top of page
WHAT INCREASES YOUR RISK
Modifiable Risk Factors
Non-modifiable Risk Factors
Diabetes
High blood sugar or high blood glucose
Diabetes is extremely common
About 10-15% of people suffer from diabetes. This means that there are 20 crore people in India living with diabetes.
Diabetes is the worst risk factor for heart disease
Patients with diabetes have the highest rates of heart disease when followed over time, with research showing rates that are 2-3 times greater than those in people without diabetes.
Adults with diabetes are 2-4 times more likely to die from heart disease than adults without diabetes.
Diabetics
Non-diabetics
Rate of Death from Heart Disease
About 70% of people age 65 or older with diabetes die from some form of heart disease
Most people with Diabetes have at least one other risk factor
Out of every 5 adults with diabetes, approximately 4 have high BP, 4 have high cholesterol and 3 have obesity.
Diabetes affects more than just the heart
As a result of damage to small and large blood vessels, patients with diabetes can also have strokes, leg pain, nerve damage, eye damage and kidney damage in addition to heart disease.
High Blood Pressure (BP)
High blood pressure (BP) is the most common risk factor for heart disease
Research shows that 3 out of every 10 adults in India have high BP
Only 1 of those 3 is aware that he/she has high BP, and an even smaller proportion is receiving treatment for it
High BP affects people of all ages, including young adults
Although high BP is believed to be disease of older people, research has found that it is common in young individuals as well, with an estimated prevalence of 1 out of 10 in people between the ages of 18 to 25 years in India.
The best way to reduce risk of heart disease is to control the BP so that it is consistently at or below the target BP
It has been proven that consistently maintaining your BP at or below your target/goal BP is more effective at preventing harm compared to reductions that do not meet the target. In fact, experts have recently recommended even lower targets for BP control.
Thus, a proactive and holistic approach, which includes a healthy diet, regular exercise, optimised medications and wellness/stress management is the best way to reach your BP goals and reduce risk.
High Cholesterol
Types of Cholesterol and their importance
There are different types of lipids, commonly referred to as cholesterol, in our body.
The two most important ones in relation to heart disease are LDL and HDL.
High Cholesterol is a very common and significant risk factor
Abnormal cholesterol (high levels of LDL or low levels of HDL) is seen in 20-35% of people.
Worldwide, approximately 50% of heart disease is due to high cholesterol (LDL).
Lipid abnormalities appear to be commonest factor for heart attacks.
Lowering Cholesterol is extremely beneficial
Research has shown that lowering cholesterol with statins is beneficial for primary and secondary prevention, and it reduces deaths.
In order to get the maximum benefit from statins, our goal should be to bring the LDL level as low as possible, as early as possible
Smoking
Smoking increases your risk of heart disease and heart attacks
Cigarette smokers are 2-4 times more likely to develop heart disease compared to nonsmokers.
A person’s risk of heart attack continues to increase with the number of cigarettes smoked and duration of smoking.
The longer a person smokes, the higher is his/her risk of a heart attack.
There is no safe amount of smoking.
Smoking affects more than just the heart
In addition to heart disease, smoking is an important risk factor for diseases of blood vessels, multiple cancers and chronic lung diseases.
The quickest way to reduce your risk is to stop smoking
Smoking cessation results in the greatest immediate improvement in patient outcomes for heart disease.
Within 1 year after stopping smoking, the risk of heart disease decreases by half or 50%; and within 2 years the risk is reduced by 90%.
Sedentary Lifestyle & Lack of Exercise
Double the risk
Over the past 45 years, numerous research studies have shown that a sedentary lifestyle & lack of regular exercise is an important risk factor for heart disease.
They found that as the level of physical activity increases, the risk of heart disease decreases.
Studies have reported 2 times the risk of heart disease in people with very little or no physical activity.
In fact, even low intensity and short duration of REGULAR exercise is beneficial compared to no exercise.
Exercise prevents deaths
Research has shown that regular exercise reduces deaths not only due to heart disease, but also due to all causes, by 45% and 30%, respectively.
Exercise reduces other risk factors
Exercise helps improve diabetes, high cholesterol, stress & high BP.
In fact, it is the most effective way to reduce high BP.
Unhealthy Diet
#1 risk factor for death and disease in India
In all celebrations in India, food rich in saturated fats, trans fats and sugar is eaten.
Ghee, butter and coconut oil, which are used in cooking through out India can lead to blockages.
Re-heating oil, which is commonly done in India for deep frying produces trans fats.
Make a change!
Lifestyle changes, including a healthy diet are the first-line management, either alone or in combination with medicines, for everyone.
Blockages in Other Parts of the Body
Dangerous blockages can occur in other parts of the body
Similar to the blockages in the blood vessels supplying your heart that occur in heart disease, blockages can occur in the blood vessels of the brain, neck, abdomen and legs.
These are dangerous because they can not only result in stroke and/or decreased blood and oxygen to muscle and vital organs but also indicate increased risk factors for heart disease.
Thus, they are considered heart disease equivalents, and aggressive risk factor management including statins in recommended.
Non-modifiable Risk Factors
Genetics & Family History of Early Heart Disease
People with a family history of heart disease in an immediate family at an early age are at an increased risk.
Additionally, some risk factors like certain types of abnormal lipids, high BP and diabetes can occur due to genetic conditions or occur in families.
Gender
In general heart disease is more common in men.
Women under the age of 50 will virtually never have a heart attack
However, once women reach menopause, the rates equalize because the protective effects of the hormones are lost and eventually more women die of heart disease than men.
Older Age
Heart disease is more common in elderly people because the damage caused the various risk factors continues to add up over the years.
Risk DM
Risk factors
Risk Exercise
Risk family history
Risk age
Risk HTN
Risk HLD
Risk Smoking
Risk diet
Risk PAD
Risk non modi
bottom of page