Over 1 in 4 (28.4%) Idahoan deaths in 2007 were the result of heart disease or stroke. Although that statistic is staggering, there is some good news. Heart disease and stroke can be largely prevented by choosing and practicing healthy lifestyle behaviors. By becoming physically active, using healthy eating habits, avoiding tobacco, maintaining a healthy body mass, controlling blood pressure, controlling cholesterol, and managing diabetes one can affect their risk of disease.
Risk factors are characteristics that increase the likelihood of developing disease. Some risk factors can be changed (modifable), and some cannot (non-modifable). The more risk factors a person has, the greater the chance that he or she will develop cardiovascular disease. Below is a table that outlines the major associated risk factors.
| Can Control |
Can NOT Control |
| High Blood Pressure - high blood pressure increases the heart's work load, causing the heart to enlarge and weaken over time. It also increases the risk of stroke, heart attack, kidney failure and congestive heart failure. |
Family History - children of parents with heart disease are more likely to develop it themselves. Just as you can't control your age, you can't control your family history. Therefore, it's even more important to treat and control any other risk factors you have. |
| High Cholesterol - as blood cholesterol rises, so does risk of coronary heart disease. When other risk factors (such as blood pressure and tobacco smoke) are present, this risk increases even more. A person's cholesterol level is also affected by age, sex, heredity and diet. |
Male Sex (gender) - men have a greater risk of heart attack than women do, and they have heart attacks earlier in life. Even after menopause, when women's death rate from heart disease increases, it's not as high as men's. |
| Diabetes Mellitus (type 2) - diabetes seriously increases your risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Even when glucose (blood sugar) levels are under control, diabetes increases the risk of heart disease and stroke, but the risks are even greater if blood sugar is not well controlled. |
Increasing Age - over 83% of people who die of coronary heart disease are 65 or older. At older ages, women who have heart attacks are more likely than men are to die from them within a few weeks. |
| Tobacco Use - Smokers' risk of developing coronary heart disease is 2 - 4 times that of nonsmokers. Exposure to other people's smoke increases the risk of heart disease even for nonsmokers. |
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| Physical Inactivity - an inactive lifestyle is a risk factor for coronary heart disease. Regular, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity helps prevent heart and blood vessel disease. |
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| Obesity and Overweight - people who have excess body fat, especially if a lot of it is at the waist, are more likely to develop heart disease and stroke even if they have no other risk factors. |
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