How Healthy Are You? 8 Risk Factors for Cardiovascular Disease

Risk Factors for Cardiovascular Disease

Do you consider yourself healthy? Did you know that there are eight risk factors for cardiovascular disease. These factors are backed by extensive research and we’ll discuss each factor in this article.

Some risk factors are modifiable and can be changed through diet and exercise while others are non-modifiable.

8 Risk Factors for CVD

Age: Are you a man aged 45 or above or a female aged 55 or above? If so, this is considered a risk factor.

Family history: Did your father or brother have a heart attack or die suddenly before they were 55? If so, this is considered a risk factor. Likewise, if your mother or sister had a heart attack or died suddenly before 65 years of age this is also a risk factor.

While your age and family history cannot be changed the good news is that six other risk factors can be minimised through lifestyle changes.

Smoking: If you are a smoker or have quit within the last six months this is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease.

Sedentary lifestyle: Do you participate in at least 3 days of moderate intensity activity? If you don’t, or have not done for at least 3 months this is considered a risk factor.

Obesity: What is your waist girth? 40 inches or above for a male and 35 inches or above for a female is considered a risk factor. Read this article on how to correctly assess your waist girth.

Hypertension: There are two separate numbers you need to look for when taking blood pressure. The top is systolic and the bottom is diastolic pressure. A systolic blood pressure reading of >140 and or diastolic >90, or taking medication to control your blood pressure is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease.

Dyslipidemia: This is essentially high cholesterol readings. LDL cholesterol should be no more than 3 mmol/l, total cholesterol no more than 5 mmol/l and triglycerides no more than 2 mmol/l. The Irish Heart Foundation has a great webpage about cholesterol and it can be found here.

Pre-diabetes: fasting blood sugar of 4 to 7 mmol/l is considered normal. Anything above 7 mmol/l is considered a risk factor.

How to Decrease Your Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

On paper it seems straightforward

Give up smoking
Get more exercise
Eat better

However, we as coaches understand it is seldom that easy. Most often, these are long-term ingrained habits that can be difficult to break free from.

Research has shown that risk reduction for cardiovascular disease appears with even small bouts of daily exercise and peaks at 50-60 min of vigorous exercise each day.

Get Started on Your Fitness Journey at Motiv8 Fitness

There is no such thing as being too unfit to work with us. Our small group classes will allow you to receive plenty of attention from experienced coaches that have years of experience training people just like you. You won’t be out of place and we can get you moving safely- putting you on a pathway to success.

Our small group coaching option includes nutrition support and accountability. If you’re looking to make sustainable and long term changes to your diet so that you can decrease your cholesterol and blood sugar numbers this programme will be the perfect fit for you.

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