Heart disease remains leading cause of death as key health risk factors continue to rise | American Heart Association

Heart disease remains leading cause of death as key health risk factors continue to rise Fueled by ongoing increases in high blood pressure, obesity and other major risk factors, heart disease continues to kill more people in the U.S. than any other cause, according to the American Heart Association’s 2025 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics. Heart disease remains the leading cause of death in the U.S. While medical advances have helped more people live longer with cardiovascular diseases, many of the risk factors which lead to these diseases, including high blood pressure and obesity, continue to grow at alarming rates. Cardiovascular diseases, including heart disease and stroke, claim more lives in the U.S. than all forms of cancer and accidental deaths – the #2 and #3 causes of death – combined. Jan. 27, 2025 — The annual update published today in Circulation, the peer-reviewed, flagship journal of the American Heart Association, the leading global voluntary health organization devoted to changing the future of health care for a world of healthier lives for all.