October 12, 2026
When people hear “heart disease,” it’s easy to understand why they may immediately think of a heart attack. But heart disease is a much broader term that includes several conditions that affect how the heart pumps blood, how it beats and how blood moves through it.
The good news is that many of the factors that contribute to heart disease can be managed. Knowing your family history, keeping an eye on numbers like blood pressure and cholesterol, and making healthy lifestyle choices can all play a role in protecting your heart long before symptoms develop. Hassan Kamran, MD, an interventional cardiologist with Memorial Hermann Medical Group, says understanding your personal risk and addressing it early are both important parts of prevention.
Heart Disease Is More Than Heart Attacks
Heart disease is an umbrella term rather than a single diagnosis. For example, coronary artery disease, which occurs when plaque builds up in the arteries supplying blood to the heart, is one of the most familiar forms of heart disease. If the plaque blocks an artery, a heart attack can occur.
But there are other problems that can cause issues for this vital organ. One such problem is malfunctions in the heart's electrical system, which can result in a heart rate that is too fast or too slow. Heart valves can become too tight or leaky, affecting normal blood flow. And heart failure can occur when the muscle has difficulty pumping effectively or becomes too stiff.
It’s easy to categorize these issues under the umbrella of “heart disease” because, as Dr. Kamran notes, these conditions can be interconnected. “The heart is a pump, so if it’s not working well — if it's weak or stiff — fluid can back up into the lungs or the legs and you can see symptoms of heart failure such as shortness of breath or leg swelling,” he explains. “And you can’t forget how problems with blockages, irregular heart rhythms or valve issues can all cause the heart pump to fail as well.”
Understanding what puts you at risk can help you take steps to protect that function before heart disease progresses.
Know the Heart Disease Risks You Can't Control
Two major heart disease risk factors that are outside of your control are age and genetics.
“As you get older, your risk of heart disease increases simply by way of your blood vessels becoming stiffer,” Dr. Kamran says. “And in terms of genetics and family history, if everyone in your family has a history of heart disease, you have a good chance of developing heart disease as well. That’s why it's important to be proactive in your care for your heart.”
It’s particularly important to know your family history. Some people may not realize heart disease, high cholesterol, diabetes or high blood pressure run in their family until they begin asking relatives about their health. “I've had multiple patients who come in with a heart attack who didn't know any of their family history,” Dr. Kamran says. “Only after the heart attack did they find out that multiple family members also had heart disease.”
While you can't change your hereditary gene makeup or stop yourself from getting older, knowing those particular risk factors can help you and your health care provider determine how closely other factors should be monitored.
What Heart Disease Risk Factors Can You Change?
There are many other risk factors you can address through lifestyle changes, routine health care and, when appropriate, medication. Among these factors, Dr. Kamran most commonly sees high cholesterol, high blood pressure, smoking and diabetes.
High Cholesterol
Cholesterol levels can be influenced by both lifestyle and genetics. For some people, diet and exercise may be enough to manage their cholesterol. Others may need medication, particularly when family history or existing plaque buildup increases their cardiovascular risk.
“High cholesterol paired with a family history of heart disease may result in actions that move to take more aggressive control over your cholesterol. This is so that mild blockage doesn't become something more major in the future,” Dr. Kamran says.
High Blood Pressure
High blood pressure makes the heart work harder and can contribute to stiffening of the arteries. It can also affect other parts of the body, including the kidneys and eyes. However, if you don’t establish a baseline and periodically monitor it, you may not know your blood pressure is high.
“High blood pressure is considered a silent killer because sometimes people don't know they have high blood pressure until it's checked,” Dr. Kamran says. Routine visits with a primary care provider offer an opportunity to identify high blood pressure and begin managing it before it contributes to more serious problems.
Smoking
Smoking is major risk factor that is entirely preventable. Unfortunately, its effects are particularly striking in younger patients. Dr. Kamran notes that most of the young people he sees coming in with heart attacks are smokers.
Smoking can accelerate heart disease and contribute to stiffening of the arteries. Fortunately, quitting smoking can significantly change a person's cardiovascular risk over time. “I know that it’s hard to quit, but there are studies by the American Heart Association that have shown that even one year after somebody quits smoking, their risk of a heart attack is half of what it was the year prior,” Dr. Kamran explains.
Diabetes
High blood sugar can damage blood vessels over time, which is one reason diabetes and heart health are closely connected. For people with diabetes, managing cholesterol, blood sugar and other cardiovascular risk factors become especially important. Dr. Kamran says physicians may take a more aggressive approach to cholesterol management for patients with diabetes because of their increased risk of heart disease.
The Importance of a Primary Care Provider
You do not need to wait until you experience chest pain or another obvious heart symptom to talk about cardiovascular health. A primary care provider can check your blood pressure and order blood tests that can help them identify high cholesterol, diabetes and other potential risks. If you have a strong family history of heart disease, sharing that information can help your provider determine whether additional evaluation may be appropriate.
For some people with borderline or elevated cholesterol, that evaluation can include testing of lipoprotein (a), or Lp(a), a blood test that can detect a special kind of cholesterol that can increase your risk for heart disease. Additionally, they can undergo a coronary artery calcium scan, which uses a CT scan to look for calcium around the coronary arteries, indicating plaque buildup.
“A coronary artery calcium scan is a very simple CT scan that takes a quick picture of the heart,” Dr. Kamran says. “If it detects calcium around the heart arteries, that’s an indication of some plaque buildup. What the scan shows can help providers better understand your specific situation.”
Many common cardiovascular risk factors, including diabetes, high blood pressure and cholesterol, can initially be managed with a primary care provider. However, a cardiologist may become involved when testing identifies a concern or symptoms suggest that further evaluation is needed, especially if you are experiencing any of the following symptoms:
- Chest pain
- Shortness of breath
- Heart palpitations
A cardiologist may also help when cholesterol remains difficult to control with initial treatment or when someone experiences side effects from commonly used cholesterol medications. The important point is this: Do not wait for a serious cardiac event before paying attention to your heart.
Can Certain Everyday Habits Help Protect Your Heart?
Preventing heart disease does not necessarily require you to make every lifestyle change at once. Do not underestimate how small, sustainable improvements can address several risk factors at the same time.
Regular physical activity, for example, can support weight management while helping with blood pressure and blood sugar control. Dr. Kamran recommends starting slowly if you are not currently active, gradually increasing as you become able.
“The American Heart Association recommends about 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise a week, and even if you break it up into smaller increments throughout the week, it's helpful,” he says. “Being active provides another benefit: It gives you a baseline for what your body can do. If you routinely walk, run, bike or exercise and suddenly find that the same activity is much more difficult, that change will be easier to notice.”
Diet matters as well. Dr. Kamran points to the Mediterranean diet as one heart-healthy approach. It suggests limiting fried foods and added sugars and emphasizes eating foods like:
- Vegetables
- Whole grains
- Lean proteins, including chicken and fish
- Olive oil
Sleep is another part of the equation in diminishing your risk of heart disease. Chronic sleep deprivation can contribute to higher blood pressure and leave you with less energy to stay active during the day.
Taken together, some of the most important heart-healthy habits are familiar ones: move regularly, eat a balanced diet, don't smoke, prioritize sleep and maintain routine health care. The benefit is that these behaviors often influence more than one cardiovascular risk factor at a time. Heart disease prevention is a long-term process. The earlier you identify and manage your individual risk factors, the more opportunity you have to protect your cardiovascular health.
“Do not wait if you have risk factors or a family history of heart disease,” Dr. Kamran advises. “Start making lifestyle changes early and make sure you see a primary care doctor so that you can work together to control those risk factors.”
