New CDC report suggests that over 400,000 Americans dead of cardiac deaths that were preventable
From Time:
Heart problems that were “largely preventable” killed around 415,000 Americans in 2016, new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says, highlighting the importance of proactive interventions.
Under its new Million Hearts campaign, which aims to prevent a million heart attacks and strokes by 2022, the CDC looked at 2016 data and identified approximately 2.2 million hospitalizations and 415,000 deaths caused by heart attacks, strokes, heart failure and related conditions that likely could have been avoided. The total number of deaths related to heart issues is even higher — in 2015, almost 634,000 people died of heart disease alone, making it the leading cause of death among American adults that year.
“Many of these cardiovascular events are happening to middle-aged adults — who we wouldn’t normally consider to be at risk,” CDC Principal Deputy Director Dr. Anne Schuchat said in a statement. “Most of these events can be prevented through daily actions to help lower risk and better manage medical conditions.”
Indeed, lifestyle changes can make a big difference when it comes to heart health. Here’s what the research says.
Additional information here.