New study points to six healthy lifestyle choices for women to prevent heart disease
08 Jan 2015
A new study points to 6 healthy lifestyle choices that could help prevent heart disease in nearly 3 out of 4 women ANI reported.
The study conducted by researchers from Indiana University, the Harvard School of Public Health, and Brigham and Women's Hospital who analysed data from 69,247 participants who met the requirements.
According to Andrea K Chomistek, ScD, a researcher from the Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington, although mortality rates from heart disease in the US had been in steady decline for the last four decades, women aged 35-44 had not experienced the same reduction and this disparity might be explained by unhealthy lifestyle choices.
Researchers found that women who adhered to all six healthy lifestyle practices had a 92 per cent lower risk of heart attack. Also they had a 66-per cent lower risk of developing a risk factor for heart disease. This lower risk meant that all three quarters of heart attacks and nearly half of all risk factors in younger women might have been prevented if all of the women had adhered to all six healthy lifestyle factors.
For women diagnosed with a risk factor, adherence to at least four of the healthy lifestyle factors was associated with a significantly lower risk of progressing to heart disease as against those who did not follow any of the healthy lifestyle practices.
The researchers identified not smoking, a normal body mass index, physical activity of at least two-and-half hours per week, watching seven or fewer hours of television a week, consumption of a maximum of one alcoholic drink per day on an average, and a healthy diet as healthy habits.
According to Chomistek, the researchers wanted to find out what proportion of heart disease cases could be attributed to unhealthy habits.
Over a follow up period of 20 years 456 women had heart attacks and 31,691 women were diagnosed with one or more cardiovascular disease risk factors, including type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure or high levels of blood cholesterol.
The journal of the American College of Cardiology has published the study.
