**4. Risk factors for cardiovascular diseases**

There are a number causal risk factors which are associated with CVDs and it is of paramount importance to understand and recognise these risk factors in order to predict and more so, to prevent CVDs. Risk factors may be causal or just a marker of risk(s) in nature and they are often called "innocent bystanders" [26]. The WHO has identified high blood pressure, tobacco use, physical inactivity, unhealthy diet, overweight, obesity, diabetes, high blood glucose and high cholesterol, as the main causal factors of the global burden of CVDs [27]. This review will now focus on how hypertension and diabetes mellitus can lead to heart failure (HF) and diabetesinduced cardiomyopathy (DCM).
