Guide to Heart Disease

Doctors should start screening patients for their risk of developing heart disease or strokes as early as age 20, say the American Heart Association.
That calculation is based on factors such as age, smoking status, gender, blood pressure and cholesterol.
“Heart disease can be prevented, and we have to start at a young age to do it,” says Sidney Smith, professor of medicine at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, who was member of the panel that framed the guidelines.
The panel recommended:
• Weight loss for those with a body mass index over 25 or waist measurement over 40 inches for men and 35 inches for women.
• Moderate physical exercise 30 minutes per day, preferably every day.
• Low-dose aspirin for patients with a 10 per cent risk of developing heart disease within 10 years.
• No exposure to tobacco smoke, including second-hand smoke.
• Control of blood pressure and blood fats.
• Regular pulse checks and treatment for irregular heartbeat associated with blood clot formation, which could lead to stroke.

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