Your Heart May Be Older than You

People who don`t pay enough attention to their lipid levels intake may have a bigger cardiovascular age compared to people who manage the risk factors for cardiovascular diseases, according to a new study.

The study was conducted by researchers at the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC), the Knowledge Among Uninformed Patients (CHECK-UP), and the Cardiovascular Health Evaluation to Improve Compliance and involved people who suffer from diabetes, and people with high risk to develop heart disease.

The results proved that most people are more careful to their lipid intake when they are better informed about their cardiovascular risk and receive more information from their doctor concerning the impact of their lifestyle modifications on their cardiovascular disease risk.

In fact, the study showed that participants with higher risks to suffer from heart disease registered a bigger decrease in their lipids levels. The researchers collected data from participants regarding their blood pressure, age, blood lipids, and gender. For instance, a forty-three year old overweight male smoker who also has high levels of cholesterol and increased blood pressure may have a fifty-one year old heart.

The study`s results show the impact of communication on peoples` risk to suffer from cardiovascular disease. When people are better informed, they get more involved in the decisions that influence their health care and they manage better the risk of eventual cardiovascular diseases.

The human costs along with the economic burder of cardiovascular disease are a problem to the Canadian healthcare system, according to Dr. Steven Grover, lead author of the study. The stroke and heart disease are the main cause of death in Canada. Plus, almost eighty percent of Canadians suffer from obesity, hypertension, or high cholesterol, all of them risk factors for cardiovascular disease.