According to an ICMR-led study, persons without a job had a significantly increased chance of acquiring heart disease over a 10-year period. Those with high blood sugar levels were also shown to be at a much higher risk. Approximately half of the 4,500 participants in the study, who ranged in age from 40 to 69, were younger (40-49 years old). Surveys and questionnaires, including those created by the World Health Organization (WHO) to measure physical activity levels, were used to gather data.
It was discovered that among the study group, approximately 85% had a very low-to-low likelihood of acquiring cardiovascular diseases, whereas approximately 14.5% and 1%, respectively, had a moderate and high-to-very high chance of having these ailments.
Researchers from the National Centre for Disease Informatics and Research, Bengaluru, affiliated with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) showed that throughout a ten-year period, twice as many men as women had a higher than 10% risk of acquiring heart disease.
According to a study published in the Indian Journal of Medical Research, a very low-to-low chance indicated less than 10% possibility of developing heart-related disorders, whereas a moderate and high-to-very high chance indicated 10–20% and more than 20% likelihood, respectively.
The researchers predicted that among the people with high blood sugar, women had an elevated risk of 85% and men had an increased chance of 77% of developing cardiac problems over a ten-year period.
Additionally, they stated that compared to individuals who were not obese, men and women who were obese had a 55% and 71% higher risk of getting heart disease, respectively.
Additionally, the researchers discovered that people who lived in cities had a higher chance of developing cardiac diseases—17.5 percent had a risk of more than 10 percent, compared to 13.8% of participants who lived in rural regions. The study group consisted of people from rural backgrounds, around two-thirds.
Furthermore, the authors reported that compared to rural women participants, urban women participants had an 86% higher probability of having an elevated 10-year CVD risk.
The study's findings revealed that, in contrast to those who were employed or homemakers, the unemployed participants had significantly higher risks of cardiovascular diseases.
"While 87-88 percent of the latter two groups had a low risk of (cardiovascular diseases), only 54 percent of the unemployed population had a low risk," the authors wrote.
They said that earlier research evaluating the risk of cardiovascular disease in India was limited to specific geographic areas and that as a result, a nationwide evaluation was absent.
According to the team, this was the first study in India to quantify risk using non-laboratory-based WHO charts.
(Input from various sources)
(Rehash/Priyanka Pandey)