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High blood pressure linked to heart attacks

12/21/11

A new study conducted by researchers at Chicago's Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine revealed that midlife fluctuation in blood pressure could be a link to later heart attacks.

The study involved more than 61,000 people and was one of the most comprehensive studies ever, examining how changes in blood pressure can affect people over a long period of time.

The study participants who had a normal blood pressure at 55 years of age had a 22 to 41 percent lower risk of having a heart disease or stroke, researchers found. People who had already developed high blood pressure by the age of 55 had a much higher, 42 to 69 percent risk of developing heart disease or having a stroke.

“People who maintained a low blood pressure of less than 120 over 80 had the lowest lifetime risk for [heart disease and stroke], and those who stayed above 140 over 90 had the highest,” researcher Norrina Allen told WebMD. “The longer people can delay the onset of hypertension, the better off they are.”

Researchers were able to estimate lifetime risk for heart attacks, strokes and other heart related events for white and African-American adults, which revealed the latter are at a much higher risk.

With more than 233,000 annual deaths from heart attacks in the United States, according to the Women's Heart Foundation, Americans may want to consider life insurance to help their families prepare for any unexpected occurrences.

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