Healthy Habits will help you live longer, but so few of us have them!

Several recent population-based studies reported that healthy lifestyles could decrease cardiovascular events (heart attack and stroke) and decrease death. Swedish researchers studied healthy lifestyles in over 20,000 men, aged 45-79 who had no known heart disease.  Each of five healthy lifestyles (healthy diet, no smoking, regular exercise, two or fewer alcoholic drinks per day and having a small belt size) incrementally lowered the risk of heart attack, and those that adhered to all five, prevented almost 80% (that’s four out of five!) heart attacks.  This combination of healthy behavior however, was only seen in one percent of all men.

Women, too, can prevent heart disease.  American researchers showed similar results in data from the women's health initiative.  This study specifically looked at predictors of heart failure risk, and over 11 years they found that women who ate well, exercised regularly, maintained a healthy body mass index, and did not smoke had a 77% lower risk of having heart failure. In 88,000 young women (aged 27-44) who participated in the Nurses Health Study II, no smoking, a normal body mass index, physical activity (two and a half hours per week), television viewing of less than seven hours per week, diet in the top 40% of the Alternative Healthy Eating Index, mild alcohol intake (about one glass per day) also prevented women from getting heart disease and from even developing the risk factors (i.e. diabetes, hypertension and hypercholesterolemia).

Similarly in the MESA study (Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis) only two percent of all participants (men and women) were able to adhere to four healthy lifestyles, (healthy diet, ideal body mass index, regular physical activity and no smoking) but those who did also had 80% lower risk.

It is very rare that numerous studies show such similar results.  Everyone can do this!

References:
Journal of the American College of Cardiology, September 30, 2014
Journal of the American College of cardiology, volume 64, 2014.
Journal of the American College of Cardiology, January 2015
American Journal of Epidemiology, July 2013