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How Does Blood Viscosity Affect Heart Health? High blood cholesterol and high blood pressure (hypertension) are often regarded as some of the major risk factors that cause heart disease. But blood viscosity (blood thickness) does play an important role in heart health, too. According to a health report from Harvard University, people with thicker, more viscous blood may be at a greater risk for a heart attack or for developing heart disease. What is blood viscosity? It is an indication of the thickness of the blood, or its resistance to flowing normally. Thicker blood flow sluggishly, and there is higher chance for red cells to adhere to one another and form clots. Thick blood would obstruct the movement of oxygen, hormones, and nutrients in the body, preventing them from reaching tissues and cells. This can cause low oxygen levels in the cells and lead to hormonal and nutritional deficiencies. The heart will, as a result, have to pump harder in order to send sufficient amount of oxygen to the body. Many factors can raise blood viscosity. These include excessive red blood cells, high lipid levels, certain medications and other conditions like diabetes and cancer.
Red blood cells have the greatest influence on the
blood's viscosity because they account for up to half its volume. A hematocrit
is a simple blood test done to measure the red blood cells in a person’s blood.
In men, a normal hematocrit is between 41 percent and 53 percent, meaning red
blood cells account for 41 percent to 53 percent of blood volume; in women, it
is between 36 percent and 46 percent. At higher altitudes, there is a lower
oxygen supply in the air and so hematocrit levels may increase over time.
Blood lipid like low-density lipoprotein (LDL or bad cholesterol) can also affect viscosity. The more LDL, the thicker the blood. The same holds true for fibrinogen, a soluble protein that can be transformed into stringy, insoluble fibrin, which forms the semi-solid base of blood clots. Chronic inflammation, smoking, diabetes, stickiness of the platelets and genes, can all increase the viscosity of blood. People who have other heart health problems or who are regular smokers are more likely to have high blood viscosity. It is often symptomless initially for a person who has high blood viscosity and the first sign that shows up is blood clot. The blood clot usually occurs in vein that can cause pain and affect circulation in and around the area where the clot occurs. But on some other occasions, certain symptoms may surface, including blurred vision, lightheadedness, headache, easy bruising, excessive menstrual, bleeding or clotting, high blood pressure, lack of energy, shortness of breath. If one discovers blood clots of unknown origin, repeated blood clots and recurrent pregnancy loss, he or she should seek medical help. Over the years, researchers have investigated possible connections between the viscosity of blood and heart disease. In a paper published in September 1993 in ‘Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine’, researchers pointed out that there is accumulating evidence suggesting that increased blood viscosity is an independent risk factor for atherosclerotic heart disease and its complications. A recent study, which was published online January 21, 2019 in Journal ‘Cureus’, reported that whole blood viscosity is a physiological variable associated with a number of cardiovascular risk factors in hypertensive patients. Such risk factors are related to renal function and lipid profiles. Some studies, on the other hand, could not find the connection between blood's mechanical properties and heart disease. But this does not seem to prevent scientists to fuel more research.
To improve blood viscosity, one can adopt those
measures catered for general heart disease prevention. Exercise generally helps
the blood flow better by improving the health of the arteries, reducing blood
pressure, and reducing cholesterol. Quitting smoking can reduce the clotting
ability of blood and lower the chance of a heart attack. Cutting fat in diet,
losing weight, keeping cholesterol in check, and maintaining blood pressure
under tight control all help directly and indirectly in lowering the chance of
heart attack, which is essentially related to blood flow. When these measures
are insufficient, one may need to rely on medication and other guidelines from
the doctor to reduce the risk. Date: October 17, 2019
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