Originally published October 28 2005
British Heart Foundation releases alarming statistics on cardiovascular disease
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
The British Heart Foundation recently released cardiovascular disease statistics that estimate CVD costs the European Union €169 billion a year.
According to the latest European cardiovascular disease (CVD) statistics from the British Heart Foundation, CVD is estimated to cost the EU economy some ¬169 billion a year.
Speaking at the Raisio Benecol Hearts and Minds Symposium in Brussels last week, Professor Klőr said that since many chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular and coronary heart disease, are basically self-inflicted and lifestyle dependent, it follows that lifestyle modification is a cost-effective prevention and treatment measure.
He drew on findings of the PROCAM Munster Heart Study carried out between 1979 and 1991, which found that the risk factors for people who have experienced coronary events, in ascending order of prevalence were: diabetes mellitus; family history of myocardial infarction; LCL cholesterol; triglyceride levels; HDL cholesterol; cholesterol; hypertension; and smoking.
In those without coronary events, hypertension was the greatest risk factor at 31 percent prevalence, followed by smoking at 29.9 percent.
While nothing can be done about personal and family history, diet is amongst the modifiable factors -- along with smoking, cholesterol and triglyceride levels, obesity and exercise.
Each year, cardiovascular disease accounts for 1.9 million deaths in the EU -- that is, 42 percent of all deaths.
Rather, the new approach should be to 'change the food' -- that is, put bioactive compounds into ordinary foods to prevent and treat chronic diseases, which will make it easier for consumers and patients to adhere to long-term therapeutic strategies.
While functional ingredients should be undetectable in smell, taste and texture, they should be developed with the same attention to efficacy and safety as drugs, providing human studies to substantiate the health claim.
This is crucial to acceptance by the medical community, which is not fully positive about functional foods at the moment as it does not know much about it.
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