with Dr. Mike Magee Cardiovascular Disease: Still Our #1 Killer @ by Mike Magee, MD (NAPSA)—If you’re searching for the leading cause of disability in the United States, you don’t haveto look far. It’s cardiovascular disease. Forty percentof all deaths are cardiovascular in nature, and this year there were more than one million heart attacks in this country. Yet Americans \) have become amaz% ingly complacent about heart disease and stroke—mostly because we’ve made such great progress in fighting cardioMike Magee, MD vascular disease in “~~ recent years. Millions of Americans are sim- ply unaware that cardiovascular disease, in the form of heart attacks and strokes, is still a threat and will likely present a serious health challenge sometime in theirlives. This complacency means new cardiovascular trouble is clearly brewing for our society. The rate of decrease in cardiovascular death is slowing. Cases of heart failure and stroke are on therise. Fewer young people have healthy lifestyles, with two-thirds of Americans at 40 now showing some blockage of their coronary arteries by plaque. Recent studies show that we Americans overestimate, by a large degree, our cardiovascular health. Seventy-six percent say they try to maintain a healthy weight, but only 36 percent really do. Sixty-eight percent say they try to avoid high-fat, high-cholesterol foods, but only 10 percentfollow national nutrition guidelines. What’s clear is that we’re in cardiovascular denial. Fifty-seven percent of Americans do not believe they’re at much risk for cardiovascular disease, despite the overwhelming evidence to the contrary. The famous preventative cardiologist Dr. Paul Dudley White once said, “Heart disease before 80: It’s man’s fault, not God or Nature’s will.” He was right then. He’s still right today. What to do? First, ask your doctor for information on how to maintain a healthy heart. Second, keep track of a few crucial numbers—your weight and blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar levels. Third, involve your family in better health—create a smokefree home, improve nutrition for everyone, watch less TV indoors, get more exercise outdoors. With cardiovascular disease, we’ve made great progress. It would be unfortunate to let those gainsslip away. Mike Magee, MD, is a Senior Fellow in the Humanities to the World Medical Association, direc- tor of the Pfizer Medical Humanities Initiative and host of the weekly Web cast “s with Dr. Mike Magee.” For more information on car- diovascular disease or to receive a free weekly health report from Dr. Magee, visit the Web site at www.HealthPolitics.com.
