Heart disease is the leading cause of death among men, and being a father may put men at an even greater risk of poor heart health later in life, reports a new study from scientists at Northwestern University and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago. The study of 2,814 men between the ages of 45 and 84 found cardiovascular health in older age was worse for fathers compared to nonfathers.
Study participants' heart health was rated based on their diet, physical activity, smoking habits, weight, blood pressure, and level of lipids and glucose in their blood. "The changes in heart health we found suggest that the added responsibility of childcare and the stress of transitioning to fatherhood may make it difficult for men to maintain a healthy lifestyle, such as a healthy diet and exercise," said corresponding author Dr. John James Parker, an internist, pediatrician and assistant professor of pediatrics and general internal medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.
"We really need to study fathers as a unique population and track men's health outcomes as they become fathers. Cardiovascular health is especially important since the health behaviors and factors are all modifiable." The study is published as a peer-reviewed preprint in the journal AJPM Focus with a more finalized version publishing soon.
Despite fathers in the study having worse hearth health in older age, the study found they actually have lower rates of death than nonfathers. P.
