Cardio Vascular Disease Research

Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) is a group of disorders of the heart and blood vessels and is the leading cause of mortality throughout the world with the World Health Organization (WHO) estimating 23.6 million deaths due to CVD by 2030.  There are a number of factors which are linked to the development of CVD, such as an unhealthy diet high in salt, physical inactivity (a sedentary lifestyle), obesity, excess alcohol and smoking. There are further risk factors when existing conditions such as diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol are taken into consideration along with a strong family history.

However there is a lack of scientific evidence detailing the health status of young people especially amongst minority ethnic (ME) groups in Scotland. Nevertheless the few studies that have studied the prevalence of CVD in ethnic groups suggest that UK citizens with an ancestry from the Asian subcontinent are at a greater risk.        

Therefore Glasgow Life/Glasgow Sport and Scottish Ethnic Minority Sports Association (SEMSA) in partnership with the University of the West of Scotland (UWS) conducted research to determine the incidence of CVD risk factors in young people aged 14/15 – 18 years old.

Below are a series of tests and measures that were used as part of the project.

  • Blood Sampling and Analysis
  • Blood Pressure
  • Anthropometric Measures
  • Aerobic fitness
  • Anaerobic fitness
  • Physical Activity Levels
  • Maturational status
  • Dietary Intake

Phase 1 of the research took place on Saturday 20th November 2010 at Darnley Street Family Centre.

Phase 2 of the research took place on Saturday 22nd January 2011 at Mel Milaap Centre.

Please click the links below for results from the study.

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