‘Muffin Test’ Predicts Heart Disease in Healthy, Young People

‘Muffin Test’ Predicts Heart Disease in Healthy, Young People

New research presented at the Canadian Cardiovascular Congress in Vancouver reiterates the old adage that “you can’t judge a book by its cover.”

As it turns out, investigators found that almost half of the seemingly healthy-looking study volunteers – trim 18- to 35-year-olds with normal blood pressure and cholesterol levels – actually had MRI scans revealing already-thickening blood vessel walls.

So, how do you know if that “picture of health” in the mirror is misleading (without an expensive MRI at your disposal)? As it turns out, investigators also found that simply measuring waist-to-hip ratio could be pretty predictive; study volunteers with waists as big as or bigger than their hips were more likely to be packing dangerous “visceral” fat around their organs, and were more likely to have early stage heart disease.

But do these young people have time of their side? Is it possible for them to turn back the clock?

In the clip below, we spoke to URMC’s chief cardiologist Dr. Charles Lowenstein to find out.

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To learn more about heart health and the services available at the University of Rochester Medical Center, click here. To watch more videos from URMC cardiologists, click here

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*  The above story is adapted from materials provided by University of Rochester Medical Center

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