Fact checked by Nick BlackmerFact checked by Nick Blackmer
Key Takeaways
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A recent study found that a high heart score was associated with a lower biological lifespan.
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The AHA recently added sleep to its list of important heart health factors, making it Life’s Essential 8.
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Just one of Life’s Essential 8 can have a positive impact on others.
A new study published in Journal of the American Heart Association found that certain behaviors and health factors—coined Life’s Essential 8—can affect health at the cellular level, shortening biological lifespan.
The study found that people who scored higher on Life’s Essential 8 had lower epigenetic age biomarkers that help protect against cardiovascular disease (CVD). These findings further increase the knowledge that living a healthy lifestyle can lead to longevity and heart health.
“This study found that better scores on Life’s Essential 8 are associated with younger DNA methylation-based epigenetic age, independent of chronological age,” Randi Foraker, PhD, professor of medicine for the Institute of Informatics, Data Science, and Biostatistics at Washington University in St. Louis, told Verywell.
“The opportunity to have a younger epigenetic age, even among those who are at risk of accelerated epigenetic aging, could certainly help motivate people to change their behavior to impact heart health,” Foraker said.
Changing the health factors that make up Life’s Essential 8 can help reduce CVD risk and shorten biological lifespan.
What is Biological Age?
While chronological age refers to the number of years from birth to the present, biological age refers to how well the body functions. Experts use biomarkers (molecules in the body that indicate abnormalities or diseases) to measure biological age and determine the risk of certain chronic conditions, such as CVD.
The main findings of the study show that the daily habits included in Life’s Essential 8 can directly affect cell function by reducing DNA methylation, a chemical process in the body linked to CVD, among other conditions.
What Determines Your Heart Health Score
Life’s Essential 8 are eight factors that contribute to heart health. The eight components that make up the heart health score include the following:
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Diet
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Physical activity
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Tobacco use
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Sleep
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Weight
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Cholesterol
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Blood sugar
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Blood pressure
A recent study found that improving your heart health score can help reduce your biological age and your risk of developing CVD. Below is a more in-depth explanation of each component and instructions on how to calculate your score.
Eat Well
Consuming nutrient-dense foods is an important factor in reducing the risk of CVD and other chronic conditions. While eating the right amount of calories for your needs is important, the type of food you eat also has a significant impact on your overall health.
The AHA recommends the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) and the Mediterranean Eating Plan for Americans (MEPA) diet to manage weight and reduce high blood pressure. Life’s Essential 8 program recommends experts use DASH diet metrics to evaluate population adherence to the MEPA diet and diet plan at the time of assessment individual health.
MEPA emphasizes eating:
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Lots of fruits and vegetables
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Bread and other grains
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Potatoes, beans, nuts, and seeds
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Olive oil is the main source of fat
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Low amounts of dairy products, eggs, fish, and poultry
“There is significant controversy surrounding diet and CVD reduction,” Abha Khandelwal, MD, Clinical Associate Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at Stanford Health Care, told Verywell.
“Both the DASH and Mediterranean diets have been effective in reducing CVD in the population as a whole, but we need to learn how specific diets perform at the individual level,” Khandelwal said. “For patients, I recommend using common sense in dietary choices – less processed (food), clean diet, plant-based, low salt, and appropriate volume.”
The heart health score for the diet is based on how well you followed the MEPA diet.
Be More Active
Participating in regular physical activity improves heart health. Experts consider the duration and intensity of exercise when determining the impact of physical activity on heart health. The more minutes of physical activity you bank, the better your heart health score.
According to a study published in Circulation, which uses the Physical Activity Guidelines from the Department of Health and Human Services as a threshold, one minute of moderate activity equals one minute. In comparison, one minute of vigorous activity counts as two minutes.
Quit Smoking
Vaping, cigarette smoking, and exposure to secondhand smoke reduce heart health scores and are significant risk factors for heart disease. Your current smoking status is the metric used to determine your score for the smoking section of Life’s Essential 8.
Healthy Sleep
Consistent sound sleep was added to Life’s Essential 7 list in 2022 because thousands of studies have found it to be an important factor in overall health, including reducing the risk of developing CVD.
Hours of sleep per night is a key metric for calculating sleep health scores. The AHA recommends that adults get 7-9 hours of sleep per day for optimal heart health, with longer and shorter sleep durations lowering your score.
Managing Weight
Obesity is a significant risk factor for developing CVD and various other chronic conditions that affect quality of life. Eating a healthy diet, exercising, reducing stress, and sleeping at least seven hours a night are good ways to manage your weight and lower your Body Mass Index (BMI).
The AHA uses BMI, which is your weight divided by your height, to measure a healthy body weight when determining your health score. The lower your BMI, the higher your score.
Control Cholesterol
High cholesterol, which causes plaque to build up in the arteries, is a major trigger of CVD. High cholesterol is caused by many factors, including:
Regulates Blood Sugar
Over time, high blood sugar (hyperglycemia) can damage nerves and blood vessels, which can lead to heart disease. Eating foods high in carbohydrates and sugar releases too much glucose into the bloodstream. Insulin, secreted from the pancreas, brings glucose into the cells.
Type 2 diabetes is when the pancreas gradually loses its ability to produce insulin, causing persistently high blood sugar.
Common ways to lower blood sugar include:
The AHA uses fasting blood glucose or hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) results to determine a blood sugar health score.
Regulates Blood Pressure
Hypertension, or high blood pressure, has a long history of wreaking havoc on the cardiovascular system by causing the heart to work harder to pump blood, increasing the risk of heart attack and heart failure.
Common tips for managing high blood pressure include:
Using an appropriately sized blood pressure cuff to measure your systolic and diastolic blood pressure is how you get your health score for blood pressure.
How to Calculate Your Health Score
In addition to using the above guide, you can calculate your health score and learn more about how to improve through the AHA’s My Life Check site.
The Bottom Line
A big takeaway from Life’s Essential 8 is that they are interconnected. For example, the effects of eating healthy foods will improve blood sugar, cholesterol, blood pressure, and body weight, positively affecting the quality of life and reducing the risk of CVD.
“We do risk assessments for patients and address what we think are the main drivers of CV health,” Khandelwal said. “For example, patients who (have uncontrolled diabetes) may be a risk factor for driving, while (women in perimenopause) may have similar contributions from sleep, diet, and weight.”
For many, knowing where to start can be the hardest step in making small changes to your daily habits. Taking small steps to address one of Life’s Essential 8 can have a positive impact on your health
What Does This Mean For You?
Incorporating the health habits included in Life’s Essential 8 can contribute to your heart health score and shorten your biological lifespan. A younger biological age allows you to enjoy a longer quality of life. Calculate your score and take small steps to change your daily habits. A higher score indicates a reduced risk of heart disease.
Read the original article on Verywell Health.