Age is not a factor in heart disease risk

Heart issues can attack all ages

BY HALEY LENA HLENA@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

It is a common myth that heart disease does not a ect the younger population. However, Dr. Je Park, a cardiologist with Aurora Denver Cardiology Associates at e Medical Center of Aurora says that is a common myth.

“High long standing blood pressure issues with long standing cholesterol issues, long standing diabetes, yeah, that puts you at higher risk for sure,” said Park. “But there’s de nitely a genetic component.”

Heart disease can present itself in many ways to di erent people and may not always be obvious.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking, obesity, diabetes and unhealthy eating patterns are appearing among younger people and placing them at a higher risk for heart disease.

“ e patients are getting younger, we’ve had heart attacks in patients who are in their twenties,” said Park. ere are certain genetic conditions where individuals are at increased risk of having a heart attack, Park said. Cholesterol issues is a primary indicator.

One example given by Park is a condition called familial hypercholesterolemia, or FH. is is a genetic disorder where people have high low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels. People have a predisposition for heart disease at that point as the body cannot recycle bad lipids, Park said.

“You’re like ‘I’m too young to see a doctor’ and I’m guilty of that same concept, you know, but it’s a matter of if you get identi ed early on, it’s a matter of your treatment starts earlier and you’re protected early,” said Park.

Park says it’s never too soon to check one’s heart health. e American Heart Association has ways to help prevent heart disease throughout each stage of life, starting when at 20 years and older.

Heart disease is a man’s disease “ at’s a false, false, false statement,” said Park. “I think I’ve treated more women than I have treated men, or at least equally, and I guess it’s a matter of what’s the cause of the heart disease that you’re talking about.”

According to Park, heart disease and heart attacks in women present themselves di erently from men. It might notbe the typical chest pain and it might not be the typical exertional component that people tend to think about, said Park. Women can feel some indigestion but end up having a heart attack.

A map presented by the CDC shows heart disease death rates among women 35 and older across the U.S.

According to the CDC, between 2018 and 2020, the Colorado average estimated heart disease death rate for all races and ethnicities in women 35 and older was 195 per 100,000 people. e average estimated number for Douglas County was 154.

Symptoms do not always occur while the body is doing physical activity, Park said, symptoms can arise while the body is resting.

“Even if you’re feeling great, you never know,” said Park.