CARDIOVASCULAR RISK FACTORS IN PHYSICALLY ACTIVE FEMALE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in the world, and occur as a result of many risk factors (obesity, high blood pressure, inadequate physical activity, hyperlipoproteinemia, inadequate diet and an unhealthy lifestyle). Given that in young adults most of these risk factors tend to remain at the same level or to even increase with age, especially after the second or third decade of life. This means that if young adults are in the at-risk group in terms of cardiovascular diseases, they usually stay in that group in later life. The research problem is to examine the strength and significance of possible linear correlations of certain cardiovascular risk factors in 53 physically active female university students (PE students), aged 19 to 25 years, as well as to examine possible differences between those with different lengths of sports experience (ranging from 0 to 5, 6 to 10 and 11 to 15 years). Their baseline characteristics (age, body height and mass, body mass index - BMI, resting metabolic rate - RMR, resting heart rate - RHR and length of sports experience) were determined, as well as the linear relationships of selected cardiovascular risk factors (body fat percentage - BF%, visceral fat level - Visc F, waist circumference - WC, arterial blood pressure - SBP and DBP). The data were analyzed (descriptive statistics, the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Peаrson’s and Spearman’s correlation coefficient, ANOVA) using SPSS 21.0. The results of the analysis indicated a lack of statistically significant differences in cardiovascular risks factors between female PE students with different lengths of sports experience, and the existence of statistically significant (p<0.001), positive, mostly strong correlations, between most of the selected cardiovascular risk factors. When it comes to blood pressure parameters, although weak positive and statistically significant (p<0.05) correlations were established between SBP and BMI (r=.273), SBP and WC (r=.308), so as between DBP and body mass (r=.284), DBP and RHR (r=.287), DBP and RMR (r=.292), as well between DBP and WC (r=.304) and DBP and SBP (r=.571, p<0.001), it is unequivocal that the reduction of body mass at the expense of adipose tissue is necessary, as well as an increase in the moderate physical activity level and regularity, in order to reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases in female PE students now as well as in older age.