Abstract:

The contraction of cardiovascular disease (CVD, heart disease, coronary heart disease or CHD) has long been related to poor diet, low amount of exercise, tobacco and alcohol usage, and traumatic stress. As such it is clear that a healthy diet, adequate exercise, well managed stress, and no tobacco or alcohol usage have proven to be the most important preventative measures to CVD. Many of these concerns and problems concerning cardiovascular health/potential risk factors, have to do with geographic location, socioeconomic class, and rural vs. acculturated populations. After researching connections between CVD and population type, the research shows that there is a direct correlation between CVD and a community that increasingly accepts a western lifestyle. In this review I will evaluate findings from around the world and compare them to the rural hunter-gatherer populations. The current population with the greatest reported cardiovascular health (CVH) is a rural hunter-gatherer community known as the Tsimane people of the Amazon. Living a lifestyle similar to that of a hunter-gatherer leads to greatest cardiovascular health (CVH). Future research should focus on implementation of hunter-gatherer lifestyle in a continually progressing, industrialized community.