease. This is mainly because they are linked to high blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels, high blood pressure, and diabetes. In this sense, controlling your weight can reduce these risks and it is mandatory to list cholesterol-lowering foods.
• Follow a healthy diet, trying to limit saturated fat, foods high in sodium, and added sugars. Eat plenty of fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, in particular, the DASH diet is an example of a successful diet that lowers blood pressure and cholesterol.
• Exercise regularly. Certainly, motor activity has many benefits, among which, strengthening the heart and improving blood circulation. Plus, let's add maintaining a healthy weight and lowering cholesterol and blood pressure to the list. So how to lose belly fat can prove to be a crucial point in the struggle with the pounds.
• Limit alcohol consumption, which in large quantities can increase your blood pressure. It also adds extra calories, which can lead to weight gain. Men should not drink more than two alcoholic drinks per day and women should not have more than one.
• Do not smoke. Simply put, smoking increases blood pressure and puts you at a higher risk for heart attack and stroke. If you are not a smoker, stay sober. If you smoke, quit on time to keep your heart healthy for longer than possible. Simply find the most effective way to quit smoking.

Psychological health side

Managing stress - an invisible and sneaky factor. Indeed, extreme stress can be a “trigger” for a heart attack. Plus, some common ways to support stress, like overeating, binge drinking, and smoking can speed up heart problems. Mainly, you can relieve stress by moving around a lot, listening to music, focusing on something calm or peaceful, and meditating

Make sure you get enough sleep. Apparently, lack of sleep increases the risk of hypertension, obesity, and diabetes. Most adults need 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night. Surely, good sleep habits are a guarantee of heart health. A problem like sleep apnea interferes with your rest and undoubtedly results in heart problems

Migraine and risk of cardiovascular disease in women

As a result of a large prospective group study in women with more than 20 years of follow-up, a consistent association between migraine and cardiovascular disease events, including related mortality, is indicated. Women with migraine should be evaluated for their vascular risk. This primary headache affects about one-fifth of the general population for at least part of their lives, and women are affected three to four times more often than men. Although the pathophysiology of migraine has strong links with the vascular system, the mechanisms by which migraine increases the risk of stroke remain unclear. As potential causes of an association between migraine and stroke we consider endovascular dysfunction,increased thrombogenic susceptibility, increased prevalence of vascular risk factors, common genetic markers, cortically-propagated depolarization and inflammation.

Up to 2016, migraine was always associated with an increased risk of ischemic stroke, and few studies showed a relationship with coronary events and cardiovascular mortality.

In conclusion, the analysis of the data from the study mentioned above proves that migraine should be considered as a significant risk marker for cardiovascular disease, at least in women.