Cardiovascular

The Facts

Cardiovascular Disease, sometimes called Heart Disease, is a broad term to describe numerous diseases that affect your heart and blood vessels. Cardiovascular Disease is a condition that involve narrowed or blocked blood vessels that can lead to a heart attack, angina (chest pain), or stroke. Most Cardiovascular Diseases are caused by a process called atherosclerosis. Arthrosclerosis is a condition that develops when plaque builds up in the walls of the arteries. This process leads to arteries narrowing, making it harder for blood to flow properly. Arthrosclerosis greatly increases your risk for heart attack or stroke. Other heart conditions, such as infections and conditions that affect the heart's muscle, valves or beating rhythm are also forms of Cardiovascular Disease.
 

Who is at Risk?

Both men and women are at risk for heart disease. The American Heart Association has identified several risk factors. Some of them can be modified, treated or controlled, and some can't. The more risk factors you have, the greater your chance of developing coronary heart disease. Also, the greater the level of each risk factor, the greater the risk. For example, a person with total cholesterol of 300 mg/dL has a greater risk than someone with total cholesterol of 245 mg/dL, even though everyone with total cholesterol greater than 240 is considered high-risk.

What are the major risk factors that can't be changed?

• Increasing age - Over 83 percent 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.
• Male sex (gender) - Men have a greater risk of heart attack than women do, and they have attacks earlier in life. Even after menopause, when women's death rate from heart disease increases, it's not as great as men's.
• Heredity (including Race) - Children of parents with heart disease are more likely to develop it themselves. African Americans have more severe high blood pressure than Caucasians and a higher risk of heart disease. Heart disease risk is also higher among Mexican Americans, American Indians, native Hawaiians and some Asian Americans. This is partly due to higher rates of obesity and diabetes. Most people with a strong family history of heart disease have one or more other risk factors. Just as you can't control your age, sex and race, you can't control your family history. Therefore, it's even more important to treat and control any other risk factors you have.

What are the major risk factors you can modify, treat, or control by changing your lifestyle or taking medicine?

• Tobacco smoke - Smokers' risk of developing coronary heart disease is 2-4 times that of nonsmokers. Cigarette smoking is a powerful independent risk factor for sudden cardiac death in patients with coronary heart disease; smokers have about twice the risk of nonsmokers. Cigarette smoking also acts with other risk factors to greatly increase the risk for coronary heart disease. People who smoke cigars or pipes seem to have a higher risk of death from coronary heart disease (and possibly stroke) but their risk isn't as great as cigarette smokers'. Exposure to other people's smoke increases the risk of heart disease even for nonsmokers.
• High blood cholesterol - As blood cholesterol rises, so does risk of coronary heart disease. When other risk factors (such as high 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.
• High blood pressure - High blood pressure increases the heart's workload, causing the heart to thicken and become stiffer. It also increases your risk of stroke, heart attack, kidney failure and congestive heart failure. When high blood pressure exists with obesity, smoking, high blood cholesterol levels or diabetes, the risk of heart attack or stroke increases several times.
• 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. The more vigorous the activity, the greater your benefits. However, even moderate-intensity activities help if done regularly and long term. Physical activity can help control blood cholesterol, diabetes and obesity, as well as help lower blood pressure in some people.
• 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. Excess weight increases the heart's work. It also raises blood pressure and blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and lowers HDL ("good") cholesterol levels. It can also make diabetes more likely to develop. Many obese and overweight people may have difficulty losing weight. But by losing even as few as 10 pounds, you can lower your heart disease risk.
• Diabetes mellitus - 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. About three-quarters of people with diabetes die of some form of heart or blood vessel disease. If you have diabetes, it's extremely important to work with your healthcare provider to manage it and control any other risk factors you can.

What other factors contribute to heart disease risk?

• Individual response to stress may be a contributing factor. Some scientists have noted a relationship between coronary heart disease risk and stress in a person's life, their health behaviors and socioeconomic status. These factors may affect established risk factors. For example, people under stress may overeat, start smoking or smoke more than they otherwise would.
• Drinking too much alcohol can raise blood pressure, cause heart failure and lead to stroke. It can contribute to high triglycerides, cancer and other diseases, and produce irregular heartbeats. It contributes to obesity, alcoholism, suicide and accidents. The risk of heart disease in people who drink moderate amounts of alcohol (an average of one drink for women or two drinks for men per day) is lower than in nondrinkers. One drink is defined as 1-1/2 fluid ounces (fl oz) of 80-proof spirits (such as bourbon, Scotch, vodka, gin, etc.), 1 fl oz of 100-proof spirits, 4 fl oz of wine or 12 fl oz of beer. It's not recommended that nondrinkers start using alcohol or that drinker's increase the amount they drink. (Information taken from www.americanheartassociation.org)

The Best Defense: Prevention and Detection
Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in North Dakota for both men and women, but there are steps you can take to decrease your chance of getting CVD. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), all people can take steps to lower their risk for heart disease and heart attack. Here is what you can do:

1. Prevent and control high blood cholesterol
   High blood cholesterol is a major risk factor for heart disease. Preventing and treating high blood cholesterol includes eating a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol and high in fiber, keeping a healthy weight, and getting regular exercise. All adults should have their cholesterol levels checked once every five years. If yours is high, your doctor may prescribe medicines to help lower it. See our cholesterol fact sheet.
2. Prevent and control high blood pressure
   Lifestyle actions such as healthy diet, regular physical activity, not smoking, and healthy weight will help you to keep normal blood pressure levels and all adults should have their blood pressure checked on a regular basis. Blood pressure is easily checked. If your blood pressure is high, you can work with your doctor to treat it and bring it down to the normal range. A high blood pressure can usually be controlled with lifestyle changes and with medicines when needed. See our high blood pressure fact sheet.
3. Prevent and control diabetes
   People with diabetes have an increased risk of heart disease but can reduce their risk. Also, people can take steps to reduce their risk for diabetes in the first place, through weight loss and regular physical activity. For more information about diabetes, see CDC's diabetes program Web site.
4. No tobacco
   Smoking increases the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke. Never smoking is one of the best things a person can do to lower their risk. And, quitting smoking will also help lower a person's risk of heart disease. A person's risk of heart attack decreases soon after quitting. If you smoke, your doctor can suggest programs to help you quit smoking. For more information about tobacco use and quitting, see CDC's tobacco intervention and prevention source Web site.
5. Moderate alcohol use
   Excessive alcohol use increases the risk of high blood pressure, heart attack, and stroke. People who drink should do so only in moderation and always responsibly. More information on alcohol can be found at CDC's alcohol and public health Web site.
6. Maintain a healthy weight
   Healthy weight status in adults is usually assessed by using weight and height to compute a number called the "body mass index" (BMI). BMI usually indicates the amount of body fat. An adult who has a BMI of 30 or higher is considered obese. Overweight is a BMI between 25 and 29.9. Normal weight is a BMI of 18 to 24.9. Proper diet and regular physical activity can help to maintain a healthy weight. You can compute your BMI at CDC's nutrition and physical activity program Web site.
7. Regular physical activity
   Adults should engage in moderate level physical activities for at least 30 minutes on most days of the week. For more information, see CDC's nutrition and physical activity program Web site.
8. Diet and nutrition
   Along with healthy weight and regular physical activity, an overall healthy diet can help to lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels and prevent obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. This includes eating lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, lowering or cutting out added salt or sodium, and eating less saturated fat and cholesterol to lower these risks. For more information, see CDC's nutrition and physical activity program Web site.

 

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ND Department of Health
ND Cancer Coalition
North Dakota Cancer Coalition
Go Red ND
American Heart Association
MyPyramid.gov
Center for Disease Control and Prevention
American Institute for Cancer Research
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