How Diabetes May Raise Your Fatal Heart Attack Risk By 50 Percent

Your heart health depends on more than what’s going on in your chest: Having diabetes increases your chances of dying from a heart attack, a new study from the University of Leeds suggests.

After tracking more than 700,000 people for 8 years, the researchers discovered that those with diabetes were 56 percent more likely to die from a STEMI heart attack—where your coronary artery is completely blocked—and 39 percent more likely to die from a NSTEMI heart attack—where your coronary artery is partially blocked—than people without the condition.



The link still remained even after the researchers took other risk factors into account, such as pre-existing health conditions like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and heart failure, as well as factors like family history and smoking status.

That likely means there’s something about diabetes itself that’s hurting your heart, says lead researcher Chris Gale, Ph.D.

One possibility: The long-term elevated blood sugar and low-grade inflammation seen in diabetes damages blood vessels, including those that feed the heart.

Over time, this can cause atherosclerosis, which hardens and narrows your arteries, allowing plaque to build up on their inner lining.

And that can raise your risk of a fatal heart attack, says Gale.

These findings are especially alarming because diabetes—a condition where glucose, or blood sugar, builds up in your blood—is becoming so common.

In fact, nearly 10 percent of the population is diabetic, and another 37 percent has prediabetes, meaning those people are on their way to developing the disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

So ask your doctor about getting tested: He or she may recommend a fasting glucose test, which measures your blood sugar levels after 8 or more hours of not eating.

If your fasting blood sugar levels are 126 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) or above, you’re diabetic; if they are 100 to 125 mg/dl, you’re prediabetic.

The good news, though, is that incorporating healthy tweaks in your lifestyle can keep your blood sugar under control—which can subsequently prevent further damage to your heart, Gale says.

That means quitting smoking, doing moderate cardio 30 minutes a day at least 5 days a week, and eating a diet high in lean proteins, fruits and vegetables, and fiber-rich whole grains, he says.
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Article source: http://www.menshealth.com/health/diabetes-and-fatal-heart-attack