Key TakeawaysA new study suggests regular checkups are better indicators of heart health than genetic tests.Genetic testing only gives an idea of the potential for heart disease, not a guarantee.Lifestyle factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and weight are more impactful to heart health than genetics.

Key Takeaways

A new study suggests regular checkups are better indicators of heart health than genetic tests.Genetic testing only gives an idea of the potential for heart disease, not a guarantee.Lifestyle factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and weight are more impactful to heart health than genetics.

When genetic testing became commonly accessible via at-home tests or affordable in-office tests, many assumed that the results would change our understanding of our potential health issues in the future. This has proven true for some diagnoses like cancer, but when it comes to heart disease, it seems that a physician’s assessment is more valuable.

The results showed that the traditional assessment was more accurate than the PRS in determining the future risk of heart disease. Even when the PRS was taken into consideration with traditional assessments, the physical evaluation was significantly more valuable.

Nurture vs. Nature

The results of the study were unsurprising to cardiologists. Ernst Von Schwarz, MD, PhD, a cardiologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, told Verywell that while genetic testing may give you your family history and genetic predisposition to heart disease, lifestyle choices make a much larger impact on heart health.

Von Schwarz said that regular primary care checkups are essential n the United States, where many people arepre-diabeticor experience uncontrolled high blood pressure, both of which are cardiovascular risk factors.

“A large portion of adolescents have pre-hypertension or pre-diabetes,” Von Schwarz said. “But we don’t know about it unless you have a regular checkup. Forty-seven percent of the adult population is currently overweight. That alone is a risk factor that needs to be aggressively addressed with a change of lifestyle. That’s more important than genetic testing will ever be.”

Von Schwarz said that genetic testing can be interesting, but will not figure into evaluation plans for most physicians. That’s because they use symptoms as a guide for ordering or conducting any tests.

“Let’s say someone comes in with chest pain, and that person has had genetic testing done that says he’s at a very low risk of developing early heart disease,” Von Schwarz said. “There are really no clinical implications to that at all. If that patient has chest pain, then the assessment of a physician has more predictive value.”

Primary Care Provider (PCP)

The Downside of Testing

“I’ve had people come in that have printed 15 pages of DNA sequences that show a higher risk of cardiovascular disease and tell me that they are dying of heart disease because it says so on the second page,” Von Schwarz said. “It doesn’t matter that they don’t have a weak heart or lack of oxygen. The fear is still there.”

“Genetic testings don’t rule anything out for the individual,” Von Schwarz said.

The study results concur. While genetic tests may give some insights, they tend to be expensive and don’t give an accurate picture of a patient’s health at the current moment. Clinical testing to measure cholesterol, oxygen levels, weight, and blood sugars can help guide better choices of diet and activity levels, which are known to lower heart disease risks.

What This Means For YouGenetic testing is easily accessible and as simple as a blood or saliva test now. But take the results in stride. Genetic markers only tell one part of your overall health story. Get regular checkups to help guide your health decisions and aim for a balanced diet and plenty of exercise to keep your heart in good shape.

What This Means For You

Genetic testing is easily accessible and as simple as a blood or saliva test now. But take the results in stride. Genetic markers only tell one part of your overall health story. Get regular checkups to help guide your health decisions and aim for a balanced diet and plenty of exercise to keep your heart in good shape.

1 SourceVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Khan SS, Page C, Wojdyla DM, Schwartz YY, Greenland P, Pencina MJ.Predictive utility of a validated polygenic risk score for long-term risk of coronary heart disease in young and middle-aged adults.Circulation. 2022;146(8):587-596. doi:10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.121.058426

1 Source

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Khan SS, Page C, Wojdyla DM, Schwartz YY, Greenland P, Pencina MJ.Predictive utility of a validated polygenic risk score for long-term risk of coronary heart disease in young and middle-aged adults.Circulation. 2022;146(8):587-596. doi:10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.121.058426

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Khan SS, Page C, Wojdyla DM, Schwartz YY, Greenland P, Pencina MJ.Predictive utility of a validated polygenic risk score for long-term risk of coronary heart disease in young and middle-aged adults.Circulation. 2022;146(8):587-596. doi:10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.121.058426

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