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• Cardiologists are developing a method for measuring the heart’s “functional age” to help predict complications like heart disease.
• According to new research, unhealthy lifestyle habits could contribute to premature aging of the heart.
• Physical activity and eating heart-healthy foods are some of the best ways to preserve your heart’s functional age.

The concept of trying to understand heart health by determining its “age” relative to one’s chronological age has become a topic of interest among cardiologists, researchers, and physicians.

Assessing the heart’s functional age could offer a simple, clear way to understand its health status. It might also clarify existing cardiovascular risks that could be minimized by making heart-healthy lifestyle changes.

Recently, researchers from the University of East Anglia in England published the results of a trial introducing a novel way to measure a “functional heart age” using cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, which could help detect signs of heart disease earlier.

The findings, which researchers describe as a “game-changer,” were published on May 2 in the European Heart Journal.

“In healthy people, we found that heart age was similar to chronological age. But for patients with things like diabetes, hypertension, obesity, and atrial fibrillation — their functional heart age was significantly higher,” said lead researcher Pankaj Garg, MD, from UEA’s Norwich Medical School and a consultant cardiologist at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, in a press release.

“For example, a 50-year-old with high blood pressure might have a heart that works like it’s 55. People with health issues like diabetes or obesity often have hearts that are aging faster than they should — sometimes by decades,” Garg continued.

“So, this could help doctors step in early to stop heart disease in its tracks… Our new MRI method gives doctors a powerful tool to look inside the heart like never before and spot trouble early — before symptoms even start,” Garg said.

‘Functional heart age’ vs. biological age

Jayne Morgan, MD, a cardiologist with Hello Heart that chronological age may not always be consistent with biologic age. “The aging process is uneven throughout one’s life span,” she told Healthline.

Cheng-Han Chen, MD, medical director of the Structural Heart Program at MemorialCare Saddleback Medical Center in Laguna Hills, CA, who was not involved in the study, noted there is not yet an agreed-upon definition of “heart age.”

“This research is a good first step towards evaluating whether an imaging-based assessment of ‘heart age’ can provide clinically useful prognostic information,” Chen told Healthline.

To better understand the heart’s functional age, researchers measured the amount of blood remaining in the heart’s left atrium after completing a contraction phase. They also examined the fraction of blood ejected from the left atrium with each heart contraction.

The method was validated using 366 heart patients with known cardiac risk factors.

Participants’ heart ages were older compared to healthy controls, and were significantly higher in people with conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, atrial fibrillation, and obesity.

“By knowing your heart’s true age, patients could get advice or treatments to slow down the aging process, potentially preventing heart attacks or strokes,” Garg said in the news release.

“It could also be the wake-up call people need to take better care of themselves — whether that’s eating healthier, exercising more, or following their doctor’s advice. It’s about giving people a fighting chance against heart disease,” he added.

Signs of heart aging

As people age, common heart changes may occur, even among healthy individuals with no prior history of heart problems.

For instance, the heart may begin to produce extra beats or occasionally skip a beat. This is not generally a problem unless it becomes persistent. If the heart is frequently racing or fluttering it may be a sign of arrhythmia.

In addition, the heart’s chambers — its ventricles and auricles — may grow larger with age. As their walls thicken, the amount of blood they can hold decreases.

The risk of arrhythmias, such as atrial fibrillation (AFib), increases, with the accompanying risk of stroke, particularly among older adults.

Similarly, the valves controlling the flow of blood as it passes between the heart’s chambers may thicken and become stiffer, limiting the flow of blood.

Heart valves may also develop leaks, which could lead to fluid buildup in the lungs, feet, abdomen, or legs.

What causes premature heart aging?

As indicated by the new study, people with certain health conditions may have a higher risk of premature heart aging.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), four common factors that may lead to premature heart aging include:

• High blood pressure (hypertension) — With higher blood pressure, the heart has to work harder to pump blood throughout the body. This can cause the lower left ventricle, the lower left chamber, to thicken and enlarge, increasing the likelihood of heart attacks and heart failure.
• Diabetes — Research has found that having high blood sugar can damage blood vessels in the heart, leading to a buildup of fatty deposits there. It is associated with a greater likelihood of heart disease.
• High LDL cholesterol — This causes a plaque buildup of a waxy, fat-like substance in arteries that can decrease blood flow to the heart, as well as the brain, kidneys, and other parts of the body.
• Obesity — Obesity has been associated with both hypertension and high LDL cholesterol levels.

How to keep your heart young

There are currently no universal measurements for determining heart age, but the Australia Heart Foundation’s online Heart Age Calculator can provide you with a quick estimate.

“We are still in the early stages of understanding how best to determine a ‘heart age’ and how such a calculation could help us to better take care of patients,” Chen noted.

To preserve heart health and its functional age, following the American Heart Association’s Life’s Essential 8 is a great place to start. Here’s a closer look at how lifestyle factors influence heart health.

Exercise regularly

There is widespread consensus that 150 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise each week or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise combined with strength training two days a week is the optimal amount for optimal heart health.

Leading a sedentary lifestyle has been consistently linked with an increased risk of heart disease and related deaths.

“A sedentary lifestyle causes circulation to slow. The heart muscle weakens, and leads to weight gain, high blood pressure, and insulin resistance,” Christopher Berg, MD, board certified cardiologist at MemorialCare Heart and Vascular Institute at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA, explained to Healthline. Berg wasn’t involved in the study.

“Sitting for extended periods of time also promotes inflammation and poor arterial function, and as a result raises your risk of heart disease,” he said. “Even those who exercise can be at risk if they are sedentary for most of the day.”

Beyond exercise, there are ways to enjoyably add more movement to one’s day, including:

• taking walks
• standing up and briefly getting away from one’s desk
• doing yoga
• parking a longer distance from the door
• dancing
• engaging in any sport
• taking the stairs instead of the elevator when going up or down just a few floors
• gardening and doing housework

Eat a healthy, balanced diet

Build meals from healthy, unprocessed foods as much as possible, with an emphasis on vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, beans, and nuts.

For protein, emphasize lean animal proteins. These include skinned poultry, fish, seafood, and low-fat dairy. Alternately, go with plant-based proteins such as beans, nuts, and lentils, tofu (soy), or seitan (wheat gluten).

Prepare your healthy ingredients with plant-based oils. These include extra-virgin as olive oil and avocado oil.

Try to avoid fast foods, processed meats, and other ultra-processed foods that tend to be high in trans fats that can damage the heart.

Of course, be sure to stay hydrated and drink plenty of water throughout the day. Coffee and tea without sweeteners are preferable to their sweetened counterparts.

Avoid or quit smoking

Smoking tobacco increases the risk of heart attacks and atherosclerosis in several ways.

Nicotine increases blood pressure, and carbon monoxide from cigarette smoke reduces the amount of oxygen a person’s blood can carry. Smoking can also damage blood and heart vessels.

Health experts recommend avoiding smoking and quitting if you smoke.

Avoid or limit alcohol

Alcohol use has been associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, including stroke.

Current recommendations for moderate drinking consumption call for no more than one drink per day for females and two drinks per day for males.

For some people, it may be advisable to avoid alcohol altogether. A growing body of evidence has also linked moderate alcohol consumption to cancer risk.

Manage stress

Mental health and heart function are interconnected.

The AHA notes that depression, anxiety, and stress are linked to heart disease. Social isolation and loneliness are also associated with a higher risk of heart attack and stroke. 

Prioritizing your mental health, therefore, should be part of your heart-healthy regimen.

Try to make time to engage with what makes you happy. Take a scenic drive, enjoy a hobby, or spend time with an animal or human companion.

Lastly, give yourself permission to laugh. Research suggests it’s good for your heart.