Why Men Start Getting Heart Disease Nearly Seven Years Earlier Than Women

Men tend to develop cardiovascular disease about seven years earlier than women, based on long-term data from the CARDIA study (Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults). The study followed 5,115 adults from four U.S. cities. At enrollment in 1985–1986, participants were 18 to 30 years old; researchers tracked them through 2020, when the oldest participants were about 65.

How Risk Changed With Age

The authors estimate that men’s and women’s risks began to diverge around age 35. From that point, men consistently faced a higher risk of cardiovascular events than women. For example, roughly 5% of men already had some form of cardiovascular disease by age 50, while women reached the same prevalence at about 57.
The largest gap appeared for coronary heart disease: men hit a 2% risk about 10 years earlier than women. By contrast, the ages at which stroke and heart failure first occurred were nearly the same for both sexes.
The sex difference held up even after adjusting statistically for common risk factors. Those factors included body mass index, blood sugar, smoking, diet quality, and non-HDL cholesterol levels — the lipid measure often called the ‘bad’ cholesterol. The authors therefore suggest that other biological or social factors may drive the earlier gap.
Based on the study, cardiologists say men should not wait until middle age to assess their heart risk. They recommend starting routine heart checks at 35 and working on modifiable risk factors such as diet, physical activity, and quitting smoking.
For women, the rise in heart disease risk accelerates after menopause and is linked to falling estrogen levels.

Why Regular Checkups Matter

Experts emphasize that men need routine medical screenings. Women ages 18 to 44 attend preventive visits about four times more often than men of the same age, partly because they receive gynecologic and obstetric care. Getting young men to take part in preventive exams could provide an important chance to lower their early-life risks.
Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death and disability for both men and women, so regular medical screening and efforts to reduce risk factors matter for everyone, regardless of sex.
From Live Science