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Are
You at Risk for Heart Disease?
Risk factors
are traits or habits that make a person more likely to develop a disease.
Some people have more risk factors for heart disease than others. According
to the American Heart Association, the major risk factors for heart disease
are:
- Cigarette
smoking
- High
blood pressure
- High
blood cholesterol
- Obesity
- Physical
inactivity
- Diabetes
- Family
history
- Gender
(males are at higher risk than females)
- Increasing
age
Some risk
factors such as family history cannot be changed. You can minimize their
impact by working hard to reduce your modifiable
risk factors. Talk to your doctor about minimizing these effects.
Diabetes:
A unique risk factor
According
to the American Diabetes Association, heart disease is
the leading cause of death among people with diabetes. They are
two to four times more likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke than
people without diabetes. Their heart attacks also tend to happen at an
earlier age. People with diabetes must take extra care to keep their blood
pressure and cholesterol in check.
Learn
more about your risk for heart disease. Take our heart health risk assessment
to see if you are at risk for heart disease.
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