LONDON -- Even without temptations like fast food or cigarettes, people had clogged arteries some 4,000 years ago, according to the biggest-ever study of mummies.
Researchers say that suggests heart disease may be more a natural part of human aging than directly tied to contemporary risk factors.CT scans of 137 mummies showed evidence of atherosclerosis, or hardened arteries, in one third of those examined, including those from ancient people believed to have healthy, hunter-gatherer lifestyles.More than half of the mummies were from Egypt while the rest were from Peru, southwest America and the Aleutian islands in Alaska. The mummies were from about 3800 B.C. to 1900 A.D."I think it's fair to say people should feel less guilty about getting heart disease in modern times," said Dr. Randall Thompson, a cardiologist at Saint Luke's Mid America Heart Institute in Kansas City. His research was published Sunday in the medical journal Lancet.Have more to add? News tip? Tell us
