Cardiovascular disease Utah's No. 1 killer

Utahns are more apt to die from heart disease, stroke and high blood pressure than any other cause. And though Utahns generally have slightly better risk factors than the rest of the nation when it comes to cardiovascular disease, they're not even close to doing all they can to cut the risks.

The Utah Department of Health Wednesday released "Milestone Report 2002: Cardiovascular Disease in Utah," which shows an average of 3,800 Utahns die each year from cardiovascular disease. Even higher numbers are left disabled by congestive heart failure, heart attack and coronary artery disease.

Compared to the rest of the country, Utah is in pretty good shape, said Dr. Jeffrey Anderson, associate chief of cardiology at LDS Hospital. But it could do better.

"Being lowest among the most common killer of Americans is not something we can be satisfied with when we see the numbers," health department deputy director Dr. Scott Williams said.

Much of cardiovascular disease's deadly potential can be prevented or curtailed with healthy lifestyle choices, according to LaDene Larsen, director of department's Bureau of Health Promotion. She said Utahns can decrease their risk factors for cardiovascular disease through healthy behaviors such as not smoking, being physically active, maintaining a healthy weight and controlling high blood pressure and cholesterol.

During the news conference, Finn Hansen and Lynn Barnett talked about the challenges of changing their own lifestyle. Hansen has had two heart attacks; heart disease is rampant in Barnett's family, and he is targeting prevention.

The report is the first to look at risk factors and emergency room visits, hospitalizations and deaths due to cardiovascular disease in Utah.

Utahns have hit a plateau in terms of curtailing tobacco use, physical activity, nutrition and having blood pressure and cholesterol checks. They are getting worse in terms of weight gain, Williams said.

Nearly three-fourths of adult Utahns say they don't engage in regular physical activity. That's just slightly better than the national 78 percent who don't exercise. And though more Utah teens — 77 percent — engage in vigorous physical activity than the nation's youth as a group, 75 percent said they don't eat the recommended minimum daily requirement of five servings of fruits and vegetables.