What are the Risk Factors for Coronary Heart Disease you can’t control?
Increasing age Over 83 percent of people who die of coronary heart disease are 65 or older. Diabetes is more prevalent as we age because our bodies become more resistant to insulin. Male gender Men have a greater risk of heart attack than women, and they have attacks earlier in life. Heredity -including Race Children of parents with heart disease, African Americans (due to greater occurrence of severe high blood pressure) and Mexican Americans, American Indians, native Hawaiians and some Asian Americans (due to higher rates of obesity and diabetes) are at higher risk of heart disease. What can you do right now to reduce the major risk factors you can control? Don’t smoke Smoking and breathing second-hand smoke increase your risk of heart disease 2–4 times that of nonsmokers and put you at greater risk for developing cancer. Reduce high blood cholesterol As cholesterol rises, so does risk of heart disease. Combined with other risk factors such as high blood pressure and smoking, this ri
