The concept of “vascular age” offers insights into cardiovascular health that may differ from a person’s chronological age. It reflects the condition and flexibility of your arteries, providing a window into the biological aging of your circulatory system. This metric is gaining recognition in preventive medicine as a way to assess an individual’s true cardiovascular risk.
Understanding Vascular Age
Vascular age refers to the biological age of your blood vessels, reflecting structural and functional changes in your arteries as you get older. Unlike your chronological age, which is simply the number of years you have lived, vascular age provides a more accurate picture of how well your blood vessels are functioning. As people age, their arteries can experience reduced elasticity and increased stiffness, a process known as arteriosclerosis.
A higher vascular age compared to one’s chronological age indicates accelerated arterial aging. This means your arteries are showing signs of wear and tear typically seen in older individuals. The vascular system, including large elastic arteries like the aorta and carotid arteries, is central to this concept. These changes can be influenced and accelerated by various factors, including high blood pressure, impaired glucose control, obesity, and elevated cholesterol levels.
Measuring Your Vascular Age
Assessing vascular age involves evaluating arterial stiffness, which is directly linked to the aging of the vascular system. One method is Pulse Wave Velocity (PWV), which measures how quickly pressure waves travel through your arteries when your heart beats. Stiffer arteries result in a faster PWV, indicating less healthy blood vessels.
Another method is the Ankle-Brachial Index (ABI). This non-invasive test compares the blood pressure in your ankles to the blood pressure in your arms. An ABI ratio above 0.90 is considered normal, while lower values can indicate peripheral arterial disease (PAD).
Carotid Intima-Media Thickness (CIMT) is a further non-invasive method that uses B-mode ultrasound to measure the thickness of the inner two layers of the carotid artery wall. This measurement provides an estimate of atherosclerotic burden, reflecting the buildup of plaque in the arteries.
Why Vascular Age Matters for Your Health
Vascular age is a significant predictor of future health outcomes because it offers a more precise understanding of cardiovascular risk than traditional risk factors alone. If your vascular age is higher than your chronological age, it suggests an elevated risk of developing various serious vascular diseases later in life, such as heart attack, stroke, and heart failure.
Increased arterial stiffness, a primary characteristic of advanced vascular age, leads to excessive blood pressure and pulsatility reaching smaller blood vessels in organs like the brain, kidneys, and heart. This can result in small vessel injury and functional impairment in these organ systems. For example, vascular stiffness can contribute to cognitive decline and kidney disease. Increased vascular stiffness also causes the heart to work harder, leading to myocardial hypertrophy and diastolic dysfunction.
Improving Your Vascular Age
Improving or maintaining a healthy vascular age involves adopting a range of lifestyle interventions. Dietary adjustments play a role in managing vascular age. Reducing salt intake can help lower blood pressure. Incorporating prebiotics and consuming antioxidants, found in colorful fruits and vegetables like blueberries and spinach, supports vascular health. Reducing red meat consumption and eating fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids, such as salmon, can also benefit blood vessel function.
Regular physical activity is a highly effective way to improve vascular health and potentially reduce your vascular age. Aerobic exercises, such as brisk walking, cycling, or swimming, improve cardiovascular function and promote vasodilation. Studies have shown that regular exercise can significantly reduce vascular age and improve arterial stiffness. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends adults aged 18 to 64 engage in at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week, which can include activities like brisk walking or strength training exercises such as yoga.
Managing stress and maintaining a healthy weight also contribute positively to vascular health. Chronic stress can negatively impact the vascular system, while obesity is linked to increased blood pressure and inflammation, which can accelerate vascular aging. Quitting smoking and limiting alcohol intake are also important steps, as these habits can significantly damage blood vessels and impair endothelial function. For individuals with underlying conditions like high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol, or diabetes, managing these conditions with medical guidance is also an important part of improving vascular age.