Heart Healthy Habits May Shield You from Cancer, Dementia, Diabetes and More: Study - Video

Maintaining optimal cardiovascular health not only protects the heart but also improves overall physical and psychological well-being, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

The study, conducted by Dr. Liliana Aguayo and colleagues at Emory’s Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing and Global Diabetes Research Center, analyzed data from nearly 500 peer-reviewed studies. It examined how adherence to the American Heart Association’s Life’s Simple 7™ and its updated Life’s Essential 8™, which now includes sleep affects long-term health outcomes beyond the cardiovascular system. These metrics include not smoking, healthy eating, regular physical activity, maintaining a healthy weight, and managing blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, and sleep.

Key findings revealed that individuals who follow heart-healthy behaviors are more likely to retain brain, lung, vision, hearing, and muscle function as they age. They also have lower stress levels and cortisol, fewer chronic illnesses like cancer, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, and depression, and face reduced risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes and mobility issues.

Moreover, these individuals report a higher quality of life and lower healthcare costs due to decreased medical utilization and non-cardiovascular disease-related expenses.

The study highlights the wide-ranging benefits of even modest lifestyle changes. It calls for expanded research on underrepresented populations, including children and pregnant women, to better understand the broader impact of cardiovascular health.

“While we recently learned that heart-health and brain health are closely tied, in this review we found that almost every organ system and bodily function from head to toe benefit from a heart-healthy lifestyle,” said Aguayo, the study’s lead author.

Reference: JOUR Cardiovascular Health, 2010 to 2020: A Systematic Review of a Decade of Research on Life's Simple 7, Aguayo, Liliana, Cotoc, Crina et al., Journal of the American Heart Association

doi: 10.1161/JAHA.124.038566