Outstanding scientific and technical implementations of the twentieth century radically changed our lives. Economic and social changes have led to rapid development in all major spheres of human activity and significant demographic changes.

The accumulation of capital and the growth of the national product, industrialization and urbanization, the level of modern medicine have caused an increase in life expectancy, a decrease in fertility, an aging population and changes in the structure of morbidity and mortality. Cardiovascular disease has become one of the leading causes of death. They are responsible for 10% of all deaths in the world as a whole and 25% of deaths in civilized countries.

The population is projected to reach 9.7 billion in 2050, and cardiovascular disease will be the cause of most deaths. Two interrelated evolutionary factors – human lifestyle and level of health – require special discussion.

A person’s lifestyle depends on his social status, biology (age, health), cultural and religious needs, traditions, marital status, psychology, income. Lifestyle reflects the standard of living and manifests itself in behavior, culture of consumption, entertainment, clothing; includes such important aspects as nutrition, physical activity, habits, sex. It reflects a person’s system of values and the place that health occupies on the scale of personal priorities.

Human lifestyle has changed significantly in recent decades. Humanity began to eat more. For example, the average American consumes 30% more calories than he needs, according to weight and physical activity. In Western countries, food contains a disproportionately high fat content in relation to protein and carbohydrates.

Humanity began to move less. The mechanization and modernization of the modern market has significantly reduced the number of people engaged in manual labor. About a quarter of Americans are completely physically inactive, and only 20% regularly do the recommended physical activity (30 minutes a day, 5 days a week).

Humanity continues to smoke. More than 1 billion people smoke today in the world. In 1990, 6% of all deaths were attributed to smoking. In 2020, the percentage of smoking-related deaths doubles.

Humanity is living more intensively. The speed of movement, the volume of information pressure, telephones and many other factors have led to an increase in the activity of most people per unit of time and, consequently, to an increase in the degree of psychological stress.

Lifestyle changes have led to a dramatic increase in the number of cardiovascular accidents. Epidemiological studies have shown that smoking, high blood cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes mellitus, insufficient physical activity, obesity and heredity are the main risk factors.

All risk factors are divided into those that can be modified and those that cannot be influenced (age, gender, family history). Smoking cessation, lowering cholesterol, and stabilizing blood pressure significantly reduce the risk of cardiovascular disasters in patients with or without a previous history of cardiovascular disease.

Losing weight, correcting diabetes, increasing good cholesterol levels, physical activity, although to a lesser extent, also reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

But how can you change your lifestyle in practice? After all, this is associated with a restructuring of the system of life priorities, tension, stress, additional costs and problems. We are talking about changes in the established habits, in the traditions of nutrition, in the mode of work and rest. It requires constant control over oneself and limitations in pleasures. This is not easy to do.

Often, to justify their own lifestyle, examples are put on the scales about how a relative «X» lived to be 100 years old and smoked all his life, and an acquaintance «Y» died at 60, leading an exceptionally healthy lifestyle. Belief in fate is reinforced by the fatal: “It won’t happen to me.”

Cardiovascular disasters change lives in one day. It is especially difficult when they happen at a young age. Each of us is aware of cases of sudden death; they are more common in men and their number peaks at night. It is known that in the United States, the number of sudden deaths reaches 300,000 cases each year, representing 50% of all cardiovascular deaths, and is mainly associated with cardiac arrhythmias associated with cardiovascular failure.

Every year in the United States, about 2.5 million people are hospitalized with acute heart failure, more than half of whom are patients with acute myocardial infarction. Even today, the early mortality rate in the subgroup of patients with a large heart attack is 4% – 6%, and most patients die in the first hours. The rest require lifelong drug treatment and monitoring, repeat coronary angiography and heart surgery. The disease has a clear tendency to relapse, often leading to loss of ability to work and general disability.

Lifestyle has a great impact on human health. But for some reason, the excessive weight and unsportsmanlike appearance of our friends immediately catches the eye, and their own shortcomings are often perceived as insignificant. As a rule, people with risk factors and without clinical signs of cardiovascular diseases generally have a normal physical and psychological state, and altered abstract indicators of blood, weight and blood pressure are either ignored or patiently waiting for their turn in the system of life priorities.

Changing your lifestyle can significantly improve your health and reduce your risk of disease. Understanding and accepting this fact lies at the heart of the prevention of cardiovascular disease. Its main goal is to identify risk factors at the stage when they can be leveled without having time to harm the body.

This approach assumes early diagnosis based on the active detection of laboratory and clinical signs that are either not felt by the patient or are not perceived as painful. Early detection does not automatically mean a complete cure; sometimes it is control of the condition leading to positive clinical results.

Besides the medical aspect, a healthy lifestyle has great social value. At the human level, it reflects advanced thinking, unites a certain layer of people according to interests, has aesthetic significance, increases self-esteem and performance. At the level of society, it changes the structure of morbidity and mortality, reduces disability, thereby increasing the level of health of the population.

What to choose – a healthy lifestyle or favorite weaknesses and habits?

The decision depends on ourselves. Introspection and understanding of the need for changes in your own life helps to come to it. A healthy lifestyle includes proper nutrition, physical activity, avoiding bad habits, rest and psychological comfort, and, if indicated, drug prevention and treatment of risk factors. It is very important here to interact with a specialist who draws up an individual program and takes into account the listed principles.

Have you decided to change your lifestyle? You will need great desire and psychological support in case of deviations from the plan. Lifestyle change is a lifelong program.