A concerning revelation from recent research indicates that more than half of young people in the UK are facing the issue of “prematurely aged” hearts, with their heart age surpassing their actual age. The heart age testing tool, jointly developed by the National Health Service (NHS) and the British Heart Foundation, has been attracting a large number of participants since its launch.
This free – of – charge tool is mainly targeted at people over 30 years old who have not been diagnosed with heart problems, aiming to assess their heart health status. The research data shows that among the 1.9 million people who participated in the survey, a staggering 78% of those aged 30 and above showed signs of “premature heart aging”, with their heart age being greater than their chronological age. This significantly increases their risk of heart attacks and strokes. Notably, among young people under 40, the heart health of men is particularly severe, with 89% of men having an unhealthy heart, while the proportion of women of the same age is only 41%. Additionally, the research also found that many people in their 40s have hearts that are equivalent to those of 60 – year – olds, highlighting the seriousness of the heart health problem.
Experts point out that heart age is a crucial indicator for measuring heart health. Affected by factors such as lifestyle habits and health management, heart age often does not align with actual age. Unhealthy lifestyle factors, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking, poor diet, and lack of exercise, are key contributors to “premature heart aging”. The UK’s public health authorities have issued a warning that people with a heart age older than their actual age are at risk of “premature death or developing serious diseases”. They are calling on people over 30 in the UK to actively take the test to detect problems in a timely manner and take intervention measures. With the release of these research results, it has become an urgent task to raise public awareness of heart health and advocate a healthy lifestyle to improve the heart health of young people in the UK.
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