Following a five-year rise likely influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, deaths from heart disease and stroke have begun to decline. However, these conditions remain the leading causes of death in the United States, claiming more lives annually than any other cause. This is according to the 2026 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics: A Report of U.S. and Global Data from the American Heart Association.
Together, heart disease, responsible for 22% of all U.S. deaths and the leading cause of mortality for more than a century, and stroke, accounting for 5.3% of deaths and now replacing COVID-19 as the fourth leading cause, made up more than a quarter of all deaths in 2023, the most recent year with available data.
Overall mortality from heart disease and stroke continues to fall, with fewer total deaths and modest improvements in age-adjusted death rates.
In 2023, there were 915,973 deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD), including heart disease, stroke, hypertension, and heart failure, down from 941,652 in 2022. The age-adjusted death rate declined from 224.3 to 218.3 per 100,000 people. On average, one person dies from CVD every 34 seconds.
Coronary heart disease, the most common form of CVD affecting the heart’s arteries and often leading to a heart attack, caused 349,470 deaths in 2023, compared with 371,506 in 2022, approximately two deaths every three minutes.
Stroke accounted for 162,639 deaths, down from 165,393 the previous year, equating to one death every three minutes and 14 seconds.
While the decline is encouraging, heart disease and stroke still claim too many lives, together exceeding the combined deaths from cancer and accidents.
Stroke now ranks fourth among leading causes of death, reflecting a reduction in COVID-19 mortality, which has fallen to tenth place. Although overall stroke deaths have declined, concerning increases have been observed among the youngest and oldest age groups. Between 2013 and 2023, the crude stroke death rate rose by 8.3% among people aged 25–34 years and by 18.2% among those aged over 85 years.
Fewer people are dying overall, and life expectancy is recovering following the pandemic. However, nearly half of U.S. adults still live with some form of cardiovascular disease, with rates exceeding pre-pandemic levels. Persistent rises in hypertension, diabetes, and obesity continue to drive risk.
Comparing 2017–2020 data with 2021–2023 figures shows that approximately 125.9 million adults (47.3%) now have high blood pressure, up from 122.4 million (46.7%). Diagnosed diabetes affects 29.5 million adults, slightly higher than previously. Around half of all adults have obesity or severe obesity. Although this is marginally lower overall, rates among young people aged 2–19 years have increased from 25.4% to 28.1%.
These interrelated conditions contribute not only to heart disease and stroke but also to broader complications. For the first time, the Statistics Update includes a chapter on cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic (CKM) syndrome, a cluster of interconnected disorders linking heart disease, kidney disease, diabetes, and obesity. CKM syndrome is associated with risk factors such as high blood pressure, elevated triglycerides, abnormal cholesterol, high blood glucose, impaired kidney function, and excess weight. The report estimates that nearly 90% of U.S. adults have some degree of CKM syndrome, and more than 80% of young and middle-aged adults already show early risk.
These figures should raise serious concern, particularly among younger adults, as they signal future health burdens. Although projections suggest continued increases in these conditions, she noted that advances in diagnostics and treatment offer opportunities for early detection and prevention.
Several studies cited in the report support the American Heart Association’s Life’s Essential 8™ framework for cardiovascular health. This guidance includes four health behaviours: healthier eating, physical activity, tobacco cessation, and adequate sleep, and four health factors: weight management, cholesterol control, blood glucose management, and blood pressure control. Together, these determine an individual’s cardiovascular health score.
Evidence indicates substantial benefits. A review of 59 studies found that people with ideal cardiovascular health had a 74% lower risk of cardiovascular events compared with those with poor health. In the United States, optimal scores could prevent up to 40% of annual deaths from all causes and cardiovascular disease. Better cardiovascular health is also associated with improved brain health, including younger brain age, less vascular damage, slower cognitive decline, and reduced dementia risk. A meta-analysis showed that each one-point improvement in cardiovascular health score was linked to a 6% reduction in dementia risk, with midlife health particularly influential.
Despite these benefits, adherence remains low. Diet quality scores are the poorest among both adults and children. Only one in four adults meets national physical activity recommendations, and fewer than one in five young people achieve 60 minutes of daily activity. While cigarette smoking continues to decline, e-cigarette use has become widespread among adolescents, with 18.1% of high school students reporting use and more than a quarter of users vaping daily. Additionally, fewer than half of adults treated for type 2 diabetes have their condition adequately controlled.
Up to 80% of heart disease and stroke cases are preventable through lifestyle changes, and many contributing chronic conditions can be effectively managed. Improving cardiovascular health is achievable but requires sustained, collective effort.
Source: American Heart Association
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