Work

Prevalence of American heart association's ¨ Life's Essential 8¨ in a cohort of Latino women

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: • The new Life's Essential Eight (LE8) score arose in 2022 to promote ideal cardiovascular health (CVH). • LE8 was assessed in a Chilean women (35 to 70 yo) cohort to measure the prevalence of ideal CVH. The mean LE8 score was 62.7 points, 11.5 % (1 in 9 women) had an ideal high CVH (≥80 points). • The best-accomplished metrics were blood glucose, physical activity, and the worst diet and nicotine exposure. • Adjusted regression analysis showed that a high education level significantly and independently improved the mean LE8 score, driven by positive improvements in lipids, blood pressure, body mass index, diet, and physical activity. • These findings provide the first assessment of LE8 score in Latino women living outside the US and underline that social determinants of health, such as education level, are pivotal to achieving health wellness. The ideal cardiovascular health (CVH) construct has recently been updated to ¨ Life's Essential 8¨(LE8). to determine LE8′s prevalence and its association with sociodemographic and socioeconomic determinants in a Latino women cohort in Santiago de Chile. Cross-sectional study on 619 women between 35 and 70 years old, representing 1.359.509 women (after expansion factors). LE8 was assessed through a survey on demographic and CV risk factors, as well as anthropometric, blood pressure, and biochemical measurements. The overall LE8 score was estimated for all participants, ranging from 0 to 100 (≥80 points, high CVH and < 50 points, low CVH). Besides, the score for each metric was determined. A descriptive analysis was performed with sample weights for the overall sample, and stratified by age, education, family income level and civil status. A regression analysis was performed adjusted by age group, family income and education level to determine the association of sociodemographic variables with LE8 score. The mean overall LE8 score was 62.7 points. Only 11.5 % had a high LE8, while 18.2 % had a low score. The best-accomplished metrics were blood glucose and physical activity (PA); the worst were diet and nicotine exposure. The adjusted regression analysis showed significantly higher scores for younger age (+3.2 points for <45yo, p < 0.05) and higher education level (+5 points, p < 0.01 and +12 points, p = 0.000,1 for high school and tertiary education, respectively). Higher LE8 scores in women with high education level were significantly driven by improvements in 5 metrics (lipids, blood pressure, body mass index, diet and PA). Nearly 1 out of 9 women from Santiago had an ideal LE8 score. Years of education are crucial determinants in the fight to get an ideal CVH.

Source: American Journal of Preventive Cardiology

DOI: 10.1016/j.ajpc.2025.100988

Authors: Paola Varleta, Mónica Acevedo, Giovanna Valentino, Carolina Casas-Cordero, Amalia Berríos, Rosario López-Infante

Institutions: Hospital Dipreca, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, San Sebastián University

Language: English

Topic: Cardiovascular Health and Risk Factors

Subfield: Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDGs: Good health and well-being, Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $1,900