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Worry about a heart healthy lifestyle - not your blood type

People with certain blood types might be more at risk of heart disease, according to new research.

Those with blood type A, B or AB were found to have a higher risk of coronary heart disease when compared to people with blood type O. The findings are based on an analysis of two large studies in America involving nearly 90,000 adults.

Results show people in the study with the rarest blood type – AB – had the highest increased risk. Those with type B had an 11 per cent increased risk and those with blood type A had a five per cent increased risk.

Doireann Maddock, our Senior Cardiac Nurse, said: “While these findings are certainly interesting we’ll need more research to draw any firm conclusions about blood type and its role in heart disease risk.

“Nobody can influence what type of blood they are born with but a healthy lifestyle is something everybody can have an influence over. Eating healthily, getting active and stopping smoking are the types of things you should be worrying about, not your blood type.”

Learn how a healthy lifestyle can help lower your risk of heart disease

The study was published in the American Heart Association journal, Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology.