Cardiovascular diseases such as heart attack, arteriosclerosis, angina pectoris and myocardial infarction are a leading cause of death worldwide. While the incidence of coronary heart disease is high in developed countries, developing nations are also gaining ground at a rapid pace.
Cardiovascular diseases are mainly due to inadequate living habits. Risk factors that cause heart disease can be divided into two categories. These include major risk factors are defined because of a heart attack and the contribution of risk factors that can cause a heart attack.
Major risk factors
These include high blood pressure, high serum cholesterol levels, diabetes, obesity, smoking, heredity, age and sex. A normal adult has a reading of systolic blood pressure between 120 and 130, while the diastolic pressure between 80 and 90. Higher values indicate high blood pressure or hypertension. Arterial hypertension causes increased heart rate, oxygen depletion and the formation of clots in the arteries following a heart attack. Requirements are sufficient cholesterol from the body by the liver. However, excess cholesterol also enters the body through diet high in fat. Presence of cholesterol saturated or low-density lipoproteins within the body causes the formation of plaques in artery walls, causing atherosclerosis.
Obesity or excess weight leads to other diseases like diabetes, blood pressure and high cholesterol, which increases the risk of heart disease. Smoking causes increased heart rate, the formation of fatty plaques, affects serum levels of fibrinogen, induces the formation of blood clots, causes vasoconstriction and creates an irregular heartbeat. Heart attacks also occur due to certain genetic abnormalities that are acquired hereditary. Men have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease than women due to estrogen and female sex hormones protect the heart. Heart disease is more common in older people who are above the age of 65 years as the cardiovascular system’s efficiency decreases with age.
Risk factors that contribute
These include emotional stress, sex hormones, birth control pills and alcohol. There is no evidence that these factors cause heart disease. However, these factors have been found that the association with major risk factors in the origin of heart disease.
