A recent study in the European Heart Journal reveals that, in most European Union countries, the death rate from heart disease has declined significantly over the past three decades. Despite this, heart-related pathologies remain the leading cause of death throughout Europe.
There is therefore no room for complacency, as Dr. Melane Nichols, one of the authors of this study and a research associate at the British Heart Research Group of the Oxford University Health Promotion Foundation, explains: “It is important that we continue to focus efforts on primary prevention, including reducing smoking, improving diet and physical activity levels”.
The study by country
The study analyzed mortality due to heart disease in the countries of the European Union between 1980 and 2009. Spain is in the average of the countries where the number of deaths due to these pathologies has decreased, but the countries that come out better are: Denmark, Malta, the Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom. In these cases there has been a significant decrease in mortality rates due to heart disease, both in men and women, and over the three decades.
In contrast, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland recorded a very slight drop in the mortality rate for men. And in the case of Romania there has even been a small increase. If we look at the analysis by women only, the countries with the least significant decreases are: Greece, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia. Regarding this minority of cases Dr. Nichols cautions that “there is some evidence that the downward trend may be losing steam, even among younger age groups, probably due to increasing risk factors such as obesity and diabetes.”