Note your risk factors! December 10, 2006

Here are some lists about the risk factors of common diseases. Take a look at them and count your own risk number (I’ll show mine).

The American Heart Association lists risk factors for heart disease as (my point was 1/9):

• Increasing age
• Male sex
• Heredity (including race). People with family history of the disease have greater risk. So do African-Americans, Mexican-Americans, Native Americans, Native Hawaiians, and some Asian-Americans.
• Smoking
• High blood cholesterol
• High blood pressure
• Physical inactivity
• Obesity and overweight
• Diabetes

It’s just a simple list of common risk factors for any type of cancers (my point was 1/10):

• Smoking or/and alcohol
• Physical inactivity
• Genetics: cancers in your family
• Enviromental factors: exposure to asbestos, a group of minerals found in housing and industrial building materials
• Unsafe sex
• Sun exposure
• Air and water pollutants, pesticides
• Immunosuppressives and other drugs

This site shows plenty of information, publications on risk factors even for major cancers.

Risk factors for osteoporosis include (my point was 0/12) :

• Female sex
• Increasing age
• Small, thin-boned frame
• Ethnicity. White and Asian women have the greatest risk.
• Family history
• Sex hormones. Infrequent menstrual cycles and estrogen loss due to menopause may increase risk.
• Anorexia
• Diet low in calcium and vitamin D
• Medication use, particularly glucocorticoids or some anticonvulsants
• Sedentary lifestyle
• Smoking and/or excessive alcohol

Prevention, my friends, prevention!