The three most significant risk factors for heart disease are high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, and smoking. Others include diabetes, obesity, a sedentary lifestyle, and excessive alcohol consumption. As of 2019, a heart attack remained the most significant cause of death on a global scale, affecting almost 18.6 million people. The research funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute shows that the two huge contributors to heart disease and heart attacks are high blood pressure and diabetes, which were present in more women than men patients in this study. Seventy-one percent of the women studied had a history of high blood pressure, and 39% had a history of diabetes. Conversely, 64% of the men studied had high blood pressure, and 26% had a history of diabetes. High blood pressure and diabetes both increase an individual’s risk of obesity, the third cause of heart attack. With both disease rates higher in young women than young men, it’s a given that young women would be at higher risk of heart disease.
