US soldiers have worse heart health than civilians – ScienceDaily

The researchers compared a group of more than 263,000 active-duty army soldiers, aged 17 to 64, who underwent a medical examination in 2012 with a similar group of US civilians participating in the war. National Health and Nutrition Survey 2011-2012.

The groups were evaluated on four criteria – current smoking, weight, blood pressure and diabetes, which represent four of the seven health factors and behaviors that fit the definition of ideal heart health defined by the American Heart Association. The 2012 Army data were not sufficient to evaluate the remaining three parameters: the diet score, physical activity and total cholesterol.

Each factor was rated as ideal, intermediate, or low by the criteria of the Association. Overall, a higher proportion of active service personnel in the Army met the ideal criteria for smoking tobacco and diabetes, compared to civilians (the difference for smoking was, however, minimal). The largest difference between groups was in blood pressure: only 30% of soldiers had ideal blood pressure, compared to 55% of the civilian group, which was unexpected given the fact that military screening excludes blood pressure recruits. high.

"Ideal measurements of weight and blood pressure were surprisingly low for both active duty and civilian personnel," said study author Loryana L. Vie, Ph.D. ., Senior Director of the project for a long-term collaboration between the US Army and the US Government. University of Pennsylvania at the Positive Psychology Center of the University of Pennsylvania, to study the health of the Army personnel. "We found that only one-third of the military and civilian groups had ideal weight," she said. About 20% of both groups were current tobacco smokers.

The study's findings were at odds with the researchers' initial badumptions that, because of the Army's health checks on potential recruits and the focus on maintaining a good physical condition more soldiers than civilians would meet the criteria for ideal cardiovascular health.

"We expected that the ideal weight percentage in the Army Group was much higher because of the fitness standards for getting into the military and the physical aspects of the job," he said. declared Life. "It's worth noting that we did not see the advantage we expected from the Army Group, and it's clear that both groups still have a lot to do."

The researchers divided the groups by age categories. In each age group, the civilian population had a higher percentage of people with ideal cardiovascular health compared to the Army group in all four criteria. However, overall rates were quite low in both groups, even among 17 to 29 year olds. In this age group, only 16% of the civilian population and less than 10% in the Army group were ideal in all four categories.

Cardiovascular diseases, such as heart attacks, strokes and heart failure, are the leading cause of death in the United States for both men and women each year. This is also true for army personnel. According to the authors, cardiovascular disease affects the army more than any other chronic disease, and they are on the rise. In 2014, 9.4% of Army members had cardiovascular disease, up from 6.8% in 2007, a trend that could affect readiness and cost more to people. American taxpayers in medical care for the soldiers.

"It was surprising to find that Army personnel were less likely to have ideal cardiovascular health – especially because of high blood pressure – compared to civilians of the same age. Because recruits are screened to exclude high blood pressure for the military, we expected lower blood pressure and not higher, "said lead author Darwin R. Labarthe, MD, MPH, Ph.D., professor of preventive medicine at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago. Illinois in an accompanying commentary published by the Center for Health Metrics and Evaluations of the American Heart Association.

"We have identified an issue regarding the health of the military that calls for further evaluation.Further badyzes should focus on nutrition and physical activity, as well as on the possible effects of health. Deployment Experience In the end, we must help our soldiers regain the health of their hearts, "he said.

Researchers say their findings underscore the need for improvements through political and behavioral changes to promote, preserve and, if compromised, restore ideal cardiovascular health in both the US Army and the US. the civilian populations.

The study is the first to compare the American Heart Association's measurements of ideal cardiovascular health among Army personnel with those of a representative sample of the American civilian population.