A recent study from the American Heart Association predicts that at least six in ten U.S. adults could experience cardiovascular disease within the next 30 years.
The numbers are staggering, not just from a health perspective but from an economic one as well. The study predicts that it could cost almost $2 trillion to treat all of those suffering by the year 2050.
"And not only is there an increasing number of patients that are anticipated to have these conditions, there are actually fewer and fewer doctors and healthcare providers as we enter the trends in care deliveries," says Allina Health Cardiologist Dr. Steven Bradley.
The traditional way of treating patients will also have to change Bradley tells WCCO Radio's Susie Jones on Sunday's "Health Radio" show.
"We need to start thinking about how we can leverage technology, different tools, different strategies of meeting patients in their home to help them with the care that they need," he said.
Cardiovascular disease has been the leading killer of Americans for decades. In years past, a heart attack or stroke almost certainly resulted in death, but medical advances and prevention efforts helped slow those deaths.
But the American Heart Association says those efforts are stalling and becoming extremely costly.
"Certainly these are costly conditions, and so if more of these conditions happen, it's going to be a big strain on our economy given the cost," Bradley says. "The real thought behind that trend is related to our health behaviors. And recognizing that these health behaviors of diet, exercise and sleep and tobacco use, along with risk factors, are anticipated to create this trend, this increasing prevalence or the number of patients who have these conditions."
One of the biggest issues contributing to the increase is obesity. By 2050, obesity is expected to affect a third of all children, up from 20% in 2020. The highest increases are expected among children 2 to 5 years old and 12 to 19.
Contributing factors, such as insufficient physical activity and a poor diet, are expected to remain as high as 60% of all children over the next three decades.
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There are also racial inequalities according to the research. The biggest rise in the total number of people with cardiovascular disease will be among Hispanic adults, with Asian adults also seeing a large increase. Black adults are projected to have the highest rates of high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity, as well as the highest rates of inadequate sleep and poor diets.
The researchers did find some positive trends as well. The percentage of people who don't get enough physical activity is expected to drop, from 33.5% to 24.2% of the population. And smoking rates are expected to drop by nearly half, from 15.8% to 8.4%.
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