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Countdown to a super-aging society… Increased importance of vascular health
There are many different diseases that occur due to poor blood vessel health. Heart diseases such as myocardial infarction, angina, and heart failure, cerebrovascular diseases such as cerebral infarction and cerebral hemorrhage, and even preceding diseases that cause cardiovascular diseases such as high blood pressure, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and arteriosclerosis are all considered vascular diseases.
According to Statistics Korea’s 2022 cause of death statistics, a total of 59,135 people in Korea died from cardiovascular disease, accounting for 15.8% of all deaths, the second highest figure after cancer. Among the 10 leading causes of death, four – heart disease (2nd), cerebrovascular disease (5th), diabetes (8th), and high blood pressure (9th) – are vascular diseases, and when added together, they exceed deaths from cancer.
The steadily increasing prevalence rate is also a cause for alarm. In the case of stroke, the number of patients treated is increasing by an average of 1.7% per year, and the incidence of cardiovascular disease is breaking records every year, raising great concerns among the government and medical community. You can’t feel safe just because you’re young. In the past 10 years, the number of patients in their 20s in Korea receiving treatment for high blood pressure has increased 1.8 times, from about 19,000 to 35,000, and the number of patients receiving diabetes treatment has increased 2.2 times, from about 17,000 to 38,000. These are significantly higher than the average growth rates of 1.4 and 1.6 times for all age groups, respectively. Analysis suggests that we need to pay attention to vascular health from a young age, not only for old age, but also to maintain current health.
What is the cause of the increase in various vascular diseases? Experts cite population aging as the first cause. Lim Do-seon, a professor of cardiology at Korea University Anam Hospital, said, “As the elderly population increases due to population aging, the incidence of cardiovascular diseases is also increasing. This is because the elasticity of blood vessels decreases as people age, and blood pressure and blood sugar control become more difficult.” He explained. Last year, the number of people aged 65 or older in Korea was approximately 9.5 million, accounting for 18.4% of the total population. As expected, Korea will enter a super-aging society in 2025 with an elderly population of 20.6%. According to predictions by the World Health Organization (WHO), the life expectancy of Koreans in 2030 will reach 91 years for women and 84 years for men. Although it is a welcome prediction, it is not pleasant to live long while suffering from illness. This is why we need to pay more attention to preventing cardiovascular diseases that afflict older people.
Life threats such as deteriorated blood vessels, stroke and myocardial infarction
Changes in eating habits and lifestyle are also attracting attention as causes of vascular disease. Professor Lim Do-seon said, “As our eating habits have become westernized, we are consuming refined grains, sugar, excessive saturated fat, and cholesterol. This causes cholesterol to accumulate inside the blood vessels, causing arteriosclerosis and increasing the risk of developing cardiovascular disease.” He added, “Means of transportation have improved. He said, “A decrease in exercise as automobile technology becomes more sophisticated, and a decrease in outdoor activities due to the development of IT devices such as smartphones are also causes of the increase.”
Cardiovascular disease is a serious life-threatening disease, but it is not easy to prepare for it in advance because blood vessels that have gradually deteriorated over a long period of time can suddenly lead to a major illness. It explodes with a bang for a moment, but there are no noticeable symptoms while the fuse is burning. Since there are no visible abnormalities, it is difficult to think, ‘I should take care of my blood vessel health from a young age.’
Stroke is a representative cardiovascular emergency that threatens life. Stroke is largely divided into two types. If a blood vessel in the brain is suddenly blocked, it is a cerebral infarction, and if it bursts, it is a cerebral hemorrhage. 80% of all strokes are cerebral infarctions, and surgery must be performed as soon as possible. If blood does not flow through the blood vessels of the brain, brain cells may be damaged, putting life at risk or leaving a person with a lifelong disability. Myocardial infarction, commonly called a heart attack, is equally dangerous. It is a disease in which the coronary arteries that supply blood to the heart are suddenly blocked, causing the heart muscle to die. A blood clot, called a blood clot, blocks a blood vessel. Once a myocardial infarction occurs, one-third of people die before reaching the hospital. Even if you arrive at the emergency room on time and receive appropriate treatment, the mortality rate is 5-10%.
Half of people over the age of 20 have dyslipidemia and their eating habits need to be improved.
Dyslipidemia, which encompasses hyperlipidemia, hypercholesterolemia, and hypertriglyceridemia, is also a disease to watch out for. It refers to a condition in which there is excessive cholesterol and saturated fat in the blood. Although it is common enough to affect one in two adults over the age of 20, it is considered a disease whose importance is overlooked due to low awareness. According to the Korean Society of Lipids and Arteriosclerosis, the average prevalence of dyslipidemia among adults aged 20 or older in Korea from 2016 to 2020 was 48.2%, or close to half. Dyslipidemia is considered a key risk factor for arteriosclerosis, which increases the risk of various cardiovascular diseases such as myocardial infarction, angina, and stroke. Atherosclerosis is a disease in which arterial walls thicken and harden, losing elasticity due to aging. Blood vessels narrow and, in severe cases, become blocked, causing blood flow problems. It is easy to think of old water pipes rusting and foreign substances sticking to them, narrowing their diameter. It mainly causes abnormalities in the coronary arteries that supply blood to the heart, and the cerebral arteries and carotid arteries that supply blood to the brain, leading to cardiovascular disease.
The main cause of blood clots that block coronary arteries, which leads to myocardial infarction, is cholesterol that accumulates on the walls of blood vessels. Cholesterol is present throughout the human body and is necessary for making cell membranes, various hormones, bile acids, vitamin D, etc. However, if it is excessive, it promotes arteriosclerosis. If there is excessive cholesterol in the blood, it is diagnosed as hypercholesterolemia, but the problem is that this disease itself has no symptoms. Hypercholesterolemia causes arteriosclerosis, and high blood cholesterol is often discovered to be the cause only after cardiovascular disease develops.
Saturated fat is also a problem, but it is less known and requires caution compared to the dangers of high cholesterol levels. The remaining saturated fat that is not used as an energy source due to excessive intake floats through the blood vessels and accumulates in every corner of the body. It accumulates faster than cholesterol and deforms cholesterol, making it more likely to penetrate blood vessels. Ultimately, it causes arteriosclerosis and acts as a cause of cardiovascular disease.
