• Unhealthy diet, especially foods that are high in cholesterol and saturated and trans fats
• Inactivity
• Obesity
• Age and sex — cholesterol levels increase with age in both sexes; women younger than 55 have lower LDL levels than men; after menopause, women have higher LDL levels than men
• Family history — high cholesterol can run in families and may result in a heart attack at an early age
Source: American Heart Association.
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• Diet, including too much salt and not enough potassium
• Inactivity
• Obesity
• Smoking
• Excessive alcohol consumption
• Age and sex — blood pressure increases with age in both sexes; after the age of 55, a higher percentage of women than men have high blood pressure
• Family history — high blood pressure runs in families
• Race – blacks have a higher incidence of hypertension than do other races
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