Which of the following is a controllable risk factor for heart disease?

• A. Age
• B. Regular physical activity
• C. Family history
• D. Gender

Answer: (B)

Understanding which risk factors for heart disease you can change through your actions is the idea being tested. Regular physical activity is a controllable risk factor because you actively choose to exercise, and those choices directly influence heart health. Exercise helps lower blood pressure, improve the lipid profile by increasing HDL and reducing triglycerides, support healthy weight, enhance insulin sensitivity, and reduce inflammation. All of these changes lessen the workload on the heart and arteries and lower the overall risk of heart disease over time. By contrast, age, family history, and gender aren’t things you can modify; age progresses, family history reflects genetics, and sex-related risk patterns exist, though they guide how you monitor and prevent disease. So the option describing regular physical activity is the one you can change, making it the correct choice.