In the field of health, it is common for several risk factors to coexist and interact as potential triggers of one or more health complications. The case of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) is no exception. In this group of pathologies, which represents the main cause of death worldwide and is associated with more than 18 million premature deaths, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), various risk factors are interrelated. By avoiding them, 80% of cases can be prevented, including heart disease and stroke, according to the World Heart Federation (WHF).
And, leaving aside the risk factors that we cannot interfere with, such as genetics, family history, age, race or suffering from a previous pathology, those associated with lifestyle stand out as the main triggers. of this group of diseases. Specifically, poor diet, a sedentary lifestyle, excessive salt consumption, alcohol or smoking are, according to the WHO, the most important causes of CVD and stroke.
These habits can also increase the risk of suffering from high blood pressure, hyperglycemia, hyperlipidemia and overweight or obesity, also considered precursors to cardiovascular diseases. In fact, the latest health survey carried out by the Spanish Heart Foundation (FEC), in collaboration with Sigma Dos, determined that in 2021 in Spain, 22.2% of the population suffered from hypertension, 22.8% from hypercholesterolemia, 7.1% diabetes, 33.8% overweight, 16.7% obesity, 19.4% sedentary lifestyle, 17.4% stress, 15.9% smoking and 36.2% lack of sleep. Likewise, the survey indicates that it is common, especially among the older population, to have several of these cardiovascular risk factors simultaneously.
A healthy diet is one of the pillars to combat cardiovascular diseases. Not only what you eat, but also how much and how you eat, can impact various risk factors such as obesity and overweight, hypercholesterolemia or high blood pressure, the American Heart Association (AHM) explains. Eating a healthy and balanced diet involves including a variety of unprocessed foods, such as fruits and vegetables, whole grains and foods low in saturated fats, sugars and salt. In this way, on the one hand, it contributes to reducing the risk of suffering from hypercholesterolemia, a pathology that, as the Spanish Heart Foundation (FEC) points out, is linearly related to the risk of heart attack. Specifically, the FEC points out that "when the cells are unable to absorb all the cholesterol circulating in the blood, the excess is deposited in the wall of the artery and contributes to its progressive narrowing, causing atherosclerosis", one of the underlying causes. of heart attacks.
On the other hand, healthy eating also helps prevent hypertension, a pathology that increases the workload of the heart, which causes a thickening of the heart muscle, which becomes more rigid, they explain in the AHM. This increase in muscle mass, they add from the FEC, "ends up being harmful because it is not accompanied by an equivalent increase in blood flow and can cause coronary insufficiency and angina pectoris." Likewise, hypertension makes the heart muscle more irritable and more arrhythmias occur, in addition to promoting arteriosclerosis (accumulation of cholesterol in the arteries) and thrombosis phenomena (which can cause myocardial infarction or cerebral infarction).
Associated with obesity, smoking, high blood cholesterol levels or diabetes, high blood pressure also increases the risk of suffering a heart attack or stroke. Diet is also closely associated with diabetes, and this with CVD. As the Ministry of Health points out in its campaign to prevent cardio and cerebrovascular pathologies, “cardiovascular diseases are the main complication of type 2 diabetes and are responsible for more than 50% and up to 80% of deaths. in people with diabetes, as well as significant morbidity and loss of quality of life.”
Performing physical activity on a regular basis is the only treatment against a sedentary lifestyle, another of the main cardiovascular risk factors due to its association, again, with pathologies such as hypertension, hypercholesterolemia or obesity. Likewise, quitting tobacco and alcohol are the only two effective measures to avoid the risks associated with their consumption. In the case of tobacco, this habit can temporarily increase blood pressure and can contribute to damage to the arteries, as can being exposed to this smoke even if you are not a smoker, warns the AEH. The FEC also remembers that two years after quitting smoking, the risk of coronary heart disease decreases substantially and is similar to that of a non-smoker after 15 years of quitting this habit.
Specialists also point out that there is no safe level of exposure to tobacco, nor is there a safe level of alcohol consumption. Although drinking less can reduce the risk of suffering from cardiovascular diseases, the WHF explains, evidence shows that the ideal situation for health is not drinking at all. In addition, the HAE warns, excessive consumption is associated with an increase in blood pressure and increases the risk of cardiomyopathy, stroke, cancer and other diseases, in addition to contributing to raising the level of triglycerides, producing irregular heartbeats, developing obesity or alcoholism.
