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Heart disease has shaped American life for over a century. Once considered rare, it quickly became the nation’s leading cause of death by 1921, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It still holds that position today.
Yet the story of heart disease in America is also one of scientific breakthroughs, public health campaigns and evolving awareness much of it driven by the work of the American Heart Association.
A century of progress
In 1924, six physicians founded the American Heart Association. Dr. David Ain, a cardiologist with Kaiser Permanente and a volunteer with the American Heart Association, says the organization was created at a time when a diagnosis of heart disease was often considered a death sentence.
“When the American Heart Association was founded in 1924 heart disease was poorly understood and it was often considered untreatable. Work done in the century since has shifted heart disease from a presumed death sentence to a condition that can be prevented, treated and managed,” he said.
Since its founding over 100 years ago, the American Heart Association transformed from a small professional society to one of the nation’s most influential public health organizations funding research, educating Americans and helping redefine how heart disease is treated and prevented.
By the mid-20th century, heart disease cases were rising sharply. Experts linked the increase to changes in American lifestyles, including higher smoking rates and diets rich in saturated fats.
Breakthroughs in prevention and treatment
In response, researchers launched studies that would change modern medicine. One of the most significant was the Framingham Heart Study in 1948, which identified major risk factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and smoking findings that continue to guide doctors today.
During the 1950s and 1960s, the American Heart Association helped fund groundbreaking advances, including early pacemakers and research connecting diet to heart disease.
Why heart disease remains a challenge
However, Dr. Ain says heart disease is still the leading cause of death today because the risk factors are incredibly common and often silent.
“High blood pressure, diabetes, obesity and inactivity have all become more prevalent. We’ve become much better at treating heart disease once it happens, but prevention remains a real challenge.”
Dr. Ain notes that everyone is not affected equally by heart disease and people with less access to preventative care and healthy environments tend to have worse outcomes.
“A lot of cardiovascular risk is shaped by access. So that’s access to care, healthy food, medications and places to be active.”
Looking ahead
Looking ahead, Dr. Ain says he thinks the focus should be on earlier detection of the conditions that lead to cardiovascular disease, along with more consistent management and more personalized care.
“I think heart health starts in childhood and the commitment to heart health, the commitment to effective prevention, extends throughout the course of our lives,” Dr. Ain said. “It’s truly something that we as a community, as a society, can come together to make a commitment to improve.”
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