Friday, May 25, 2012

5 Risk Factors For Heart Disease

 This information is solely for informational purposes only. IT IS NOT INTENDED TO PROVIDE MEDICAL ADVICE. Any action or application of medication which results from reading or following the information contained in this information. The publication of this information does not constitute the practice of medicine, and this information does not replace the advice of your physician or other health care provider. Before undertaking any course of treatment, the reader must seek the advice of their physician or other health care provider.
Heart Disease is one of the diseases that occur all around us. Almost everyone has a risk of heart disease and the risk increases as we get older.
Heart disease is one of the most deadly diseases as a huge number of people die and suffer from it every year. Most heart diseases usually occur due to high blood pressure or atherosclerosis (narrowing of the artery). The blood delivers nourishment and oxygen to the heart and other parts of the body. If the artery walls are narrowed then the heart does not get sufficient amount of oxygen and it results in heart disease.

TOP 5 RISK FACTORS FOR HEART DISEASE:
  • Genetics
  • Gender
  • Diabetes
  • Age
  • Lifestyle
The first four among the top 5 risk factors for heart disease cannot be treated or improved (unless you can prevent diabetes). There are steps you can lower the risk factors.
  • Genetics may as well be the most significant member of the top 5 risk factors for heart disease. If there is a history of heart disease in your family then you are prone to heart disease than a man who does not have a history of heart disease in the family. It does not mean that you should give. There is no guarantee that it will not happen to you but you lower the risk factors by taking precautions. The genes that you possess only make you susceptible to heart disease. You need to keep your blood pressure and cholesterol level in check as they both contribute to heart disease.
  • The Gender factor for heart disease is something that you can't control. Health heart favor women than men. Studies show that men develop heart disease ten years before women. The average of women who fall into heart disease is 70 while the average age for men is 65. Women may also get a twenty year lag for heart failure or heart attack.
  • Diabetes, is one of the most important factors among the top 5 risk factors for heart disease. A majority of the people who suffer from it develop heart disease. For an aged person who has diabetes, there is a high chance that he/she may develop heart disease soon. Diabetes also damages kidneys which in turn puts more pressure on the heart. The type 2 diabetes is diagnosed in patients in their later ages which have a close connection with heart disease.
  • Age is one of the top 5 risk factors for heart disease that cannot be controlled. The arteries in your body thicken with age and so does the walls of the heart. It causes a drop in the heart functions and therefore contributes to heart diseases.
  • The last factor is the lifestyle. This is the only factor that we have total control on. Some lifestyle choices contribute toward heart diseases which need to be avoided. Habits like smoking, drinking, eating fatty foods, lack of exercise must be altered a healthier lifestyle may minimize the risks of all the other risk factors.

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