New research suggests that the lines on your forehead might reveal more than just your age – they could also be an indicator of your heart health. A study presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in 2019 found a link between deeper forehead wrinkles and an increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease.
While analyzing forehead wrinkles isn’t a replacement for established methods like blood pressure and cholesterol checks, it could serve as an easily observable early warning sign.”The higher the wrinkle score, the higher the risk of death from cardiovascular disease,” said Yolande Esquirol, the study’s lead researcher and lecturer at the Center Hospitalier Universitaire de Toulouse in France.
Although the exact reason for this connection remains unclear, researchers speculate that it could be related to atherosclerosis, the hardening of arteries due to plaque buildup. Atherosclerosis is a major contributor to heart attacks and other cardiovascular issues. Interestingly, the same processes that contribute to atherosclerosis – changes in collagen production and oxidative stress – also play a role in wrinkle formation.
The study involved over 3,200 healthy working adults aged 32, 42, 52, and 62. Doctors assessed the participants’ forehead wrinkles, assigning scores from zero (no wrinkles) to three (many deep wrinkles). Over a 20-year period, 233 participants died from various causes.
The results were striking: 15.2% of those who died had wrinkle scores of two or three, compared to only 2.1% of those with no wrinkles. Individuals with scores of two or three were found to be ten times more likely to die from cardiovascular problems than those without wrinkles, even after accounting for factors like age, gender, smoking habits, and existing health conditions.
The researchers suggest that the tiny blood vessels in the eyebrow area are particularly susceptible to plaque buildup, and forehead wrinkles might potentially be an early sign of this vascular aging. while more research is needed to confirm these findings,this study highlights the potential connection between visible signs of aging and underlying cardiovascular health.
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