Adults in Rural Communities Have Worse Rates of Heart Disease, NIH Research Team Says

An NIH-funded research team found that adults in rural communities had “higher rates of heart disease and worse heart health” than adults in urban areas.

Adults living in rural areas were found more likely to have heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity, and diabetes. The differences were largest among adults aged 20-39.

The investigators reviewed data from “more than 27,000 adults who participated in the 2022 National Health Interview Survey.” Higher rates of heart disease among adults in rural areas has already been established in other studies, so the team sought to “understand factors driving these variations.” Some of the factors that were found to have an effect included “levels of income and education, having enough food to eat, and owning a home.” Prior research has already shown that “difficult circumstances, such as living in poverty, can affect cardiovascular health, including increasing inflammation in the body.”

The starkest difference in these conditions between rural and urban communities was found in the South. Rates of obesity were “higher across rural areas throughout the U.S., especially in the Northeast.” Over 60 million adults total in the U.S. live in rural communities. The authors of the study also noted that “insights from their study could inform public health efforts and policies to support and improve the cardiovascular health of people…living in rural areas.”