Adults in their 30s and 40s can reverse heart attack risk by adopting healthier lifestyles, a new study finds.
Some damages are irreversible. Thankfully, your heart's health is not one of them. Researchers of a new study found that people who give up unhealthy habits for healthier alternatives, even in their 30s or 40s, can undo heart attack risks.
"It's not too late," said Bonnie Spring, lead investigator of the study and a professor of preventive medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, in a press statement. "You're not doomed if you've hit young adulthood and acquired some bad habits. You can still make a change and it will have a benefit for your heart."
The study was conducted on more than 5,000 participants who were part of the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study. Researchers looked into the participant's lifestyle behavior and coronary artery calcification and thickening when they were between 18 to 30 years of age and again 20 years later. The five healthy behaviors considered in the study included:
- not being overweight/obese,
- being a nonsmoker
- being physically active
- having low alcohol intake
- consuming a healthy diet.
At the start of the study, only 10 percent of the participants had all five healthy habits. However, at the end of the study, about 25 percent of participants added at least one of the five healthy behaviors to their daily life. The researchers noted that an addition of every one healthy behavior led to a reduction in detectable coronary artery calcification and lower intima-media thickness risk.
"This finding is important because it helps to debunk two myths held by some health care professionals," Spring said. "The first is that it's nearly impossible to change patients' behaviors. Yet, we found that 25 percent of adults made healthy lifestyle changes on their own. The second myth is that the damage has already been done -- adulthood is too late for healthy lifestyle changes to reduce the risk of developing coronary artery disease. Clearly, that's incorrect. Adulthood is not too late for healthy behavior changes to help the heart.
Researchers also found that picking up unhealthy habits as one grows older increases the risk of deteriorating coronary arteries. In the study, about 40 percent of participants dropped healthy lifestyle factors and acquired more bad habits as they aged. The researchers clarified that adulthood doesn't come with the license to abandon healthy habits without the risk of damaging the heart. Here are some ways in which people can maintain a healthy lifestyle.
- Keep a healthy body weight
- Don't smoke
- Engage in at least30 minutes of moderate to vigorous activityfive times a week
- No more than one alcoholic drink a day for women, no more than two for men
- Eat a healthy diet, high in fiber, low in sodium with lots of fruit and vegetables
The study was funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and from the National Institutes of Health. Findings were published online in the journal Circulation.
