High school dropouts are 40 percent more likely to have a heart attack in later ... trends now
Leaving school before the age of 18 can have disasterous repercussions for your heart health, a new study suggests.
Experts from Columbia University followed 26,000 people over 13 years to see how factors like education and income influenced their health.
They found that education was a key protective factor against atherosclerotic disease, the primary trigger for heart disease and stroke - and leading cause of death worldwide.
Specifically, they found those who ditched high school had a 39 percent higher risk of developing heart disease over the course of more than a decade, compared to individuals with higher levels of education.
The latest data shows that an estimated 40 million Americans do not have a high school diploma.
People with a shorter amount of time in school had a 39 percent higher risk of a potentially severe heart condition
Atherosclerotic disease (ASCVD) affects roughly 20 million Americans and is the leading cause of death in the United States and globally
Another critical factor highlighted by the researchers was living in a neighborhood with a high proportion of residents with little high school education - who were 31 percent more likely than others to have heart trouble.
Experts say the link is likely due to a lack of adequate knowledge about heart health and risk factors among less educated people.
Plus, those with little access to good schools are more likely to live in neighborhoods with fewer resources for physical activity and healthy diet.
For instance, other strong predictors of heart disease included a person’s income and where they live.
Marginalized groups, including Black and Hispanic Americans, were far more likely than their White counterparts to experience poorer performing schools and fewer economic
