Atherosclerosis, the buildup of fatty plaque in artery walls, has long been viewed as a condition that mostly appears after age 50. But new research highlighted by New Scientist suggests a meaningful proportion of younger adults also have the condition.
The report indicates that nearly 1 in 10 young adults could have fatty, narrowed arteries. This challenges the assumption that significant arterial plaque is rare before middle age and points to cardiovascular risk emerging earlier in life than commonly expected.
Because the finding is described as an estimate, the exact share of affected young adults remains uncertain. Still, the result underscores the importance of monitoring cardiovascular health well before the typical age of atherosclerosis diagnosis.