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Health Information
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Saturday, October 11, 2008
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Find
more information about this topic from either the Web or the world's best
medical journals by using the search boxes at the top of this page.
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| Chapter
1 |
So
You Have High Blood Cholesterol |
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Other
Risk Factors for Heart Disease
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| In addition
to a high LDL-cholesterol level and a low HDL- cholesterol
level, other factors also increase your chance of heart
disease. The chart below lists these risk factors. The more
of them you have, the higher your chance of developing heart
disease. If you have any of these risk factors in addition
to your high blood cholesterol, your risk of heart disease
is even greater.
In addition
to the risk factors on the chart, another factor that
influences your risk of heart disease is where your body
stores excess fat. If you have an apple-shaped body with
most of your fat around the stomach, you are at a greater
risk of heart disease than if your body is pear-shaped,
with most of your fat around your hips. Generally, men
carry their fat around the stomach, while women carry
it on the hips and thighs.
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| Risk
Factors for Heart Disease |
Factors
You Can
Do Something About |
Factors
You
Cannot Control |
- Cigarette
smoking
- High blood
cholesterol (high total cholesterol and high LDL-cholesterol)
- Low HDL-cholesterol
- High blood
pressure
- Diabetes
- Obesity
- Physical
inactivity
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- Age:
45 years or older for men
55 years or older for women
- Family
history of early heart disease (heart attack or
sudden death):
Father or brother
stricken before the age of 55
Mother or sister
stricken before the age of 65
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| Talk to your
doctor about all of your risk factors and what you can
do to reduce your chance of heart disease. Often, the
actions you take to control one risk factor help reduce
others as well. For example, losing weight helps to reduce
your blood cholesterol levels and high blood pressure,
and helps to control diabetes. Regular physical activity
can help you lose weight as well as improve the fitness
of your heart and lungs, which also can help lower your
risk of heart disease. |
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