"Cardiovascular disease" covers a range of heart-related problems (see below for examples)
Cardio is to do with the heart
Vascular? Obviously to do with the blood vessels --- those linked directly to the heart and, the rest of the body
Some of these diseases are linked to life-style
Some of these diseases and problems are linked to genetic disorders as a familial connection can be made (i.e., grandparent>parent>child can suffer the same problem)
Sometimes, a person is born with a heart or vascular-ralted problem: such problems are known as Congenital Heart Disease
Example 1 >>>>> CHD or Coronary Heart Disease is a term given to problems with the arteries of the heart itself; mainly, when they become 'furred' with a material known as plaque that narrows the artery, blood flow is restricted; a person is said to be suffering from an athroma when their cardiac artery has a reduced blood flow due to plaque
Example 2 >>>>> Myocardial Infarction (MI) or, more commonly a heart attack, is the term given to a problem related to a blood clot forming and blocking a cardiac artery; the muscle area that the artery feeds with oxygen is at risk of dying unless the blockage is removed quickly
Example 3 >>>>> Stroke - a stroke is a term given to an event whereby the brain becomes starved of oxygen; this can happen because of a blockage or narrowing of an artery in the neck similar to the process involved in CHD
When it comes to lifestyle and the links between that and heart disease, you need to consider several issues and be able to talk about them.
For example, obesity. Not just a 'bit overweight' but, significant extra weight that puts a strain on most of the body's systems from skeletal to hormone production.
Body Mass Index (BMI) needs to be considered as a guide to whether a person has excess mass but, it is a loose guide, based on averages that could be considered doubtful in many cases
