Preventing Heart Disease: Know Your Risk Factors

There are many things that can raise your risk for heart disease. These are called risk factors.

Heart disease risk factors that you cannot change include:

Age
Gender
Race or ethnicity
Family history

Make healthy changes to lower your risk of developing heart disease, such as:

Watch your weight
Quit smoking and stay away from secondhand smoke
Control your cholesterol and blood pressure
Drink alcohol in moderation or not at all
Get active and eat healthy

Learn more about what you can do to lower your risk of heart disease.

MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA

National Institutes of Health

The primary NIH organization for research on How to Prevent Heart Disease is the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

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Summary

Heart disease is the leading cause of the death in the United States. It is also a major cause of disability. There are many things that can raise your risk for heart disease. They are called risk factors. Some of them you cannot control, but there are many that you can control. Learning about them can lower your risk of heart disease.

What are the heart disease risk factors that I cannot change?

Age. Your risk of heart disease increases as you get older. Men age 45 and older and women age 55 and older have a greater risk.

Gender. Some risk factors may affect heart disease risk differently in women than in men. For example, estrogen provides women some protection against heart disease, but diabetes raises the risk of heart disease more in women than in men.

Race or ethnicity. Certain groups have higher risks than others. African Americans are more likely than whites to have heart disease, while Hispanic Americans are less likely to have it. Some Asian groups, such as East Asians, have lower rates, but South Asians have higher rates.

Family history. You have a greater risk if you have a close family member who had heart disease at an early age.

What can I do to lower my risk of heart disease?

Fortunately, there are many things you can do to reduce your chances of getting heart disease:

Control your blood pressure. High blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart disease. It is important to get your blood pressure checked regularly - at least once a year for most adults, and more often if you have high blood pressure. Take steps, including lifestyle changes, to prevent or control high blood pressure.

Keep your cholesterol and triglyceride levels under control. High levels of cholesterol can clog your arteries and raise your risk of coronary artery disease and heart attack. Lifestyle changes and medicines (if needed) can lower your cholesterol. Triglycerides are another type of fat in the blood. High levels of triglycerides may also raise the risk of coronary artery disease, especially in women.

Stay at a healthy weight. Being overweight or having obesity can increase your risk for heart disease. This is mostly because they are linked to other heart disease risk factors, including high blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels, high blood pressure, and diabetes. Controlling your weight can lower these risks.

Eat a healthy diet. Try to limit saturated fats, foods high in sodium, and added sugars. Eat plenty of fresh fruit, vegetables, and whole grains. The DASH diet is an example of an eating plan that can help you to lower your blood pressure and cholesterol, two things that can lower your risk of heart disease.

Get regular exercise. Exercise has many benefits, including strengthening your heart and improving your circulation. It can also help you maintain a healthy weight and lower cholesterol and blood pressure. All of these can lower your risk of heart disease.

Limit alcohol. Drinking too much alcohol can raise your blood pressure. It also adds extra calories, which may cause weight gain. Both of those raise your risk of heart disease. Men should have no more than two alcoholic drinks per day, and women should not have more than one.

Don't smoke. Cigarette smoking raises your blood pressure and puts you at higher risk for heart attack and stroke. If you do not smoke, do not start. If you do smoke, quitting will lower your risk for heart disease. You can talk with your health care provider for help in finding the best way for you to quit.

Manage stress. Stress is linked to heart disease in many ways. It can raise your blood pressure. Extreme stress can be a "trigger" for a heart attack. Also, some common ways of coping with stress, such as overeating, heavy drinking, and smoking, are bad for your heart. Some ways to help manage your stress include exercise, listening to music, focusing on something calm or peaceful, and meditating.

Manage diabetes. Having diabetes doubles your risk of diabetic heart disease. That is because over time, high blood sugar from diabetes can damage your blood vessels and the nerves that control your heart and blood vessels. So, it is important to get tested for diabetes, and if you have it, to keep it under control.

Make sure that you get enough sleep. If you don't get enough sleep, you raise your risk of high blood pressure, obesity, and diabetes. Those three things can raise your risk for heart disease. Most adults need 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night. Make sure that you have good sleep habits. If you have frequent sleep problems, contact your health care provider. One problem, sleep apnea, causes people to briefly stop breathing many times during sleep. This interferes with your ability to get a good rest and can raise your risk of heart disease. If you think you might have it, ask your doctor about having a sleep study. And if you do have sleep apnea, make sure that you get treatment for it.

Start Here

Healthy Body, Happy Heart: Improve Your Heart Health (National Institutes of Health)Also in Spanish
Heart-Healthy Recipe of the Week (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish
Lifestyle Changes for Heart Attack Prevention (American Heart Association)
Physical Activity and Your Heart (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)Also in Spanish
Prevention (Department of Health and Human Services)
Prevention: What You Can Do (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Your Guide to a Healthy Heart (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) - PDF
Your Guide to Physical Activity and Your Heart (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) - PDF

Diagnosis and Tests

Cholesterol Levels (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish
Heart Health Tests: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish
Heart-Health Screenings (American Heart Association)
hs-CRP Test (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
Screening for Peripheral Artery Disease and Cardiovascular Disease Risk Assessment with Ankle Brachial Index in Adults (U.S. Preventive Services Task Force) - PDF

Prevention and Risk Factors

Cardiac Risk Assessment (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
Heart Disease Risk Factors You Can't Control(Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health)

Related Issues

A Little Planning Helps Your Heart--and Your Budget (American Heart Association)
Alcohol and Heart Health (American Heart Association)
Behavioral Counseling to Promote a Healthful Diet and Physical Activity for CVD Prevention in Adults with Risk Factors (U.S. Preventive Services Task Force) - PDF
Daily Aspirin Therapy: Understand the Benefits and Risks(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)Also in Spanish
Dietary Fiber: Essential for a Healthy Diet (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)Also in Spanish
Fasting Diet: Can It Improve My Heart Health? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)Also in Spanish
Grape Juice: Same Heart Benefits as Wine? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)Also in Spanish
Heart Disease Prevention: Does Oral Health Matter?(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)Also in Spanish
Heart-Healthy Diet: Eight Steps to Prevent Heart Disease(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)Also in Spanish
Heart-Healthy Exercise (American Heart Association)
How Can I Manage Stress? (American Heart Association)
How Do I Change Recipes? (American Heart Association) - PDF
Keep the Beat Recipes: Deliciously Healthy Dinners (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) - PDF
Mediterranean Diet: Choose This Heart-Healthy Diet Option(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Nuts and Your Heart: Eating Nuts for Heart Health(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)Also in Spanish
Phytochemicals and Cardiovascular Disease (American Heart Association)
Preventing Heart Disease - At Any Age (American Heart Association)
Red Wine and Resveratrol: Good for Your Heart?(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)Also in Spanish
Time to Talk: Five Things to Know about Omega-3s for Heart Disease (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health)
Vitamin Supplements: Healthy or Hoax? (American Heart Association)
Vitamin, Mineral, and Multivitamin Supplements for the Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer (U.S. Preventive Services Task Force) - PDF
Walk, Don't Run, Your Way to a Healthy Heart (American Heart Association)
Why Should I Lose Weight? (American Heart Association) - PDF

Statistics and Research

Daily Aspirin May Not Benefit Healthy Older Adults (National Institutes of Health)

Journal ArticlesReferences and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

Reference Desk

Heart and Stroke Encyclopedia (American Heart Association)
Heart Information Center (Texas Heart Institute)Also in Spanish
How the Heart Works (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

Find an Expert

Children

Heart Disease Risk Factors for Children and Teenagers (Texas Heart Institute)Also in Spanish

Women

Healthy Heart Handbook for Women (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) - PDF
Heart Disease and Stroke (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health)
Heart Disease in Women: Understand Symptoms and Risk Factors(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)Also in Spanish
Heart Truth (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)