From the American Heart Association's 39th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention March 24-27, 1999, Orlando, Fla.
To complement our news releases, here are some additional news tips reported by the American Heart Association for Wednesday, March 24. For more information, March 24-27, call Carole Bullock or Darcy Spitz at the Omni Rosen Hotel, Ph.: 407-996-2410. Before or after those dates, call the AHA's News Media Relations office in Dallas: Ph: 214-706-1173.
4:00 p.m. -- #P13 -- Too much salt means higher risk of heart disease and stroke for overweight people. In a study of nearly 1,000 men and 1,700 women, researchers found that high dietary salt intake is a strong risk factor for heart disease and stroke death in people who are overweight. Over an average 19-year follow-up, scientists at Tulane School of Public Health in Louisiana found that a 100 mmol increase in sodium intake was associated with a 96 percent increase in stroke deaths, a 48 percent increase in deaths from coronary heart disease, a 67 percent increase in combined deaths from heart disease and stroke, and a 43 percent increase in deaths from all causes. Researchers also found a 35 percent increased stroke incidence. Jiang He, Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, New Orleans, Ph.: 504-588-5165.
4:00 p.m. -- #P15 -- Women who snore may be at greater risk for cardiovascular disease and high blood pressure. Listening to someone snore can undoubtedly get on your nerves, but for the person snoring the problem may be more serious than a simple annoyance. Researchers say that snoring can activate the sympathetic nervous system -- the part of the nervous system that controls involuntary actions, such as heart rate, blood pressure and breathing -- by causing a temporary condition called hypoxia that results from obstructed breathing. Once the sympathetic nervous system is activated, a person can experience high blood pressure. Scientists at Harvard University examined the association between snoring and the incidence of cardiovascular disease among an estimated 72,000 women, aged 40-65, without previously diagnosed heart disease or cancer. At an eight-year follow-up, they found 7,622 individuals with high blood pressure and 1,042 individuals who had experienced a major cardiovascular event, such as a stroke or a diagnosis of heart disease. Snoring was assessed through a mailed questionnaire at the beginning of the investigation. Compared with non-snorers, those who snored occasionally had about a 20 percent higher risk of developing a cardiovascular event. The risk was 33 percent for regular snorers. The researchers found a similar association between snoring and high blood pressure. Further study is needed to clarify the underlying mechanism for the associations. However, assessing snoring may help physicians to identify individuals at higher risk for cardiovascular disease. Frank Hu, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Ph.: 617-432-0113.
4:00 p.m. -- #P24 -- Controlling weight helps workout routines in reducing cardiovascular risk in young adults. Researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham examined fitness levels and body weight in over 4,100 men and women, 18 to 30 years. Fitness level was determined by "maximum treadmill time (TRT)," the amount of time each individual spent on a treadmill. At a seven-year follow-up, the researchers compared beginning and ending body mass index (BMI), blood pressure and cholesterol levels for each individual. In women with no changes in weight, systolic blood pressure decreased by about 2 mm Hg, as time spent on a treadmill increased by more than one minute. Also, LDL cholesterol (the so-called "bad" cholesterol) decreased by 13 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) and HDL (the "good" cholesterol) increased by 1.8 mg/dL as treadmill time increased. However, when treadmill time remained stable and weight decreased, changes in these factors were even greater with blood pressure dropping by nearly 6 mm Hg, LDL decreasing by 13.3 mg/dL and HDL increasing by 3.6 mg/dL. Researchers found similar results in men. Thus, researchers conclude that weight control has an important effect in reducing risk for cardiovascular disease. Cora Lewis, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Ph.: 205-934-6383.
4:00 p.m. -- #P29 -- Overweight children may have more risk factors for cardiovascular disease when they reach middle age. Researchers found people who are overweight early in life have higher levels of risk factors for cardiovascular disease -- high blood cholesterol and high blood pressure -- than people who become overweight as adults. Scientists studied more than 15,000 examination records of participants in the Fels Longitudinal Study to identify three groups of individuals: those never overweight, those overweight in childhood and those overweight in adulthood. Individuals with a body mass index (BMI) greater than 25 were considered overweight. Their results showed that people who were overweight for the longest time had the lowest levels of HDL, the "good cholesterol" and the highest blood pressures in middle age. Roger Siervogel, Wright State University School of Medicine, Ph.: 937-767-6915.