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Heart Disease Risk Can Be Reduced By Blood Pressure And Cholesterol Control.
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Simultaneously controlling your high blood pressure and high cholesterol may cut
your risk for heart disease by half or more, according to new research in the
Heart Association journal Circulation. Yet fewer than one in three people achieve
this goal.
Researchers also found: • Prescribing medications to better manage blood pressure and cholesterol would greatly benefit people who are older, diabetic, have cardiovascular disease . • Going to the doctor at least twice a year could help. "The reality is, we know more than enough to prevent 75 percent of heart disease and strokes, but we're not doing everything we could be doing or even doing it at a reasonable level," he said. "We've made some gradual improvements over the years, but there is still a lot of progress to be made." Cholesterol readings need closer attention, Doctor said. "If patients' cholesterol tests show a good high-density lipoprotein (HDL) level, which is the healthy, protective cholesterol, then the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) number might get overlooked. Unfortunately, not all HDL is equally protective and some people with a normal HDL are at high risk. In those patients, there might be a false sense of assurance that cholesterol really isn't a problem. But LDL and non-HDL readings are the ones to really watch. Patients seeing their doctors for blood pressure treatment should ask about their LDL and non-HDL levels and make sure both are under control at the same time." |