Reuters reports that people who have diabetes have the same chance of having a major heart-related event as those who have already had a heart attack. The researchers who conducted the study found that a person with diabetes is 2.3 times more likely to get a stroke, heart attack or other major heart related event than a man who has neither diabetes nor a prior heart attack. Men who had a heart attack previously, were 2.5 times more likely to get the same heart-related events. For women, the risks were 2.5 times for diabetics and 2.7 times for those with a previous heart attack. Additionally, when diabetics have a heart attack, they are twice as likely to die as non-diabetics, the researchers said.

The study encompassed 3.3 million Danes who were at least 30 years old. Overall, 2.2 percent of subjects had diabetes and 2.4 percent had a prior heart attack.

For me, that means I, at 28, have the same risk for a heart attack or stroke as my father-in-law who is 31 years older. My goal of living until 100 just got it’s first heart attack!

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