Many people regularly book an appointment with their doctor to have their overall health checked. The blood pressure is systematically measured, while the nurse takes the usual blood samples to catch potential problems.
The numbers for the most common health markers take up a lot of space in the minds of general practitioners. A healthy life with plenty of exercise is not always enough, because genetics heavily influence the internal balance.
Fresh results now indicate that a specific hereditary factor is too often overlooked during routine checks. The discovery leaves an incredible number of people unaware of a serious threat.
Hidden danger lurking
Researchers from the organization Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions have examined blood samples from exactly 20,070 patients who were over 40 years old. Their research indicates that a specific cholesterol particle significantly increases the risk of heart disease, reports Science Daily.
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The culprit is called lipoprotein a. The amount in the blood is almost entirely determined by genetics. One in five people carries elevated levels of the particle according to the researchers, which often tricks the normal measurements.
The danger arises because the particle creates atherosclerosis, even if the usual cholesterol levels look perfectly fine. Most of the affected people feel no symptoms in their daily lives until the damage suddenly occurs.
The researchers followed the participants for an average of 3.98 years. They registered 1,461 serious cases during that period, which corresponds to 7.3 percent of the group, where the test subjects had heart problems or experienced actual strokes.
Simple test reveals
The analyses showed that a level of 175 nmol/L or above resulted in a highly increased risk of complications. The results suggest that the most vulnerable are people who already suffer from cardiovascular disease.
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The primary goal is to knock the regular cholesterol level completely down, while keeping a close eye on the blood pressure. A targeted effort will help tremendously.
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This article is made and published by Mie Hermansen, who may have used AI in the preparation.