Two forms of cardiovascular disease that are the leading causes of death in America are heart attack and stroke. High blood pressure, smoking, diabetes, and a family history of heart disease are all risk factors. Excess weight can increase the likelihood of several risk factors developing.

Are you in good cardiovascular health? Are you reducing your chances of developing heart disease shortly? Research suggests that only a few Americans can answer these questions.

What is cardiometabolic health?

Your cardiovascular system comprises your heart, blood, vessels, and brain. A combination of several risk factors can be called cardiometabolic health. Researchers published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology to estimate the number of Americans with optimal cardiometabolic health. They analyzed survey results of more than 55,000 Americans. The following five criteria were considered optimal measures:

  • Ideal ranges for body mass index and waist circumference
  • Regular blood sugar (without the need to take medicine to lower it)
  • Ideal cholesterol levels (without taking medication to lower cholesterol).
  • Normal blood pressure without taking medication to lower it
  • There is no evidence of past cardiovascular diseases like stroke or heart attack.

The results are in, and they are eye-opening.

According to the study, only 6.8% of Americans had good cardiometabolic health as of 2018. This is less than 1 out of 14 Americans!

Researchers also discovered that:

  • The optimal cardiometabolic rate is falling. In 2018, 6.8% of the population was in good health. This compares to 7.7% in 2000 and 8.4% in 2004.
  • High blood sugar and excess weight are the main culprits. The proportion of people with regular blood sugar fell from 59% to 37% between 2000 and 2018.
  • There are many health disparities. This could be due to social factors such as where people live or work.

Good cardiometabolic health might be rare than this study suggests. These data were collected before the COVID-19 Pandemic. There is evidence that unhealthy habits increased during lockdowns.

Some good news for cardiometabolic health is buried among the bad news.

Despite being disappointing, this research revealed some positive news.

  • The proportion of people with good cardiometabolic health in the youngest age group (20-34 years old) has increased slightly from 14% to 15% in 2000 to 15% in 2018.
  • The ideal cholesterol levels have improved overall, from 30% in 2000 to 37% by 2018.
  • Many participants in the study had moderate (but not poor) cardiometabolic health. To move to the optimal group, they might only need minor changes.

What can you do for your cardiometabolic health scorecard to improve?

It’s easy for people to get discouraged when they see that Americans are failing in health measures and there are health disparities between different groups. This can be a personal call for action. It would be worthwhile to avoid a stroke or heart attack.

Consider your cardiometabolic health. What could be better? You can make small, manageable steps to reach your goals. Talk with your doctor.

  • Have your blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar tested. If they are not in the ideal range, find out what you can do to improve them. For example, getting enough exercise can improve all three.
  • You can lose excess weight by following a healthy diet and increasing your daily physical activity.
  • Stop smoking. Although not mentioned in the latest study, smoking is a significant risk factor for poor cardiometabolic and other diseases. You can either talk to your healthcare provider about creating a plan to stop. This may include medication or using the free resources at Smokefree.gov.

It can be hard to improve your cardiometabolic health on your own. Talk to your doctor to discuss the best way to track your progress and what steps you should take.

The bottom line

This research shows that few people do enough to prevent heart attacks, strokes, and other cardiometabolic diseases, particularly among specific populations. The good news is that we can reduce the risk of developing cardiometabolic diseases. Let’s get started.

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