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What works for men and women


Road Runner

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To prevent heart disease.  Most of this we already know, but I thought the statistics were interesting.  From WebMD.

 

 

What Works for Women?

 

One of the new studies followed nearly 70,000 women for 20 years. The women reported on their habits, such as diet and exercise, and gave the researchers other health information every 2 years. At the start of the study, the women were an average age of 37 and none had diabetes or diseases of the heart or blood vessels.

 

Not only did the women who followed all six healthy habits nearly get rid of their heart attack risk -- cutting it by 92% -- they also lowered their odds of getting a risk factor, like high blood pressure, by 66%.

 

Here are the six habits that mattered:

  • Don't smoke.
  • Have a normal body mass index (BMI).
  • Get moderate to vigorous exercise for at least 2.5 hours a week.
  • Watch 7 or fewer hours of television weekly.
  • Drink one or fewer alcoholic beverages daily.
  • Eat a healthy diet of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, fish, or omega-3 fatty acids -- as well as limit sugary drinks, processed and red meats, trans fats, and sodium.

Meeting all of these habits can be a lofty goal. Less than 5% of the women followed them all, according to the study.

 

But it's not a case of all or nothing, says study leader Andrea Chomistek, ScD. She's a researcher from the Indiana University Bloomington School of Public Health. "Even women who reported only one or two healthy behaviors had a lower risk of heart disease than those who did zero," she says.

 

Having a normal BMI had the most impact on lowering the risk, she says.

 

Even for women who developed risk factors, such as high blood pressure or high cholesterol, following at least four of the habits was linked with a lower risk of getting heart disease, compared to women who followed none.

 

The study reinforces research showing that what works for older women also works for younger women -- those who are premenopausal and who may not consider themselves old enough for a heart attack, she says. These habits are important because the overall death rate from heart disease in the U.S. has increased among younger women ages 35 to 44.

 

What Works for Men?

 

In another recent study that looked at men and heart disease, Swedish researchers followed more than 20,000 men from 1997 through 2009. At the study start, the men were ages 45 to 79 with no histories of heart or blood vessel diseases, diabetes, high blood pressure, or high cholesterol. They gave the researchers info on their health habits during the study, too.

 

The researchers found that following these five habits cut men’s heart attack risk by 86%:

  • Don't smoke.
  • Eat a healthy diet.
  • Drink alcohol moderately: about two or fewer drinks daily.
  • Be physically active -- walk or cycle at least 40 minutes daily.
  • Have a waist circumference of less than 37 inches.

The researchers, from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, found that only 1% of the men followed all five healthy habits.

A healthy diet and moderate drinking had the most impact on reducing men’s risk, they found.

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I don't smoke - never have.

My diet doesn't suck too bad.

I don't drink, maybe I should?

I am at least that active.

My waist is under 37 (finally)

 

My resting heart rate used to be in the 80s - 90s, it's now in the 60s.  For a long time I was on blood pressure medication, now I take nothing accept vitamins.

 

I will still die.

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I don't smoke - never have.

My diet doesn't suck too bad.

I don't drink, maybe I should?

I am at least that active.

My waist is under 37 (finally)

 

My resting heart rate used to be in the 80s - 90s, it's now in the 60s.  For a long time I was on blood pressure medication, now I take nothing accept vitamins.

 

I will still die.

 

But maybe not from a heart attack.   :)

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Don't smoke. - Nope
Have a normal body mass index (BMI). - Yup
Get moderate to vigorous exercise for at least 2.5 hours a week. - I get about 12 hours a week
Watch 7 or fewer hours of television weekly. - I watch sitcom reruns and other things in the evening on Netflix.  I don't understand how this hurts my health if I exercise, eat healthy and all that Jazz.  I call Bullshit on this one being so terrible for your health.  I think they correlate this for the couch potatoes that don't move and eat cheetos.  
Drink one or fewer alcoholic beverages daily. - I rarely drink any alcohol these days
Eat a healthy diet of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, fish, or omega-3 fatty acids -- as well as limit sugary drinks, processed and red meats, trans fats, and sodium. - YUP
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Don't smoke. Never have
Eat a healthy diet. Am eating very healthy
Drink alcohol moderately: about two or fewer drinks daily. A lot less now
Be physically active -- walk or cycle at least 40 minutes daily. Hahaha! Way more active than that now.
Have a waist circumference of less than 37 inches. 34-36"

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