Which of the following is a modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease?

• A. Smoking
• B. Family history of heart disease
• C. Age
• D. Male gender

Answer: (A)

The main concept here is the difference between modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors for cardiovascular disease. A modifiable risk factor is something you can change to lower risk, such as smoking. Tobacco use directly harms blood vessels, raises blood pressure, promotes atherosclerosis, and increases thrombosis risk; quitting smoking reduces these risks and improves heart health over time, making it the best example of a changeable factor among the options.

Non-modifiable factors include things you can’t change, like family history, age, and male gender. They influence baseline risk, but you can’t modify the factor itself, even though you can mitigates risk through healthy lifestyle and treatment.

So smoking stands out as the modifiable risk factor.