End Heart Disease, Live Longer

If all major forms of heart and blood vessel disease were eliminated in the United States, seven years would be added to each person's projected life span. And, as an added bonus -- it would cut $300 billion off the nation's health care bill.

The data comes from the American Heart Association's 2000 Heart and Stroke Statistical Update. AHA President Dr. Lynn Smaha says while there's been remarkable progress fighting heart disease and stroke in the last 50 years, cardiovascular disease is still the No. 1 killer of both men and women.

Smaha says one of the "enduring half-truths" is that cardiovascular disease is a man's problem. Although it tends to strike men on average a decade sooner than women, the risk for women begins to rise near menopause.

Risk factors include physical inactivity, smoking and high cholesterol, which affects a higher percentage of women over age 49 than men. Obesity is also a significant risk factor for both women and men, as is diabetes.