Disease Proof

Sorry for the sensationalist title, but this might shock you. New search has determined that more women under 45 are dying from heart disease. The Associated Press reports:

For decades, heart disease death rates have been falling. But a new study shows a troubling turn - more women under 45 are dying of heart disease due to clogged arteries, and the death rate for men that age has leveled off.


Heart experts aren’t sure what went wrong, but they think increasing rates of obesity and other risk factors are to blame…

…But what’s going on with younger adults is startling, said Dr. Anthony DeMaria, editor of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, which is publishing the study and released it Monday.

"We have a pretty rosy view of how things are going in the war against cardiovascular disease," DeMaria said. "I view this paper as a wake-up call that says there is a very important segment of our population that needs some attention."

Sadly, this isn’t all that surprising. Most people eat the standard American diet, and, according to Dr. Fuhrman heart disease starts young. I’ll let him explain:

As a result of the heart-unfriendly diet, blood vessel damage begins early. Not only does the development of coronary atherosclerosis develop in childhood, but earlier development of atherosclerosis and higher serum cholesterol levels in childhood result in a significantly higher risk of premature sudden death relatively early in life. Sometimes the effects of childhood dietary abuses can be seen relatively early, with premature death or a heart attack at a young age.


When we study people who died young of coronary artery disease, we find that the highest risk of an earlier death occurs in those who were above average weight in childhood.1 Findings from the famous Bogalusa Heart Study show that a high saturated fat intake early in life is strongly predictive of later heart disease burden and the higher blood pressure in childhood and adolescence is powerfully predictive of cardiovascular death in adulthood.2

It sure seems like the sooner you start eating for health and longevity, the better. I don’t know, just a thought.
1. Eriksson JG, Forsen T, Tuomilehto J, et al. Catch-up growth in childhood and death from coronary heart disease: longitudinal study. BMJ 1999;318(7181):427-431.

2. Berenson GS, Srinivasan SR, Nicklas TA. Atherosclerosis: a nutritional disease of childhood. Bogalusa Heart Study. AM J Cardiol 1998;82(10B):22T-29T. Berenson GS. Childhood risk factors predict adult risk associated with subclinical cardiovascular disease. The Bolgulusa Heart Study. Am J Cardiol 2002;90(10C):3L-7L. Vos LE, Orien A, Uiterwaal C, et al. Adolescent blood pressure and blood pressure tracking into young adulthood are related to subclinical atherosclerosis: the atherosclerosis risk in young adults (ARYA) study. Am J Hypertens 2003 16(7):549-555.