Heart attacks can happen at any age, but your risk increases as you get older. Certain factors also raise your risk, like smoking, obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes. Understanding when you’re most vulnerable can help you take steps to protect your heart health.
Heart attack risk factors
Many factors influence your chances of having a heart attack. The major risk factors include:
Age
Your risk for heart attack rises as you get older. This is partly because arteries can harden over time, making it easier for plaques to build up and cause blockages. According to the CDC, over 82% of people who die from coronary heart disease are 65 or older.
Gender
Men have a greater risk of heart attack than women at younger ages. Estrogen is thought to have a protective effect on women’s heart health before menopause. Around age 65, women’s risk starts to rise and becomes equal to men’s risk.
Family history
If you have a parent or sibling who had a heart attack at an early age, such as under 55 for men and 65 for women, you may have a higher genetic risk.
Smoking
Cigarette smoking damages blood vessels, raises blood pressure, and makes blood more likely to clot. This significantly increases the risk of heart attack. Secondhand smoke exposure also raises your risk.
High blood cholesterol
LDL or “bad” cholesterol can build up on artery walls and form plaques that narrow the arteries. HDL or “good” cholesterol helps remove LDL from the blood. High LDL and low HDL increase heart attack risk.
High blood pressure
Also called hypertension, high blood pressure strains the heart and arteries. It’s a major risk factor that can lead to heart attack, stroke, and heart failure.
Diabetes
People with diabetes have high blood sugar levels that damage arteries and make plaque more likely to rupture. This increases the risk of clots that block blood flow and cause heart attacks.
Obesity and overweight
Carrying extra body fat, especially around the waist, raises your risk for heart disease. Losing even 5-10% of your weight can lower blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes risk.
Physical inactivity
Lack of exercise leads to higher blood pressure, cholesterol, and body weight – all risk factors. Just 30 minutes a day of moderate activity helps reduce your risk.
Heart attack risk by age
While heart attacks can happen at any age, your risk rises sharply as you grow older. Here’s a look at how risk increases by age group:
Younger than 45
Heart attacks are relatively uncommon in both men and women under 45. Only around 6% of heart attacks in men happen before age 45. For women before 45, the number is even lower at around 2%. Yet heart attacks can still occur, especially if you smoke or have high cholesterol, diabetes, or a strong family history. African Americans also have a higher risk of early heart disease. About 10% of heart attacks in African American men happen before age 45.
45-65
In the 45 to 65 age range, heart attacks start to get more common. According to the American Heart Association, each year around 36% of heart attacks happen in men between 45-65. In women of the same age, that number is around 19%. Maintaining heart-healthy behaviors like not smoking, exercising, and eating well becomes particularly important during this time.
Over 65
After age 65, heart attacks grow much more common in both men and women. About 58% of heart attacks happen in men over 65 every year. In women over 65, the number jumps to around 79%. The risk rises partly due to natural aging processes like stiffening arteries. Good medical care and controlling risk factors grows vital at this age.
Heart attack rates by age and gender
This table summarizes how heart attack rates rise with age, broken down by gender:
| Age Range | Annual Rate in Men | Annual Rate in Women |
|---|---|---|
| 18-44 | 4-10 per 10,000 | 1-4 per 10,000 |
| 45-64 | 58-76 per 10,000 | 32-43 per 10,000 |
| 65-74 | 106-302 per 10,000 | 69-141 per 10,000 |
| 75 and over | 339-1,159 per 10,000 | 134-759 per 10,000 |
As shown, men under 45 have around 4 to 10 heart attacks per 10,000 people annually. This jumps up to 58 to 76 per 10,000 for ages 45-64. Over 75, the rate leaps to over 339 heart attacks per 10,000 men.
In women, the heart attack rate stays very low until after menopause, then grows sharply in the over 65 age range. After 75, women have 134 to 759 heart attacks per 10,000 women annually.
Preventing heart attacks at any age
No matter your age, you can take steps to reduce your risk of having a heart attack:
Don’t smoke
Avoid smoking and secondhand smoke. Smokers who quit, even later in life, quickly lower their heart risks.
Exercise regularly
Get at least 150 minutes per week of moderate activity like brisk walking. This strengthens your heart and helps you maintain a healthy weight.
Eat a healthy diet
Focus on vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean protein, nuts, seeds, and healthy fats like olive oil. Limit salt, sugar, processed foods, and saturated and trans fats.
Manage conditions
Work with your doctor to control diabetes, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure through medications if needed and lifestyle changes.
Aim for a healthy weight
Losing just 5-10% of excess weight can improve heart disease risk factors like blood pressure.
Limit alcohol
Drinking more than 1 drink per day for women or 2 for men raises blood pressure and heart disease risk.
Manage stress
Chronic stress may contribute to high blood pressure and heart disease. Regular exercise, meditation, socializing, and speaking with a therapist can all help manage stress.
Conclusion
In summary, your chances of having a heart attack rise sharply as you age, with men at greater risk until later ages. But by not smoking, staying active, eating well, and managing conditions like high blood pressure or diabetes, you can significantly cut your risk at any age. Controlling risk factors grows especially important in middle age and beyond.