Heart Attack + Original Articles

Keep Your Heart Healthy in Every Season

Heat, humidity, and bitter cold can be difficult for anyone. But if you have a heart condition, changes in the weather can be downright dangerous. Learn how to keep your ticker safe. If you live in northern climes, shoveling snow is usually the worst part of the lovely, white scenery. Shoveling can be physically stressful and exhausting. If you're not conditioned for outdoor activities in the cold, over exertion can increase the risk of heart attack.

Diet, Bacteria, and Your Heart

The foods you eat can end up hardening your arteries, but not in the way you think. Scientists think they've found a link between the bacteria that lives in everyone's gut and the process of hardening arteries. What does that mean for you and your family? Diet and Disease Risk Eating too much red meat has long been associated with increased levels of blood cholesterol, which can contribute to the build-up of plaque (debris made up of substances like cells, fats, and connective tissue) in the arteries.

Angioplasty: What to Expect

It's a minimally-invasive procedure performed for the purpose of opening narrow or blocked arteries. Here's the info you need. Cardiologists and radiologists have been using angioplasty to clear blocked and narrowed arteries for more than 35 years. In a nutshell, the procedure involves running a catheter through an artery from the groin or wrist to the blocked area. A balloon attached to a guide wire inside the catheter is inflated at the blockage site to put pressure on the artery wall, unblock the area and restore blood flow.

Transient Ischemic Attacks: What You Need to Know

Sometimes referred to as "mini strokes," TIAs are temporary and cause no permanent damage. But they can be a warning sign of bigger problems to come. A transient ischemic attack (TIA) shares many similarities with stroke but there are differences. Like a stroke, it occurs when the blood flow to your brain is impeded and causes a part of the brain to stop working. It differs in that, with a TIA, stroke-like symptoms are temporary and there is no damage to the brain.

A New Take on Heart Disease Risk

BMI is a popular tool to evaluate cardiac health, but it may not be the best one. If you have an elevated BMI, or body mass index, does this mean you're at increased risk of experiencing a serious health problem? It all depends, according to a new study. BMI and Health The medical community often relies on BMI as an indicator of overall...

Get to the Root of Your Oral Health

Why does dental health matter? Because there's a clear link between it and the rest of your overall health. "There's a huge link between systemic health and oral health," explains George Shepley, DDS, MAGD, spokesperson for the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD). He says that the connection can be traced to the inflammatory response that occurs in periodontal disease and is seen in other conditions as well.

The Limits of "Good" Cholesterol

A research study uncovered new information about the protective powers of HDL, or "good", cholesterol. You eat well, exercise regularly, and take medication to keep your "good" cholesterol-or high-density lipoproteins (HDL) -at optimal levels in order to lower your risk of heart and stroke. But are you really protected? While living a healthy lifestyle is always essential, a new research study questions the specific health benefits of using medication to raise HDL.

The Link Between Peripheral Artery Disease and Depression

Psychosocial factors like stress and depression can have an adverse effect on cardiac health. Here's what you can do. There's an association between psychosocial factors, such as stress, depression, hostility, and social isolation, and risk for adverse cardiac events, especially for individuals who already have heart disease. Peripheral Artery Disease Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) is the narrowing of arteries in areas of the body not near the heart-most commonly the pelvis and legs.

Health by the Numbers: Cholesterol

High cholesterol puts you at a higher risk for serious health conditions, including heart attack and stroke. Here's a look at cholesterol by the numbers. Your body produces cholesterol, a waxy, fat-like substance, but it's also is found in certain foods. If you eat too much of the wrong kind of foods, you can develop high blood cholesterol, which increases the odds of getting coronary heart disease. Plaque comprised of cholesterol and other substances builds up in the arteries and causes a condition called atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries).

Is Avandia Safe?

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has established new restrictions on the use of Avandia, a widely used diabetes treatment. In 2004, the FDA approved Avandia, in combination with insulin, to treat type 2 diabetes. Avandia is the brand name for rosiglitazone. In 2007, the agency reported a possible association between rosiglitazone and an increased risk of cardiovascular events, such as heart attack.

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