A heart-healthy lifestyle can cut your genetic risk for heart disease in half. Both genetic and lifestyle factors contribute to the individual-risk of coronary artery disease. However, the extent to which increased genetic risk can be offset by a healthy lifestyle is unknown but sure to offer some benefits.
According to the best cardiologist in New York City, participants who followed three of the following four pillars were considered to have an overall healthy lifestyle. Furthermore, these people were able to decrease the risk of heart conditions by almost 50%.
In order to classify heart health Garden State Medical Group created a lifestyle score based on the four pillars of a heart-healthy lifestyle:
- No smoking.
- Regular exercise, at least once per week.
- No obesity, as defined by body mass index.
- A healthy diet of increased fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts and fish, and limited intake of saturated fats, salt and sugar.
The classification system is the result of a study in which data was examined from 55,000 participants who were at high risk for heart disease due to genetic factors. The cardiologist warns that a genetic tendency to heart disease can double the risk of a heart incident but a heart-healthy lifestyle can cut that risk in half. They also found that an unhealthy lifestyle can cancel out the benefits of good genes.
The cardiology specialists in Secaucus point out that there is much evidence that people who adhere to a healthy lifestyle have reduced rates of incident cardiovascular events. The promotion of healthy lifestyle behaviours described above underlies the current strategy to improve cardiovascular health in the general population.
The above study reveals that genetic factors and lifestyle choices contribute to and play a major role in the development of heart disease. Moreover, it demonstrates that the risk of heart disease can be lowered via lifestyle changes which only you have the power to change.
Have more questions? Contact Dr. James Clifford, a cardiology specialist in Paramus New Jersey, now!