What Causes Heart Disease? A List of Some Top Factors

What causes heart disease may be a burning question in many minds. With more and more people dying each day from heart attacks and cancer, it is only natural that you want to know what is going on, what is causing your or a loved one's poor health, and how to change it.

Heart disease is a fairly loose phrase used interchangeably to describe a broad range of heart problems. Some of the illnesses that fall under the heart disease category are high blood pressure, strokes, heart attacks, heart failure, and coronary artery disease. Heart disease is the number one killer of both men and women all over the world. 40% of all deaths in the U.S. are related to heart disease! So what causes heart disease?

Heart disease is caused by a range of factors including, but not limited to:

1. Poor diets full of saturated fats and not enough fruits and vegetables. Vitamin D is also important according to recent health news reports.

2. Poor exercise habits, or no exercising at all. The heart is a muscle and needs exercise in order to maintain proper and healthy functioning.

3. Smoking is a leading cause of heart disease in both men and women.

4. Being, becoming, and remaining overweight are other major factors, especially if your weight tends to be over the "belly" area.

These above four points are primary contributors and are lifestyle habits that you can change! If you choose not to change the way you live, then these habits can create atherosclerosis, which means your arteries are hardened.

When your arteries harden, this places restrictions on blood flow to organs and tissues, which is what causes heart disease. This deprives your body's organs of vital oxygen and nutrients needed to function properly.

It should be noted that what causes heart disease isn't always hardening of the arteries. Some forms of heart disease are caused by other genetic/and or heredity diseases, such as heart valve diseases, congenital heart defects and disease, heart infections, and cardio myopathy, which is a disease of the heart muscle.

While some heart problems you may not be able to control, most are acquired over a lifetime of unhealthy habits and unhealthy living. Now that you know what causes heart disease, you can be well on your well to doing something about it and turning your life around for the better!