For a study, researchers sought to investigate age-related changes in cardiovascular health (CVH) measures for incident cardiovascular disease (CVD). Analyses were undertaken using data from the JMDC Claims Database from 2005 to 2020 (n=2,728,427; mean age 44.9±11.0 years; 56.2% men). Participants were divided into 3 age groups: 20 to 49 years (n=1,800,161), 50 to 59 years (n=644,703), and 60 to 75 years (n=283,563). Ideal CVH indices comprised nonsmoking, body mass index of less than 25 kg/m2, physical activity at goal, breakfast consumption, blood pressure of less than 120/80 mm Hg, fasting plasma glucose of less than 100 mg/dL, and total cholesterol of less than 200 mg/dL. About 5,988 myocardial infarction (MI), 53,409 angina pectoris, 26,530 strokes, and 52,712 heart failure (HF) episodes were observed over a mean follow-up period of somewhere between 1,194 and 917 days. The association between the number of non-ideal CVH measurements and incident CVD varied by age group, with the 20-to-49-year-olds displaying the strongest manifestations of this connection. Similarly, the relative risk reduction at 1 year for each cardiovascular disease event for an individual with 2 non-ideal CVH parameters that had been reduced to zero also dropped with age. This was the case for both men and women. For instance, the relative risk reduction for myocardial infarction was 0.51 in people aged 20 to 49, 0.48 in those aged 50 to 59, and 0.40 in those aged 60 to 75. In conclusion, in younger participants, CVH measures were more closely connected to incident CVD, including HF. This indicated the need to focus on improving modifiable risk factors and lifestyle choices in younger populations for the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease.
Source – ajconline.org/article/S0002-9149(22)00522-7/fulltext
