Nutrition Information

Age

by Pierre S Aoukar, MD and Hratch L Karamanoukian, MD
Posted: February 16

Who says you can’t age gracefully. Just do all the things we’ve told you are good for your heart and you’ll be well on your way to botox-free golden years. Studies have shown that the older you are when first diagnosed with heart disease, the better your prognosis. The younger guys usually do the worst. This may seem counterintuitive. However, as you age, plaques build up slowly in your coronary arteries (arteries that supply blood to your heart) giving your heart time to form collaterals. Collaterals are very thin, almost microscopic blood vessels that extend through the heart from an artery with good flow to areas of the heart with poor circulation. The older you are, usually, the more collaterals you have and the lower your risk of having a major heart attack.

Reference:
Age, Introduction to Heart Disease, Excerpt from the book: Everything Good For The Heart: The A to Z Guide, Aoukar PS and Karamanoukian HL. Magalhaes Scientific Press

Date of Article Publication:
In Press