FRIDAY, May 29, 2026 (NewsDay News) — During the first three years of the COVID-19 pandemic, better cardiovascular health (CVH) was associated with a lower risk of severe COVID-19 events, according to a study published online May 27 Journal of the American Heart Association.
Timothy B. Plante, MD, of the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont, Burlington, and colleagues examined whether the American Heart Association Life Score 8 (LE8) metric and its components were associated with severe disease in the Cohort of COVID-19 (Covid-19). In adjusted factor-specific hazard models, associations of severe incident COVID-19 with continuous LE8, categorical LE8 (low (<50), moderate (50 to <80), and high (≥80) CVH) and individual components of LE8 were assessed.
Data were included for 29,740 participants in nine groups. The researchers identified 681 severe cases of COVID-19 between March 1, 2020, and February 28, 2023. For every LE8 standard deviation, the risk of severe COVID-19 was 20 percent lower (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.80). High but not moderate CVH was associated with a lower risk of severe COVID-19 than low CVH (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.54). Associations were seen for the LE8 components of better physical activity, body mass index, blood pressure, and sleep with a lower risk of severe COVID-19.
“Our results suggest that better heart health, which is something people can work on, is likely to better prepare you for real-world stressors like infectious diseases like COVID-19,” said senior author Elizabeth S.
One author revealed his connection to Vasomune.
