Can blood type determine the risk of stroke and heart attack? Answered by a cardiologist

Can blood type determine the risk of stroke and heart attack? Answered by a cardiologist

We tell you who is more susceptible to cardiovascular diseases.

Cardiologist, functional diagnostics doctor at LabQuest + Q-Clinica medical company

“There are various myths and legends around human blood groups. Influence on character, the need for a special diet and mental compatibility – all this has nothing to do with reality. Nevertheless, this indicator is really able to have an effect on the risk of developing certain ailments, including heart attack, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases. And, unlike the misconceptions listed above, it has a scientific basis.”

Human blood types

Each of us has red blood cells in our blood – red blood cells that carry oxygen throughout the body. In addition, they may have antibodies and inherited antigens on their surface. This complex of substances differs from person to person, so in the presence of incompatibility of groups, the body perceives foreign blood as a foreign body, which leads to the destruction of red blood cells.

Now most often used system AB0 in combination with the concept of “Rh factor” – they are considered the most clinically significant. The combination of antibodies and antigens A and B or their absence and determine the division into groups.

For example, group A, or the second group, has B-antibodies in the plasma and A-antigens on red blood cells. And the first, the most common group, has no antigens at all, but there are A and B antibodies in the plasma.

And the Rh factor is a separate antigen that may or may not be present. Its presence adds the word “positive” to the group, the absence – “negative”.

Who is more susceptible to cardiovascular disease

When it became clear that the composition of one person’s blood directly affects its compatibility with another person’s blood, a logical question arose – can this influence extend further? Several studies have been conducted in an attempt to find a link between the incidence of certain diseases and blood type. And, as their results have shown, a particularly strong difference between blood groups lies in the risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

In particular, people with blood groups A and B compared to group O have a 1.6 times higher risk of developing thromboembolic complications – a disruption of blood flow due to the appearance of blood clots that narrow the lumen of blood vessels or block it altogether. Also, compared to group O, blood type A was associated with a higher risk of heart failure and hyperlipidemia – abnormally elevated levels of lipids or lipoproteins.

In addition, people with blood type A have an increased risk of developing atopy, a condition in which the body has an excessive tendency to mount an immune response to generally harmless substances from the environment. In other words, the likelihood of allergies increases.

In addition to an increased risk of thromboembolic disease and arterial hypertension, blood type B is associated with an increased risk of myocardial infarction compared to blood type O.

Overall, studies show that people who were not blood type O had worse health and shorter life expectancy compared to people with blood type O. This was most often seen in people with blood type A. It may seem that people with blood types A and B are unlucky in everything. But there are two things to consider.

• First, compared to people with type O, they have a lower risk of gastrointestinal bleeding and the development of arterial hypertension.
• Secondly, the difference in the probability of developing the above conditions in most cases is quite small – from 3%.

Factors in the development of cardiovascular disease

In fact, other factors contribute much more to the development of cardiovascular disease:

• bad habits;
• poor nutrition;
• lack of exercise;
• stress;
• obesity.

Blood type does have an impact on risk, but not that significant. For this reason, if you have a health problem, do not blame your blood type first – it is better to review your lifestyle first.