Factors
You Cannot Change
Although we cannot do anything to reduce the
risk of cardiovascular disease arising from this category
of factors, educating ourselves about them is still useful.
Such knowledge will enable us to ascertain whether we
fall within the group of people who are at high risk of
developing heart disease. If we do belong to this category,
we should then take steps to modify those risk factors
which we can change.
Age
A person’s risk of developing cardiovascular disease
increases with age. On average, 80% of those who die of
coronary heart disease are aged 65 and above.
Gender
Men generally face a much higher risk of heart disease
than women. They also tend to suffer heart attacks earlier
in life. After women reach menopause however, they are
just as likely to have heart attacks as their male counterparts
of equal age; they are also more likely to die from such
cardiac complications than the latter.
 Women
At Risk
Family History
A family history of stroke or heart disease, especially
if it occurred at an early age for the affected family
member, is a strong risk factor for cardiovascular illnesses.
This is because some of the other contributory factors
in this context such as diabetes,
high blood pressure, and high
LDL (“bad”) cholesterol may be inherited
by children from their parents. In addition, people often
behave and act as their parents and siblings do. As a
result, the genes and habits that cause us to be sedentary,
to smoke, to be overweight/obese, or to follow poor diets
often tend to cluster in families. |
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