3 out of 4 American adult's 'heart age' are older than their actual age: CDC
A report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that 75 percent of Americans have hearts that are older than their actual age.
While age may just be a number, the report by CDC reveals that the average American man's heart is nearly eight years "older," and in American women, their "heart age" is nearly six years older than their chronological age. The results of the study were published in CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
To estimate the heart age of American adults, the health institute used the data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System database. The survey contains the participant's health data including age, gender, body mass index (BMI) and underlying health conditions such as diabetes or high blood pressure.
According to a report by the LA Times, researchers have found that certain groups have hearts older than their body's age. They also found that the older a person, the higher the heart age gap and their actual age. But in households that have higher education and income, the gap decreases.
The report also revealed that African Americans had the highest heart age gaps with an average of 11 years for both men and women. The group was followed by Whites, Hispanics and other racial or ethnic groups.
According to the Daily Mail, cardiovascular heart disease is one of the leading causes of death in America. The American Heart Association states that for the first occurrence of heart attacks, men get it at an average of 64 years old and 72 years old for women. One in four deaths in the US is caused by heart disease.
"This is alarming. Heart disease is the nation's number one killer," said CDC's Quanhe Yang, the lead author of the study. "But the bottom line is you can do some very simple things to become younger at heart."
With that said, the CDC released a graphic prescription of what to do to lower the heart age.
The image shows that managing high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes can help in lowering heart age. It also suggests making lifestyle adjustments in terms of cutting off smoking, eating a healthy diet full of fresh fruits and vegetables, and exercising for at least 150 minutes every week.