Historical trends in modifiable indicators of cardiovascular health and self-rated health among older adults: Cohort differences over 20 years between the Berlin Aging Study (BASE) and the Berlin Aging Study II (BASE-II)

Background: The last decades have seen great advances in the understanding, treatment, and prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Although mortality rates due to CVD have declined significantly in the last decades, the burden of CVD is still high, particularly in older adults. This raises the question whether contemporary populations of older adults are experiencing better or worse objective as well as subjective health than earlier-born cohorts. The aim of this study was to examine differences in modifiable indicators of cardiovascular health (CVH), comparing data obtained 20 years apart in the Berlin Aging Study (BASE, 1990–93) and the Berlin Aging Study II (BASE-II, 2009–2014). Methods: Serial cross-sectional analysis of 242 propensity-score-matched participants of BASE (born 1907–1922) and BASE-II (born 1925–1942). Body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, total cholesterol, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), diet, smoking and physical activity were operationalized according to the “Life’s simple 7“(LS7) criteria of the American Heart Association. Results: 121 matched pairs were identified based on age, sex, and education. In the later-born BASE-II sample, the mean LS7 score was significantly higher than in the earlier-born sample (7.8±1.8 vs. 6.4±2.1, p