Want to learn more? www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/heartage

Heart Age

1 in 2 men have a 

heart age 5 or more 

years older than their 

actual age.

1 in 2

2 in 5

2 in 5 women have a 

heart age 5 or more 

years older than their 

actual age.

3 in 4

About 3 in 4 heart 

attacks and strokes are 

due to risk factors that 

increase heart age.

SEPTEMBER 2015

Her age is 53. But her heart is 75 years old because she smokes 

and has uncontrolled high blood pressure. She’s not alone 

because most American adults have a heart that is older than 

their actual age. One way to understand your risk for a heart 

attack or stroke is to learn your “heart age.” Heart age is the age 

of your heart and blood vessels as a result of your risk factors 

for heart attack and stroke. There are some things that put you 

at risk for a heart attack or stroke that you cannot change such 

as getting older or your family history; yet there are many others 

that you can change. If you smoke or have high blood pressure, 

your heart age will be much higher than your actual age. The 

most common reasons for a higher heart age that can be changed 

or managed are: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking, 

obesity, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, and diabetes. At any 

age, you can make your heart younger by making changes that 

reduce your risk. Even if you haven’t had a heart attack or stroke, 

most US adults have a heart age older than their actual age 

placing them at greater risk of having one. 

What you can do:

■ Learn your heart age and how to improve it. 

www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/heartage.htm

■ Start by choosing a risk factor or two that you're ready to 

change, like smoking or high blood pressure, and focus on 

improving them first. 

■ Work with your doctor to make heart healthy choices for a 

lower heart age. 

■ Take action at any age to lower your heart age and keep it low 

over time.

Is Your Heart Older Than You?
Though there are other ways of looking at your risk for having 

a heart attack or stroke, heart age is an easy way for us to talk 

about it. You want a heart age that is the same or younger than 

your actual age. Using information from the Framingham Heart 

Study and data collected from every US state, CDC projections 

show that around 69 million US adults that haven't had a heart 

attack or stroke, have a heart age that is 5 or more years older 

than their actual age. That’s about the number of people living 

in the 130 largest US cities combined. One in 2 men and 2 in 5 

women have heart ages 5 or more years older than their actual 

age, with the average being 7 years older.

US adults have hearts 7 years 

older than they should be.

2

Problem:

Having an ideal blood 

pressure (less than 120/80) 

lowers your heart age.

Sources: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2011 and 2013. 

National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2007–2012. 

Source: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2011 and 2013. 

* Percent of adults with risk factors included in the Framingham Heart Age calculator that increase their heart age.

For most US adults ages 30-74, their heart age is much older than their actual age, especially for men 

(average of 8 years older, compared to an average of 5 years among women) and African Americans 

(average of 11 years older for both men and women). These groups also are more likely to have risk 

factors that increase heart age.*

AFRICAN AMERICAN HISPANIC NON-HISPANIC WHITE

RISK FACTOR MEN WOMEN MEN WOMEN MEN WOMEN

Are current smokers 26% 18% 18% 10% 21% 20%

Have high blood 

pressure

42% 44% 31% 29% 32% 25%

Have diabetes 13% 15% 13% 13% 8% 7%

Are overweight 

or obese

78% 79% 80% 70% 76% 56%

Blood Pressure

Ideal

(Less than 120 mm Hg)

Prehypertension 

(120 - 139 mm Hg)

Hypertension 

(140 mm Hg or higher)

Men Women

No. of Years Heart Age Exceeds 

Actual Age

25

20

15

10

5

0

-5
*Adults aged 30-74 with no history of heart attack or stroke. 

Source: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2011 and 2013.

National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2007–2012.

3

Examples of actual age vs. heart age

Many people have a heart age that is greater than 

their actual age because of certain reasons. 

Actual Age Reasons Heart Age

45 year old male • Smoker

• High blood pressure (systolic blood pressure of 150 mm Hg)

• Diabetic

• Healthy weight (body mass index (BMI) of 23)

75 years

50 year old female • Non-Smoker

• High blood pressure (systolic blood pressure of 148 mm Hg)

• Diabetic

• Obese (BMI of 32)

85 years

Source: Framingham Heart Age Calculator, www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/heartage.htm

Source: Vital Signs, September 2013

There are geographic 

differences in average 

heart age across states. 

Mississippi, West Virginia, Louisiana, 

Kentucky, and Alabama are the 

five states that have the highest 

percentage of adults with heart 

ages 5 or more years older than their 

actual age, while the five states 

with the lowest are Utah, Colorado, 

California, Massachusetts, and Hawaii.

Percentage of adults whose heart age is 5 or more 

years older than their actual age*

Prescription for a younger heart

Unhealthy diet – Eat a healthy diet, low in 

sodium and trans fats and high in fresh fruits 

and vegetables.

Physical inactivity – Get 150 minutes every 

week of a moderate intensity exercise such as 

brisk walking.

Obese – Maintain a healthy weight.

High blood pressure – Make control your goal.

High cholesterol – Work with your doctor on a 

treatment plan to manage your cholesterol.

Diabetes – Work with your doctor on a treatment 

plan to manage your diabetes.

Tobacco use – If you don’t smoke, don’t start.

If you do smoke, get help to quit. Avoid secondhand smoke.

WA

MT

OR

NV

CA

UT

AZ NM

ID

ND

SD

MN

IA NE

KS

TX

FL

MS

LA

AL GA

SC

NC

VA

ME

NY

WI

OK

MO

AR

KY

IL IN

MI

OH

WV MD

DE

NJ

VT

RI

CT

MA

AK

HI

NH

DC

CO

PA

WY

TN

33.1%-39.6% 39.7%-42.7.6% 42.8%-44.3% 44.4%-47.9% 48.0%-56.5%
What Can Be Done?

The Federal government is:

■ Requiring most health plans to cover recommended 

preventive services at no out-of-pocket cost (such as 

co-pays or deductibles) through the Affordable Care 

Act, for example, blood pressure screening and tobacco 

cessation interventions and counseling to prevent heart 

disease and stroke. 

www.healthcare.gov/preventive-care-benefits/

■ Leading the national Million Hearts® initiative to 

prevent 1 million heart attacks and strokes by 2017. 

Millionhearts.hhs.gov

■ Providing resources to all 50 states to address chronic 

disease prevention, including heart disease and stroke, 

including through the Prevention and Public Health Fund.

■ Leading national campaigns that address causes of 

heart disease and stroke, such as Let’s Move! 

www.letsmove.gov, and Tips from Former Smokers 

www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/.

States can:

■ Promote safe walking areas and access to healthy food 

in communities.

■ Address tobacco use comprehensively by promoting 

smoking quitlines and tobacco-free areas, increasing 

the price of tobacco products, and running hard-hitting 

anti-tobacco ads.

■ Partner with hospitals to identify and address the 

health care issues in their community.

■ Prevent heart disease and stroke by using easily 

understood communication materials to promote how 

to lower heart age and reduce the risk of heart attack 

and stroke.

Doctors, nurses, and other

healthcare providers can:

■ Calculate heart age among your patients aged 30–74 

and talk with them about the effect of risk factors on 

their heart health. 

■ Help patients choose a risk factor or two to focus 

on improving first, such as quitting smoking, getting 

regular exercise, making healthy eating a part of their 

lives, and helping them take their medications 

as prescribed. 

■ Refer patients to community resources such as smoking 

quitlines and diabetes prevention programs that will 

support them as they make and keep these 

lifestyle changes. 

■ Continue to use other calculators recommended by 

national guidelines that assess cardiovascular risk and 

help inform treatment decisions.

Everyone can:

■ Learn your heart age and how to improve it.

www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/heartage.htm 

■ Start by choosing a risk factor or two that you're ready 

to change, like smoking or high blood pressure, and 

focus on improving them first.

■ Work with your doctor to make heart healthy choices 

for a lower heart age. 

■ Take action at any age to lower your heart age and 

keep it low over time.

For more information, please contact 

1-800-CDC-INFO (232-4636) 

TTY: 1-888-232-6348 

www.cdc.gov

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

1600 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30333

CS258723A Publication date: 9/1/2015