Discover the ease of determining your heart's true numerical equivalent with this handy tool
A groundbreaking online heart age calculator has been developed by Northwestern Medicine, making it easier for individuals to understand their cardiovascular risk and take proactive steps towards improving their heart health.
This innovative tool, based on the PREVENT Risk Age Calculator developed by the American Heart Association, uses common health data such as blood pressure, cholesterol, smoking status, diabetes, and medications to estimate a person's heart age. Instead of expressing cardiovascular risk as abstract percentages, this calculator translates it into an age equivalent, making heart health assessment more accessible.
According to the study, led by Sadiya S Khan, the Magerstadt Professor of cardiovascular epidemiology, most U.S. adults have hearts aging faster than their chronological age, often by several years. The research found that Black men had a heart age 8.5 years older than their chronological age, compared to 6.4 years for white men. Hispanic and Black women also had significantly older heart ages than white or Asian women. Furthermore, those with lower income or education levels were found to have similarly older heart ages.
The calculator aims to improve communication between doctors and patients, encouraging informed discussions about prevention and motivating lifestyle changes that can reduce the risk of heart attacks, strokes, or heart failure. By providing a relatable measure of risk, the calculator helps individuals grasp their heart health risk more intuitively, showing whether their heart is "older" or "younger" than their actual age.
The study, published in the journal JAMA Cardiology, highlights the need for more urgent action due to the identified disparities in heart age. Khan believes the tool could empower individuals to optimize their heart health for healthier aging and longer lifespans. The calculator is proposed for use in primary care to facilitate conversations about risk and encourage healthier choices.
Identifying individuals with an 'older' heart age can help prioritize prevention in at-risk individuals. Small changes in lifestyle, as suggested in other articles, can significantly reduce the risk of heart disease. Khan suggests that the tool could motivate individuals to exercise, quit smoking, improve their diet, and manage their blood pressure or cholesterol levels.
The heart age calculator is free to try online and can be a valuable resource for anyone looking to take control of their heart health. By understanding their heart age, individuals can make informed decisions about their health and work towards a longer, healthier life.
- Science and technology have played a pivotal role in the development of a groundbreaking online heart age calculator by Northwestern Medicine.
- This new tool, derived from the PREVENT Risk Age Calculator developed by the American Heart Association, employs common health data for estimating a person's heart age.
- Most U.S. adults, according to a study led by Sadiya S Khan, have hearts ageing faster than their chronological age, with varying disparities between different racial and ethnic groups.
- The calculator aims to bridge the gap between doctors and patients, fostering informed discussions about prevention and motivating lifestyle changes that can impact chronic diseases like heart disease.
- The calculator helps individuals comprehend their heart health risk more intuitively by providing a relatable measure of risk, showing whether their heart is "older" or "younger" than their actual age.
- The publication of this study in the journal JAMA Cardiology underscores the urgent need for actions to address the identified disparities in heart age, particularly among minority populations.
- Khan believes that the calculator could empower individuals to optimize their heart health for a healthier aging process and longer lifespans, and encourages its use in primary care settings for facilitating risk discussions and encouraging healthier choices.
- Identifying individuals with an 'older' heart age can aid in prioritizing prevention, and small changes in lifestyle, as suggested elsewhere, can significantly reduce the risk of chronic conditions such as heart disease.
- This free-to-use online heart age calculator can serve as a valuable resource for anyone aiming to take charge of their heart health, weight-management, skin-care, mental-health, fitness-and-exercise, nutrition, and overall health-and-wellness, working towards a longer, healthier life.
