Welcome to Debate Club! Please be aware that this is a space for respectful debate, and that your ideas will be challenged here. Please remember to critique the argument, not the author.

Heart Disease: Genetic or Lifestyle ?

Options
2»

Replies

  • SuzanneC1l9zz
    SuzanneC1l9zz Posts: 451 Member
    Options
    Umm... Ben Johnson was doping. Maybe not the best analogy 😕
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,395 Member
    Options
    SuzanneC1l9zz wrote: »
    Umm... Ben Johnson was doping. Maybe not the best analogy 😕

    I don't care about professional sports and this was the only name that came to mind to be honest. Ok.. a professional runner who doesn't do doping.
  • SuzanneC1l9zz
    SuzanneC1l9zz Posts: 451 Member
    Options
    Let's go with Andre De Grasse instead 😉
  • ecjim
    ecjim Posts: 1,001 Member
    edited December 2022
    Options
    I worked in the medical field - Nuclear Med - My last position was at a Cardiac Clinic & I did a lot of stress tests + some other testing. To answer your question - Depending on the study you read - 20% - 30% of cardiac issues are genetic - the rest would be lifestyle choices - bad diet, overweight , smoking , drugs , no exercise - you get the idea. The lifestyle could be learned from the parents , so while the cardiac problem is not necessarily genetic in nature, the patient did learn the behavior from their parents.
    That 20 -30 % number could be higher but it seems pretty accurate - judging by my patients
  • ythannah
    ythannah Posts: 4,365 Member
    Options
    ecjim wrote: »
    I worked in the medical field - Nuclear Med - My last position was at a Cardiac Clinic & I did a lot of stress tests + some other testing. To answer your question - Depending on the study you read - 20% - 30% of cardiac issues are genetic - the rest would be lifestyle choices - bad diet, overweight , smoking , drugs , no exercise - you get the idea. The lifestyle could be learned from the parents , so while the cardiac problem is not necessarily genetic in nature, the patient did learn the behavior from their parents.
    That 20 -30 % number could be higher but it seems pretty accurate - judging by my patients

    This is good news for me since it would seem that my "healthy" lifestyle can overcome my crappy genetics. (I also have MVP but I don't think that presents much of a problem)
  • ecjim
    ecjim Posts: 1,001 Member
    Options
    ythannah wrote: »
    ecjim wrote: »
    I worked in the medical field - Nuclear Med - My last position was at a Cardiac Clinic & I did a lot of stress tests + some other testing. To answer your question - Depending on the study you read - 20% - 30% of cardiac issues are genetic - the rest would be lifestyle choices - bad diet, overweight , smoking , drugs , no exercise - you get the idea. The lifestyle could be learned from the parents , so while the cardiac problem is not necessarily genetic in nature, the patient did learn the behavior from their parents.
    That 20 -30 % number could be higher but it seems pretty accurate - judging by my patients

    This is good news for me since it would seem that my "healthy" lifestyle can overcome my crappy genetics. (I also have MVP but I don't think that presents much of a problem)

    It sure can help
  • Vailara
    Vailara Posts: 2,452 Member
    Options
    I wonder if it's not as simple as family history and/or lifestyle. I think maybe a mixture of a lot of different things which tend to interact, including the wider environment, epigenetics, stress, trauma, infections, inflammation, diabetes, childhood adversity, etc. And maybe some luck involved as well!

    The lifestyle bit is the bit you have some control over, so I think it's very worthwhile to work on that, whether or not there's family history. A healthy lifestyle is also going to have other benefits, and it might mean that outcomes are better even if you do develop heart disease.
  • ghrmj
    ghrmj Posts: 86 Member
    Options
    I think it is lifestyle. Anecdotally I know an acquaintance who was diagnosed with CHF at age 50 - she smokes and drinks at least a bottle of wine a day, more on weekends. Parents are both active and healthy in their 70's.
  • mtaratoot
    mtaratoot Posts: 13,239 Member
    Options
    Anecdotally, George Burns drank and smoked cigars daily and lived until just over 100 years old.

    Anecdotally, a friend who was otherwise healthy and lived a healthy lifestyle died from a sudden heart issue while walking his dog in the forest at age 45 last fall.

    That's the problem with anecdotes: they are just that - individual stories.
  • ghrmj
    ghrmj Posts: 86 Member
    Options
    mtaratoot wrote: »
    Anecdotally, George Burns drank and smoked cigars daily and lived until just over 100 years old.

    Anecdotally, a friend who was otherwise healthy and lived a healthy lifestyle died from a sudden heart issue while walking his dog in the forest at age 45 last fall.

    That's the problem with anecdotes: they are just that - individual stories.

    Yes - and the OP didn't ask for scientific data, they asked "what do you think?" so I gave my opinion, along with a personal anecdote. Sorry you find that to be a "problem".

    I don't know what "sudden heart issue" your friend had, yes anyone can have a heart defect, but the OP was talking specifically about CHF.
  • mtaratoot
    mtaratoot Posts: 13,239 Member
    Options
    An aortic dissection killed James. Some might not call that a heart disease; some might. His lifestyle did not contribute to his death. I don't "have a problem" with your anecdote. I do think that people should be very cautious using anecdotes to make broader statements about things. I am a recovering scientist, so I am inherently dubious of anecdotal evidence and know it can be misused easily.

    I'm sorry that your friend has chronic heart failure. I am not defending smoking or alcohol abuse, but I am pointing out that using anecdotal evidence can be a fallacy.

Categories