Tennessee Study Shows Heart Disease Risk
By TRAVIS LOLLER
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – A new study found that nine out of 10 Tennesseans have at least one risk factor for heart disease and stroke, the first and third leading causes of death in the state.
In 2002, the last year for which statistics were examined, Tennessee had the third highest rate of death from stroke and the sixth highest rate of death from heart disease in the nation.
The study, conducted by the state Department of Health, looks at the prevalence of six "modifiable risk factors" for these diseases, the two most common being poor diet and sedentary lifestyle.
Over the six-year period of the study, four of the factors decreased only slightly or remained steady. Two of the risk factors – obesity and type 2 diabetes – became increasingly common, especially among black men, who also were the most likely group to die from the diseases.
Modifiable risk factors refer to things people do that can increase or decrease their likelihood of having heart disease or a stroke, said Donna Henry, director of the health department’s division of health promotion.
Even someone with type 2 diabetes can reduce the risk of heart disease or stroke by keeping the diabetes under control, she said.
"The primary reasons (heart disease and stroke) occur are these modifiable risk factors," Henry said. "The good news is there’s something all of us can do about it."
The report recommends public health programs help educate the public about what they can do to reduce the risk for heart disease.
The study also found that the treatment of these largely preventable diseases places a big burden on taxpayers. TennCare and Medicaid hospital spending on heart disease, strokes and high blood pressure in Tennessee ran more than $2 billion in 2002.
Although the information collected is very basic, this study marks the first time it has been compiled in a comprehensive document, Henry said.
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On the Net:
Read the complete report at: http://www2.state.tn.us/health/Downloads/HrtDisStrokeBk.pdf.