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ESC Congress 2003: Genetic predisposition to cardiovascular disease can be influenced by lifestyle
September 01, 2003IMPORTANT: This press release accompanies a poster or oral session given at the ESC Congress 2003. Written by the investigator himself/herself, this press release does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the European Society of Cardiology
ESC Congress 2003: Some people are more susceptible to cardiovascular diseases than others because of their genetic constitution. This may not be an unchangeable fate. Lifestyle-related factors, such as being overweight and smoking, can affect the consequences of certain genetic susceptibilities. This is concluded from a large study from the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment in the Netherlands.
Many risk factors are involved in the development of cardiovascular diseases. Well known are lifestyle-related factors, such as smoking and being overweight. Genetic factors are also involved. Supported by a grant from the Netherlands Heart Foundation, Jolanda Boer and co-workers studied the impact of several genetic factors on the risk of cardiovascular diseases. They determined genetic variants in lipoprotein lipase (LPL), an enzyme that influences levels of lipids (cholesterol and triglycerides) in the blood. More than 35,000 Dutch men and women participated in a survey of cardiovascular risk factors between 1987 and 1991. They were followed up in time to see who developed cardiovascular diseases.
Seventeen percent of the people had the 447X-variant of LPL. On average they had more favourable levels of HDL-cholesterol and triglycerides in their blood. They also had a 20% lower risk of getting non-fatal heart diseases than people who did not have this variant of LPL. Surprisingly, these favourable effects were only seen in non-smokers but not in smokers. Another variant of LPL (the 291S-variant) was present in 4.3% of the subjects. Men with this variant had more unfavourable lipid levels in their blood. Their risk of dying from cardiovascular diseases was largely (3 times) increased. The risk was even higher when they smoked or were overweight.
Our genetic constitution cannot be changed. Therefore, people may think that they cannot influence their fate if they are genetically susceptible to cardiovascular diseases. This study shows that lifestyle-related factors, such as being overweight and smoking, modify the consequences of certain genetic susceptibilities. Therefore, people who are genetically at risk for cardiovascular diseases should be especially encouraged to adopt a healthy lifestyle.
Dr Jolanda Boer
National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven,
the Netherlands
European Society of Cardiology (ESC)
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