There are many factors that put people at risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD). While some are completely out of your control (such as medical conditions or family history), you can significantly affect your risk based on your behaviors. A healthy lifestyle has a huge impact on health. This is true for the opposite as well. Unhealthy choices can greatly increase your risk of disease.
When it comes to behavioral cardiovascular disease risk factors, the control is in your hands. If your lifestyle includes any of the following risk factors, you should be monitoring your risk of CVD.
Smoking
Smoking and other tobacco use causes damage to blood vessels leading to the heart, brain, and other body parts. Cigarettes also increase blood pressure and reduce the amount of oxygen that your blood can carry.
In fact, in 2014, 25% of CVD deaths were caused by smoking.[i] CVD risks from smoking are directly related to how many cigarettes are smoked a day and how many years the person has smoked. While some believe that cigarettes with lower tar or nicotine levels make smoking safer, this is a myth. CVD risk is the same no matter which type of cigarettes are smoked. Smoking also increases CVD risks for those exposed to the smoke. Secondhand smoke causes 33,000 nonsmokers to die each year from CVD.[ii]
Quitting smoking can instantly reduce your risk of CVD. While it can prove extremely difficult due to the addicting nature of smoking, your health and the health of those around you will improve.
Diet
The food you consume is related to your heart health. Diets high in saturated fats, trans fat, cholesterol, sugar, and sodium increase the risk of CVD by leading to high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, and obesity.
Heart-healthy diets are rich in whole grains, fiber, vitamins, antioxidants, and healthy fats. Healthy eating ensures your body has the right nutrients to fuel proper functioning. When your body gets the right nutrition, your risk of CVD is lower.
Inactivity
Inactivity leads to high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and obesity, all risk factors for CVD. Physical activity has been shown to reduce the risks of heart attacks and other CVD. It also leads to more energy, stronger bones and muscles, and other positive factors.
Roughly 53% of Americans above the age of 18 are getting enough aerobic physical activity in their daily lives, but only 23% are also getting enough muscle-strengthening activity.[iii] Aerobic and muscle-strengthening exercises can greatly reduce the risks of CVD.
Obesity
Being overweight or obese leads to many health conditions, several of which are risk factors for CVD. High blood pressure, high cholesterol, and type 2 diabetes all put people at high risk for CVD and increase the chances of heart attacks.
Today roughly 74% of Americans above the age of 20 are overweight. Even more startling is that 42.5% of Americans above the age of 20 are obese.[iv] A healthy weight significantly lowers the risks of CVD. Active habits and healthy diets can help to reduce the risks of obesity and therefore CVD.
Are you at risk?
It’s never too late to try to manage your risk and improve your health. If your lifestyle includes any of these heart disease risk factors, it’s important to continuously monitor your health and make changes.
MyCardioGuard can help you understand your risk by accurately and inexpensively detecting early-stage CVD in individuals with few or no symptoms. Our FDA-approved screening medical technology is accurate, safe, non-invasive, clinically proven, and easy to administer in less than 15 minutes. Our proprietary screening methods identify risk factors that traditional methods fail to catch.
With MyCardioGuard, 15 minutes could save your life. What are you waiting for? Learn more about our solution on our website.
[i] Smoking and Cardiovascular Disease. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2014. https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/sgr/50th-anniversary/pdfs/fs_smoking_CVD_508.pdf
[ii] Smoking and Cardiovascular Disease. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2014. https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/sgr/50th-anniversary/pdfs/fs_smoking_CVD_508.pdf
[iii] FastStats. Exercise or Physical Activity. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 11 June 2021. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/exercise.htm
[iv] FastStats. Overweight Prevalence. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 10 Sept. 2021. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/obesity-overweight.htm
Where can I get my test?
Great question! Please go here to schedule a screening at any of our locations: https://mcgrestore.ownsocial.io/schedule/
Thanks and have a healthy heart!