Some risk factors of coronary heart disease are far beyond the control of a person. For example, a person's risk to develop coronary heart disease is increasing with age. Many hereditary factors may be a risk of the disease. The men were considered at increased risk of this heart disease, but recent studies show that this is not true. Approximately the same number of men and women develop heart disease. Women are tending to develop the disease in later life than men. This is because estrogen, a hormone that circulates in the body of sex can help protect women against atherosclerosis. Most women do not develop heart disease after menopause, when estrogen levels decrease significantly protective measures.
Other risk factors of this disease could be changed depends on the lifestyle of a person. These risk factors include smoking, physical inactivity, obesity, diabetes and hypertension. The most important factor modifiable risk factors are high cholesterol.
The amount of cholesterol in the blood of a person is determined by the heredity, but it is also depending on the amount of cholesterol and fat in our bodies. In parts of Africa and Asia, where people eat very little fat and cholesterol, the average total cholesterol level below 150 milligrams, heart attacks are very rare. United States, where the typical diet is including many food that is high in fat and cholesterol, and also coronary heart disease is one of the most dangerous diseases in the world.
Many scientists had learned that cholesterol is particularly bad when it is made by blood as low-density lipoprotein (LDL), often called "bad" cholesterol. In contrast, cholesterol in the form of high density lipoprotein actually decreases a person's risk of a heart attack, and HDL cholesterol is often called "good cholesterol".
