Diabetes itself is a terrible disease. With a high rate of incidence in the population, it brings risks of multiple complications. Perhaps one of the most important complications is the increase in the risk of heart attacks as shown by a group of researchers from the University of Leeds.

A large scale study involving around 700,000 patients admitted to hospitals with a heart attack between 2003 and 2013 showed that 121,000, or 17.2%, of them had diabetes.

The study, led by Dr. Chris Gale and published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, had the objective of investigating the risk of death linked to diabetes following a heart attack. For the study, the researchers used the data from 703,920 patients, of which 40% had ST-elevated myorcardial infarction, or STEMI (a type of heart attack during which one of the heart’s major arteries is blocked), and 60% non-STEMI. The collection of data was from over ten years, between 1 January 2003 and 30 June 2013.

After correcting for other illnesses, medical treatment received, age, and sex, the team found that patients with diabetes were about 50 percent more likely to have died from a heart attack.

Dr. Anna Morris, Head of Research Funding at Diabetes UK, says that managing diabetes can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. To this end, she suggests to have a healthy diet, keep active, and take the medications prescribed by your doctor.