Survey: Most people don’t know the numbers that help predict heart disease

NEW YORK, Feb. 7 (UPI) -- While many adults remember their childhood address or best friend's birthday, less than half know their blood pressure or ideal weight, and fewer than 1 in 5 are aware of their cholesterol or blood sugar levels, a new survey has found.

In December, the survey asked 1,000 adults nationwide if they knew their blood pressure, ideal weight, cholesterol or blood sugar levels. The highest percentage, 44%, knew their ideal weight, and the fewest, 15%, knew their blood sugar level.

In comparison, 68% knew their childhood address and 58% knew their best friend's birthday.

Results of the national survey -- conducted by The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus and released Wednesday -- noted that keeping track of blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar levels, body mass index and sleep can help identify risk factors for heart disease.

"Cardiovascular disease is the No. 1 killer of men and women in the U.S. Knowing your numbers is one of the first steps in understanding your risks of developing cardiovascular disease," Dr. Laxmi Mehta, director of preventative cardiology and women's cardiovascular health at The Ohio State Wexner Medical Center, told UPI via email.

"Then you take the necessary additional preventative steps should your numbers be in the abnormal range. If your numbers are in the normal range, we want to keep them there."

Mehta recommended following the American Heart Association's Life's Essential 8 behavioral factors, which include not smoking, following a healthy diet, engaging in regular aerobic exercise, not using nicotine products and getting sufficient sleep.

Most people believe diabetes is connected to either their family history or being overweight, and they don't make the link that it's also associated with heart disease, Mehta said.

She added that people with diabetes are twice as likely to suffer from heart disease or stroke than people without heart disease. And women with diabetes are at a more increased risk for heart disease than men.

Although the survey revealed that many Americans don't know key health numbers off the top of their heads, they are having them monitored. The majority reported having their blood pressure and heart rate checked within the last year and blood sugar and cholesterol tests within five years.

"We strongly recommend going to the doctor to be screened," Mehta said, adding that free health fairs and blood pressure machines at pharmacies can provide needed data.

Women, in particular, need to be aware of their numbers, doctors say.

"There was an old-fashioned belief that heart disease happened only in men," said Dr. Johanna Contreras, a cardiologist at The Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. "A lot of women do not pay attention to the risk factors."

In particular, "women don't know their numbers and what the healthy numbers are," Contreras said, referring to the measurements for blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol and BMI.

"Most cardiovascular disease can be prevented if people know their numbers, know their risk factors and understand how to control those to prevent heart disease," she said.

Dr. George "Rick" Stouffer, chief of cardiology and co-director of the McAllister Heart Institute at the University of North Carolina Medical Center in Chapel Hill, said that "many younger individuals don't fear heart disease like their parents and grandparents did. The perception is that cancer is a bigger threat."

Another common misperception is that cardiovascular disease mostly affects older people, doctors said.

"While this is true, what many people don't realize is that prevention, if started earlier, can prevent manifestations of heart disease later in life," Stouffer said.

"Atherosclerosis [hardening and narrowing of the arteries due to fatty deposits] progresses slowly and silently in most individuals and doesn't manifest clinical symptoms until there is severe disease."

In addition, many people inaccurately believe that proper diet, sufficient exercise and weight control will protect them from cardiovascular disease, but these lifestyle measures "don't provide a lifetime warranty," he said.

"Genetics and other factors are important, and individuals need to realize that they should have fasting glucose, blood pressure and cholesterol checked by a physician to make sure they aren't at elevated risk," Stouffer said.

"This is especially important in individuals with a family history of diabetes or cardiovascular disease."

Thanks to scientific advances in understanding heart disease, many tools, including medication and lifestyle changes, exist to help people lower their risk, said Dr. Daniel Muñoz, executive medical director of the Vanderbilt Heart and Vascular Institute at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville.

"This important study highlights a persistent gap in awareness," Munoz said. "Bridging that gap requires continued efforts to educate and empower the public, as well as continued efforts to make it easier for people to access the preventive care they need."

He added that "knowing your numbers unlocks key prevention opportunities. ... The key thing to know when it comes to preventing heart disease is that knowledge is power."