There are a number of risk factors for peripheral arterial disease (PAD), some of which are within your control.
Risk factors you cannot change:
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Age: Usually PAD only happens to people over the age of 50, although it is more common at a younger age in people who smoke as well as people with diabetes or high blood pressure or high cholesterol |
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Family history: PAD can run in families, meaning that if lots of people in your family have had PAD, then your risk is increased. This is usually due to a combination of several genes and also habits that are common amongst the whole family. |
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Ethnicity: PAD is more common in Black ethnic groups. |
Risk factors you can do something about:
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Smoking: This is one of the biggest risk factors for PAD. People who smoke are twice as likely to get PAD. The more someone smokes, the worse the PAD. If you have PAD and continue to smoke, the PAD is likely to get worse and you are twice as likely to end up with an amputation compared to someone who gives up smoking. |
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High blood pressure: High blood pressure can make the arteries stiff and contributes to narrowing of arteries. |
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High cholesterol: Cholesterol is a fat in the blood. We need some cholesterol to make hormones, cells and to help digest food. If cholesterol is too high, it can cause a build up of fatty areas that narrow the arteries. |
Other risk factors:
Type 2 Diabetes: Diabetes damages blood vessels, increasing the risk of PAD.
Cardiovascular disease (CVD): People with heart disease or strokes are also more likely to develop PAD. In addition to the risk factors mentioned above, there are some other general risk factors for CVD:
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- Weight: Living with overweight is strongly linked to CVD but the good news is that losing weight helps reduce many of the risk factors. In addition, if you are living with overweight, your legs have more work to do. This can make the symptoms of PAD worse as the legs need more oxygen to be able to do the additional work.
- Physical inactivity: Increasingly physical activity can reduce the risk of developing CVD.
Kidney disease: People with long term kidney problems are at more risk of PAD as well as other types of cardiovascular disease such as angina, heart attacks and strokes.
