Risk Factors

Each year nearly 950,000 Americans die of cardiovascular disorders, making heart disease the number one cause of death in the U.S. More than six million men and women in the U.S. have some symptoms of cardiovascular disease. Although there are many types of cardiovascular disease, the most common form is known as coronary artery disease (CAD). Most heart attacks are caused by fatty cholesterol deposits, or plaque, that clog the arteries blocking the flow of blood. These plaques are deposited on the walls of the arteries causing CAD. Over time the blood vessels that nourish the heart narrow. When blood can no longer flow normally, chest pain or a heart attack is likely to result.

Risk factors are conditions or behaviors that speed up the development of plaque in the coronary arteries, placing you at increased risk for CAD. The more risk factors you have, either modifiable or non-modifiable, the more likely you are to develop CAD.

• Risk factors you can change are known as modifiable risk factors
• And non-modifiable risk factors are those that are hereditary, and do not lend themselves to change

Click on a link below for more information on heart disease risk factors.

Non-Modifiable Risk Factors
Modifiable Risk Factors