CDC Warns Your Lifestyle Is Likely Making Your Heart Older Than It Should Be

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published a report^[1] on Tuesday, September 1, 2015 that indicated there are 69 million American adults whose hearts are older than their actual age.

People’s lifestyle choices play the biggest role in making their hearts age faster than the rest of their bodies. These lifestyle choices contribute to the nearly 2,150 Americans dying everyday from heart diseases, and one person every 40 seconds.^[2]

The CDC stated:

“The most common reasons for a higher heart age that can be changed or managed are: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking, obesity, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, and diabetes.”

The great thing is people can make their hearts younger anytime by making lifestyle changes that will manage or cure their high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and obesity.

All three conditions age the heart faster than normal. All three in tandem exponentially increase the rate in which the heart ages.

Alarmingly, most American adults ages 30-74 hearts are much older than their real age.

American men, excluding African American men, average hearts 8 years older than their actual age.

American women, excluding African American women, average hearts 5 years older than their real age.

African American men and women both average hearts 11 years older than their real age.

These groups are at greater risk for factors that increase heart age and risk of heart disease. African Americans appear to be at increased risk.

Source: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2011 and 2013.

The CDC provided an excellent actual age vs. heart age infographic:

The CDC study also found geographical differences in heart age across the United States. Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi and West Virginia had the highest percentage of American adults with a heart age 5 or more years older than their actual age.

California, Colorado, Hawaii, Massachusetts and Utah had the lowest percentage of American adults with a heart age 5 or more years older than their actual age.

You can use this CDC Heart Age Predictor to determine your heart age.

The CDC’s main recommendation to reduce heart age was to have blood pressure less than 120/80. The Mayo Clinic lists these ways to reduce blood pressure naturally:

• Watch your waistline
  • Doctors often use body mass index (BMI) calculation to determine overall health and risk of disease, but waist to height ratio (WHtR) appears to be a more accurate and simpler way of determining overall health and risk of heart disease.
• Exercise regularly
  • Exercising at least 30 minutes most days of the week can lower your blood pressure by 4 to 9 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). Cardiovascular exercises like walking, jogging, cycling, swimming, or dancing all help control blood pressure.
• Eat a healthy diet
  • Eating a whole food plant-based diet or a diet high in fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes, and grains, and low in animal-based and processed foods helps lower blood pressure.
• Reduce sodium in your diet
  • Eating a whole food plant based diet provides all the sodium that is needed in the diet. Refrain from adding sodium to your food. Take a look at this video: High Blood Pressure May Be a Choice
• Limit the amount of alcohol you drink
  • Drinking even moderate amounts of alcohol can raise blood pressure.
• Quit smoking
  • Smoking a cigarette immediately increases blood pressure.
• Cut back on caffeine
  • Caffeine can cause a short, but dramatic increase in your blood pressure, even if you don’t have high blood pressure.

The important thing to take away from the CDC report is it is never too late to reduce heart age even if your lifestyle has for a long time introduced risk factors that have increased your heart age. Removing risk factors help to strengthen the heart and reduce heart age.

Tags: american heart association, heart disease, heart health, vegan diet and heart disease