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Parental longevity influences CVD prevalence in adults
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AUSTIN, Texas — The prevalence of cardiovascular disease is lower in adults whose parents lived to be at least 95 years compared with adults whose parents died at a younger age, according to findings presented here.
“These findings suggest that protective factors, such as a family history of longevity, should be considered in calculating the risk for CVD,” Sofiya Milman, MD, assistant professor in the department of medicine at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, New York, told Endocrine Today.
Milman and colleagues evaluated data from the LonGevity study on community-dwelling Ashkenazi Jewish adults aged 65 to 94 years to determine whether people with parental longevity have a lesser burden of CVD. Participants were divided into two groups based on parental longevity: offspring of parents with exceptional longevity (parents living past age 95 years; n = 395; mean age, 74.8 years; 58.7% women) and offspring of parents with usual longevity (parents died before age 95 years; n = 450; mean age, 76.4 years; 49.6% women).
Researchers used the Block brief food frequency questionnaire in a subgroup of the study population to evaluate dietary intake (n = 234).
No significant differences were noted between the two groups at baseline for BMI, obesity, smoking, daily physical activity, years of education and social strata scores. Both groups reported similar consumption of total calories, fats, carbohydrates, proteins and fiber.
The group of offspring of parents with exceptional longevity had a lower prevalence of hypertension (41.6% vs. 51.4%; P = .006), coronary artery disease (10.4% vs. 16.1%; P = .02) and stroke (1.5% vs. 5.4%; P = .003) compared with the group of offspring of parents with usual longevity. The offspring of adults with exceptional longevity also had a lower baseline prevalence of CVD compared with the offspring of parents with usual longevity (11.5% vs. 19.9%; P = .001); this remained significant after adjustment for age, sex and BMI.
“It was well known that individuals with a familial history of exceptional longevity are at lower risk for developing CV and other age-related diseases,” Milman said. “What remained unknown, was whether this protection was mediated by lifestyle factors. Our study demonstrated that offspring of parents with exceptional longevity had a lower prevalence of CVD compared to individuals with parental longevity, despite having similar lifestyle habits, socioeconomic status and diet. These results illustrate the contribution of genetic factors to protection from CVD among individuals with parental longevity. Future research should focus on the identification of genetic factors that make people resilient to CVD. Such discoveries may lead to novel therapeutic agents.” – by Amber Cox
Reference:
Gubbi S, et al. Abstract #747. Presented at: AACE Annual Scientific and Clinical Congress; May 3-7, 2017; Austin, Texas.
Disclosure: Milman reports no relevant financial disclosures.