Overall racial and ethnic differences in Life's Essentials 8 (LE8) scores compared with White adults remained relatively stable over the past decade, although disparities in individual components shifted, suggesting the need for targeted, group-specific interventions, according to a cross-sectional study published June 18 in JAMA Network Open.

Using data from the U.S. NHANES study collected from 2011 to 2020, Huanhuan Yang, PhD, Harlan M. Krumholz, MD, SM, FACC, et al., assessed trends in racial and ethnic differences in LE8 metrics and identified factors associated with these differences.

LE8, developed by the American Heart Association to quantify cardiovascular health, covers eight key areas: diet, physical activity, nicotine exposure, sleep health, BMI, blood glucose, blood lipids and blood pressure. Each metric is scored from 0 to 100, with the composite cardiovascular health score an average of these components.

Of the 16,104 study participants (median age 46 years; 51% women), 68% were White, 16% Latino/Hispanic, 11% Black and 5% Asian.

Results showed that LE8 scores were highest among Asian adults (71.2), followed by White (67.7) and Latino/Hispanic (65.9) adults, whereas scores were lowest among Black adults (62.0). Asian adults had the lowest prevalence of low cardiovascular health at 7%, while Blacks had the highest at 21%.

Notably, the gap in Latino/Hispanic vs. White sleep health score widened significantly from −1.25 to −4.38. Yang and colleagues write this gap "underscores the need to prioritize underrecognized contributors to [cardiovascular health], such as sleep, in public health initiatives."

Another trend included declines in BMI, blood lipids and blood pressure scores among Asian adults. The authors note this decline "calls for early, culturally appropriate interventions to prevent further deterioration."

Because "racial and ethnic gaps in [cardiovascular health] have not markedly improved over the past decade … more effective, tailored interventions that target specific drivers of these differences" are needed, according to the authors. "For example, Black vs. White differences [are] associated with multiple factors, including diet, physical activity, and sleep health, suggesting that culturally tailored outreach, enhanced access to preventive services, and behavioral support could be more effective than a one-size-fits-all approach."