ABSTRACT
Cardiovascular risk factors can usefully be divided into fixed (non-modifiable) and modifiable risk factors. Fixed risk factors include older age, male gender, family history, and a South Asian background. Modifiable risk factors include hypertension, hyperlipidaemia, diabetes, smoking, alcohol, exercise, and stress. Having one or more of these risk factors does not mean that a person is going to develop cardiovascular disease, but merely that he is at increased probability of developing it. Conversely, having no risk factors is not a guarantee that a person is not going to develop cardiovascular disease.
