According to Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, "Malaysian patients who had severe heart attacks were far younger, with an average age of 56 compared with people from developed countries in the West, where the average age was 65".

Reported by The Star Online_Heart diseases and diseases of the pulmonary circulation were the top killers in government hospitals last year and accounted for up to 16.54%of the 45,936 deaths in Malaysia. That's the bad news. The good news is that Malaysians can reverse this trend by making sensible dietary decisions combined with participating in regular-bouts of physical activity.

Q: What really causes heart attacks?

A: Published (Answer (Published 4/25/2005) by Andrew Weil, M.D.

Researchers from Canada's McMaster University released at a 2004 meeting of the European Society of Cardiology study results that suggest risk factors contributing to cardiorespiratory dysfunction such as: smoking, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and others including diabetes, stress, abdominal obesity, a sedentary lifestyle, eating too few fruits and vegetables account for 90% of heart attacks. This is significant news, because previously these risk factors were only thought to be 50% the cause of heart attacks, with the other half being unexplainable. Consequently, this means most heart attacks could be prevented.

The study included almost 30,000 people from 52 countries - and for the first time included a cross section of the world's population - blacks, whites, Asians, Africans, Americans - not just white men. Half of the participants had had heart attacks and half were healthy. All were of similar age and gender and from the same region.

The researchers, from Canada's McMaster University, followed their participants for a decade and found that no matter where you live, no matter your race, sex or age, the risk factors for heart attacks are the same. Here are some of the highlights:

* The higher the ratio of particles called apoproteins that carry LDL ("bad") cholesterol to apoproteins that carry HDL ("good") cholesterol, the higher your risk of heart attack.

* Smoking ranked second among the risk factors. The researchers found that the risk rises with one cigarette; increases by 40 percent if you smoke one to five cigarettes a day; is four times higher than normal if you smoke a pack a day and nine times higher than normal if you smoke two or more packs a day.

* Psychological stress doubled the risk of heart attack and is a greater threat when it is continuous either at home or at work. This was the most surprising finding - researchers didn't expect stress to rank as high as it did among the risk factors.

* Poor intake of fruits and vegetables came next, followed by lack of exercise and sedentary lifestyle.

* Drinking alcohol (in moderation) appears to lower the risk, as previous studies have also shown.


(Results were published in the September 11, 2004 issue of The Lancet).