Lifestyle advice, health checkups cut risk of heart disease among families

Researchers found that it was more effective to encourage the whole family to make lifestyle changes rather than usual care

A programme encouraging entire families to adopt a healthier lifestyle can reduce the risk of heart disease in families with a history of early coronary heart disease, found a new study of 750 families in Kerala.

A family history of early heart disease (diagnosed before 55 years) means a person has 1.5–7 times higher risk of future cardiovascular diseases, says the study, published in The Lancet in October 2021, and conducted from January 2015 to April 2017 in Kerala. For the study, health workers provided 368 families with regular check-ups every one-two months, and encouraged them to change their diet,