
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, March 30, 1990                   TAG: 9003300864
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A/1   EDITION: EVENING 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: SAN DIEGO                                LENGTH: Short

CHOLESTEROL POSES THREAT TO ELDERLY

Contrary to earlier research, a government study shows even old people suffer more heart disease if their blood cholesterol is high, suggesting they might benefit by eating less fat, exercising and losing weight.

The study contradicts some findings in research dating to 1948 that linked high blood cholesterol, high blood pressure and cigarette smoking to increased heart disease among residents of Framingham, Mass., said Dr. Dwayne Reed, a lead scientist on the new study.

For years, the Framingham work found no significant link between heart disease and cholesterol among people 65 and older, which made some doctors reluctant to advise elderly people to reduce serum cholesterol, said Reed, whose research is done at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.

His study of 3,440 middle-age and 1,419 elderly men in Hawaii showed that high levels of cholesterol in the bloodstream increased the risk of future heart disease among 65- to 74-year-olds just as it did for those 50 to 59.

The 20 percent of men with the highest cholesterol levels were 1.7 times more likely to develop heart disease within 12 years than were the 20 percent of men with the lowest levels - regardless of their age when the study started in 1977.

That means people with high cholesterol - levels above 240 milligrams of cholesterol per deciliter of blood - should be treated the same no matter what age they are, said Reed, an epidemiologist and physician who directs the government's Honolulu Heart Program.

The Framingham study did not include enough elderly people until recent years, said Dr. Peter Wilson.

by CNB