Diet, exercise, and CVD: When counseling makes the most sense

In addition to counseling...

The Task Force also recommends other interventions for the primary prevention of CVD:

• screening for and treating hypertension
• selectively screening for hyperlipidemia
• using aspirin to prevent CVD in those at high risk

• intensive counseling on weight management for those who are obese
• advising children and adolescents to avoid tobacco, and using brief interventions for tobacco cessation for smokers.

The recent Task Force recommendation on the use of vitamins, minerals, and multivitamins² states that, while many adults take vitamin and mineral supplements in the belief that they prevent both heart disease and cancer, there is no evidence to support that belief. And there is good evidence that both β-carotene and vitamin E do not prevent disease. For other vitamins and minerals, singly or in combination, there is insufficient evidence to recommend for or against their use.²

There is good evidence that both β-carotene and vitamin E do not prevent CVD or cancer.

The Community Preventive Services Task Force—a separate expert panel established by the US Department of Health and Human Services to complement the USPSTF—makes recommendations on population-level interventions and has a series of recommendations on ways to improve the population’s nutrition and physical activity.¹⁰ These community-based interventions, if widely implemented, would probably yield greater improvements in healthy eating and increased activity levels than resource-intense clinical interventions based on individual patients with low risk.