A word about prevention  

Until now, scientific knowledge regarding the significance of risk factors has shown that approximately 50% of heart attacks are caused by modifiable risk factors. Recently, the INTERHEART study, published in the prestigious medical journal. The Lancet, revealed some very significant results. The study involved 29,000 individuals in 52 countries around the world.

The results of the study show that in 90% of cases, the occurrence of an infarct could be explained by the six following risk factors: smoking, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes, abdominal obesity (a waist measurement of more than 100 cm for men and of more then 88 cm for women) and stress.

Moreover, three factors play a protective role: a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, physical activity and modest consumption of alcohol (one to two drinks per day). Once again, the results confirm how important prevention is in terms of decreasing the risk of heart attack. As well, this was the first time that stress was convincingly shown to be a risk factor for heart disease.

Sources:INTERHEART study published in The Lancet, vol. 364, no. 9438, September 11, 2004, p. 937-952.
Effect of potentially modifiable risk factors associated with myocardial infarction in 52 countries (the INTERHEART study): case-control study, Yusuf S., Hawken S., Ounpuu S. et al on behalf of the INTERHEART Study Investigators.

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