Wrinkles may be an indicator of an increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease, French experts have found. Their appearance, most likely, is associated with atherosclerosis and can serve as a sign that will allow doctors to notice the disease in time and schedule an examination.
An excess of wrinkles on the forehead may indicate an increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease, French researchers from the University of Toulouse warn. They spoke about this at the Annual Conference of the European Society of Cardiology in Munich.
“You cannot see or feel risk factors such as high cholesterol, hypertension,” says lead author Yolandi Eskirol. - We paid attention to wrinkles as a marker, because it is simple and clear. Just by looking at a person's face, we can give him advice on reducing the risk of developing diseases."
These measures can include simple lifestyle changes - more physical activity, healthier food intake.
“Of course, if we suspect a person has an increased risk of developing cardiovascular diseases, we must check all risk factors - blood pressure, lipid and blood glucose levels, but we can give him certain recommendations right away,” Eskirol notes.
The risk of developing cardiovascular disease increases as a person ages, but lifestyle changes and timely medical attention can reduce the risk. The task of doctors is to identify possible problems early enough.
According to the authors of the study, previous studies have analyzed various visible signs of aging and their relationship with the state of the body. Thus, crow's feet in the corners of the eyes were not associated with the risk of cardiovascular disease. But these wrinkles are the result not only of aging, but also of active facial expressions. There has been a link between male pattern baldness, xanthelasma (the formation of flat yellowish plaques due to lipid metabolism) and other external signs with the risk of heart disease, but so far nothing has been found to indicate an increased risk of death.
The researchers focused on horizontal forehead wrinkles. The study participants were 3200 people, whose age at the beginning was 32, 42, 52 and 62 years. Researchers rated their forehead wrinkles from zero to three, based on their severity.
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Scientists have observed volunteers for 20 years. During this time, 233 of them died. As it turned out, the deeper the wrinkles were, the more likely death from cardiovascular diseases was.
Those with a score of 2-3 for wrinkles had a 10 times higher risk of dying from heart disease than those who scored zero.
The results persisted even after adjustments for age, gender, pressure, bad habits and other factors.
“The more wrinkles on your forehead, the higher your risk of death,” sums up Eskirol.
Of course, wrinkles are not the best way to assess health problems, but they can attract the doctor's attention and encourage him to a more thorough examination.
Why wrinkles are indicative of heart problems, researchers have not yet understood. They attribute this to atherosclerosis - the formation of cholesterol plaques on the inner walls of arteries. It is atherosclerosis that is the main cause of heart attacks and many other problems with the cardiovascular system.
It is likely that oxidative stress (oxidative damage to cells) and collagen changes associated with atherosclerosis are also related to wrinkle formation, the researchers suggest. The blood vessels on the forehead are so small that they can be more susceptible to plaque formation - thus, wrinkles can be an early sign of vascular aging.
“Forehead wrinkles can be a marker of atherosclerosis,” says Eskirol. “This is the first time a link has been established between cardiovascular disease and forehead wrinkles, so the results need to be verified in further research. However, doctors can use this data now - it's free and risk-free.”
It is believed that people with an increased risk of heart attack or stroke need to take aspirin, but a report by another group of scientists at the conference casts doubt on this recommendation. After analyzing the data of more than 12 thousand patients from seven countries who received both aspirin and placebo, they came to the conclusion that aspirin significantly reduces the risk of developing a heart attack, but does not have a noticeable effect on stroke. Researchers recommend taking aspirin only after carefully weighing the pros and cons and consulting your doctor.
Alla Salkova