SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3/AP) – The American Heart Association is warning that the number of women living with cardiovascular disease could climb by more than a third by 2050.
While an aging population is a contributing factor, doctors are raising concerns about rising rates of obesity and diabetes in girls and young women. Experts say controlling modifiable risk factors now is key to reversing the trend.
“Smoking obviously increases the risk, but a lot of it has to do with obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure,” said Lacy Schnelle, a cardiology nurse practitioner. “So going to get routine checks, getting those kind of things checked, controlling those modifiable risk factors — the things we can’t change, our age, our genetics, we can’t do anything about — but trying to modify the things that we can.”…