Can lifestyle changes prevent coronary artery disease from recurring?

This study investigated whether lifestyle changes such as not smoking, reducing weight, increasing physical activity, and maintaining a Mediterranean diet prevents coronary artery disease from recurring in patients who previously had coronary artery disease. 

Coronary artery disease is a condition that occurs when the arteries that supply the heart muscles with blood (coronary arteries) become narrowed. The arteries become narrowed when cholesterol and fatty deposits form plaques in the artery walls.

If the coronary artery becomes completely blocked, it stops blood from flowing to the heart muscle and causes a heart attack. Treatment for coronary artery disease includes lifestyle changes or surgery to unblock the narrowed artery. Lifestyle changes make arteries healthier and may include not smoking, maintaining a healthy weight, increasing physical activity, and adhering to a healthy diet such as the Mediterranean diet. 

This study investigated whether lifestyle modifications can stop coronary artery disease from recurring in patients that have a history of heart attack or surgical treatment to unblock a coronary artery.

Patients were asked to fill out questionnaires on ideal lifestyle factors such as exercising >4 times/week, not smoking, having a Mediterranean diet, a waist circumference <88cm for women and <102 cm for men.

The study included 30,239 patients aged >45 years. Over 4.5 years there were 745 deaths. It was found that not smoking and exercising >4 times/week reduced the risk of recurrent coronary artery disease by 31% and reduced the risk of death by 29%, compared to patients who smoked and did no exercise.

Waist circumference did not seem to have an effect on either the occurrence of coronary artery disease or death. However, in comparison to patients who didn’t follow any of the ideal lifestyle factors (not-smoking, exercising >4 times/week, and a strict Mediterranean diet), if patients maintained 3 factors of an ideal lifestyle they reduced their risk of recurrent coronary artery disease by 62%, by 51% if they maintained 2 factors, and 40% if they maintained 1 factor.

In comparison to patients who had none of the ideal lifestyle factors, those who maintained 3 factors had a 59% reduced risk of death, those with 2 factors had a 43% reduced risk of death, and with 1 factor had a 35% reduced risk of death.

The study concluded that not smoking, getting physical exercise, and adhering to a Mediterranean diet is important for preventing recurrent coronary artery disease. 

Lifestyle factors were self-reported by participants so its hard to determine how accurate the data is. 

If you or someone you know have had coronary artery disease, talk to a doctor or dietician about ways you can make lifestyle changes to prevent coronary artery disease from recurring.