1. Lifestyle:
Unlike other causes of heart disease such as genetics, gender or age, you can help prevent one major cause of heart disease -- your lifestyle. If you smoke, try your hardest to quit. Smoking increases blood pressure and damages your heart's tissues. Obesity is a big contributor to heart disease, so eat a low-fat diet and get exercise as often as you can.Drink like Ben Franklin's advice, but not like Ben Franklin's habits -- in moderation. A daily serving of alcohol may in fact improve your heart's health
2. Age:
As we age, not only do we have trouble finding our reading glasses, but our arteries harden, the walls of our hearts get thicker, and overall heart function decreases. In addition to the normal effects of aging, other contributing factors like high blood pressure and lack of exercise have been in play all those years, taking their tolls as well. All of this adds up to a pretty hefty statistic -- people age 65 and older make up 83 percent of all heart disease deaths
3. Diabetes:
Diabetes is an inability to self-regulate blood-glucose levels. It's also a contributing cause of heart disease. Diabetics are twice as likely as nondiabetics to suffer from heart disease.Worse still, they're five times more likely to have heart attacks.Diabetes affects many parts of the body, especially the kidneys.
4. Gender:
When it comes to the battle of the sexes, victory favors women through simple attrition. Men are, on average, 66 years old when they have their first heart attack, and nearly 50 percent of men who have a heart attack by the age of 65 will die by the time they're 73. More men in America die from heart disease than from any other single cause, and it was responsible for 28 percent of all American men's deaths in 2003.
5. Genetics:
Genetics is a big factor in determining your likelihood of future heart disease. When it comes to the family tree, you're most at risk if a direct relative (a parent or sibling) has had a heart attack. If your father or brother has had one before the age of 45 -- or if your mother or sister has had one before the age of 55 -- you should be especially concerned. A history of heart disease in your extended family is a factor as well.
Tags: disease, Factors, heart, Risk, top