Q. For generations, heart disease has been part of our family history, so my father has become almost fatalistic as he has aged. He?s 83 and?doesn?t?believe there?s really any reason to continue to take his cholesterol medicine.?I?ve?tried to tell him that medication does matter.What else can I do?
Tell Dad it?s a proven fact that steps toward better heart health will work at any age. In fact ? thanks to healthier lifestyles and medications ? the rate of hospitalization for serious coronary heart disease among seniors age 75 to 84 has declined by 46 percent from 2000 to 2010, according to a recent report from the National Hospital Discharge Survey. Moreover, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that from 2000 to 2010, the rate of hospitalization for coronary heart disease declined by 43 percent for the total population.
Rates declined by:
- 42 percent for the youngest, those under 65 years;
- 50 percent for those aged 65 to 74 years;
- 46 percent for those aged 75 to 84 years; and
- 42 percent for the oldest, those aged 85 and older.
Last year, the Centers for Disease Control and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services launched?Million Hearts, an initiative to prevent one million heart attacks and strokes during the next five years.
The initiative strives to empower Americans to make healthy choices and improve care for people, focusing on aspirin for people at risk, blood pressure control, cholesterol management and smoking cessation.
More than two million heart attacks and strokes occur every year, and treatment for these conditions and other vascular diseases account for about one of every six health-care dollars. Up to 20 percent of deaths from heart attack and 13 percent of deaths from stroke are attributable to diabetes or pre-diabetes.
Here?s another option for your father. Your local?Home Instead Senior Care? office can help Dad stay on course with medication reminders and meal preparation, especially when you can?t be there.
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