Physical inactivity ‘biggest heart disease risk factor in older women’

Lack of exercise has been identified as the single biggest heart disease risk factor in women over the age of 30 by a new study.

Carried out by the University of Queensland in Australia, the research looked at the health of more than 30,000 women born in the 1920s, 1940s and 1970s. It was found that smoking had the greatest impact on heart disease risk below the age of 30.

However, as they grew older, physical inactivity overtook as the dominant factor influencing heart disease risk. The researchers noted that if all over-30s followed recommended exercise guidelines, nearly 3,000 lives could be saved each year in Australia alone.

Professor Wendy Brown, of the university's centre for research on exercise, physical activity and health, told BBC News: "We need a lot more effort to keep middle-aged women active and then keep them active into old age."

Coronary heart disease is the UK's biggest killer, causing around 82,000 deaths each year. It is responsible for the deaths of one in every eight women, and one in five men.