4 extra years of healthy life if your heart is strong at 60
HAVING a healthy heart in middle age adds years of illness-free life, scientists have claimed.
Researchers have found a good cardiovascular system up to the age of 60 staves off many types of potentially deadly disease.
According to the study those with good heart health survived four and a half years longer before developing any chronic illness.
Researchers examined data from the Chicago Health Association study, which did initial health assessments in the late 1960s and early 1970s and has followed participants ever since.
They determined how many participants had favourable factors such as being a non-smoker, free of diabetes and normal weight, healthy blood pressure and cholesterol levels, versus those with high-risk factors.
Comparing those who had two or more high-risk factors in middle age with those among the 17,939 participants who reached age 65 without chronic illness, researchers found that those with all favourable factors lived almost four years longer on average.
Dr Norrina Allen, assistant professor of preventive medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, said: “Good cardiovascular health in middle age delays the onset of many types of disease so that people live longer and spend a much smaller proportion of their lives with chronic illness.
“Health professionals need to let young adults know that adopting a heart-healthy lifestyle makes it more likely that you’ll live longer and still be healthy enough to do the things you love to do when you’re older.
“We need to think about cardiovascular health at all stages of life. The small proportion of participants with favourable levels in their 40s is a call for all of us to maintain or adopt healthy lifestyles earlier in life.”
Christopher Allen, senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, said: “Living a healthy lifestyle from as young an age as possible helps to ensure you are more likely to live a longer, healthier life free from the burden of heart disease.
“Coronary heart disease is the UK’s single biggest killer and we know from research that it is never too late to start making these healthy choices.
“They will have benefits no matter what your age and if you delay these changes, it can take years off your life expectancy.
“Get to know your blood pressure and cholesterol levels – along with how to keep them in check – and remember that even small changes to diet and exercise can make all the difference.”
The research was published in the journal Circulation.